update on the construction site: and a person not met- but close.

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Been a while since I filled you all in on the comings and goings next door.  Well this is primarily for Isaac since he likes dump trucks and excavators.  We have been busy.  After a seemingly interminable amount of drilling and pouring concrete deep into the ground for some reason, we commenced digging out a major sized hole.  

Traffic flow over there on LaGuardia, I believe it is, at times was a hoot, as the trucks entered and left the construction site.  Horns blew, helping the situation of course.  The construction workers were sincerely concerned with maintaining traffic flow.  I could just tell.

Then they moved sides of the construction site to my street, brought in more trucks, a second excavator and in short order had trucks doing some serious traffic flow problems right here on calle cinquenta y uno, calle con restaurante La Pappa ( a famous landmark restaurant here in town and how I tell taxi drivers where I live).

These next photo is special for Isaac to see the workings of loading a truck.  I liked watching too.

and wouldnt't ya know it.  Just when they finished it rained.  Well actually it rained most every day and water management is a big part of the construction.  I get to hear generators and pumps start early to remove the water, and they do and then we proceed.

now if you look closely you can see construction has moved into the street, hoo boy, and water is in a deeper hole.  This is not from rain.  We have serious water leaks around here.  This became apparent when the site was filling up with no rain.  so we have multiple operations going on.

and who was the person not met, why none other than former President Bill Clinton who stayed in the beige hotel in the photo above.  The Bristol Hotel, making a significant addition of its own to it's side there, but remaining open and still very fancy.  Often I see or large fancy  or vintage cars or limos pull up for parties in the evenings.  Jen and I went there one evening for sandwiches at the bar -- talking fancy.

 Anyway a couple of days ago, Bill hisself was there.  Stopped the late shift construction as this machine seen below was apparently causing a disturbance.  The mayor came over and asked my neighbor, and owner of the Executive Hotel to stop the construction in the street, because the President was next door.  Asked might not be the right word here, but I am being nice to Peder, my neighbor.

It was common knowledge that the former president was going to stay in Casco Viejo, but apparently spreading false rumors regarding where the former President is going to stay is part of standard security procedures.  Anyway there the President was, just half a block away and we could have had such a nice discussion.  I would have taken his picture too and put in the blog.  Oh well, perhaps he just did not know I was here.

Oh and you should hear this guy reverberate off the buildings.  Like canyon walls,  the buildings seem to magnify the sound and send it up and out and all over the place.  I showed the operator the photo after I took it.  Got a thumbs up from him, then I hurried on with fingers in ears.  I understand why the mayor asked Peder to stop for a while.