This is a shot I've stolen off of the site of the komuten (the contractor), showing the layer of plastic they lay down to cut down on moisture before starting the rebar forms. Under the plastic is a layer of gravel. And under that, in pretty much the exact center of the house, they've buried the little box of items from the Shinto ceremony. The foundation foreman said he took a photo of it before they shoveled gravel over it, but I haven't seen it yet.
I drove down again yesterday for a quick visit to the site.
The foreman said they poured the concrete on Thursday. Because of the narrow one-way road and the narrow driveway, they squeezed the pump car into the driveway, and jacked it up (see photo). Then they'd bring in the the mixer and pour as much concrete into the pump as they could before a car would come along and they'd have to drive the mixer around the block to let the car by.There's a waiting period of 10 days or so for the concrete to dry fully, so there was no activity, and there won't be until they start preparing for raising the walls, which is scheduled for July 4th. It was a beautiful sunny day, and the concrete was plenty dry enough for me to climb all over it. I had the plans with me so I spent a lot of time measuring everything--not because I don't trust the komuten, but just for the record. The concrete was very even, very smooth, and the bolts to attach the framing were all located as promised.
Spent a few hours over coffee and a coke with friend Ben, who lives not far away. We sat under the awning of Fuji-mi-tei, the "Fuji-view," a little place with a very limited menu run by an old guy and his wife overlooking the Tateishi parking lot and, beyond that, the sea. The main topic of conversation was how it's going to feel to actually make the move away from Tokyo. Ben lived in a very central part of the city before moving down so it's very similar to our situation.
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