On Thu, 03 Feb 2005 10:52:55 -0800, Jim Stewart
wrote:

jim rozen wrote:
In article , Jim McGill says...

I had to replace my feed line last fall, and it was surprisingly easy to
do using a mattock and a narrow shovel. Dug ~50' of 2' deep trench in
about 3 hours. The crucial tool was a sharp mattock. Since you're going
to drain it in the winter (use an air compressor to clear the line) all
you need to do is get below the surface. I'd go down about 6" and lay
plastic pipe. Fit the turf back on top in order and it will be invisible
after the first rain. Don't know where you are, but here in earthquake
country they recommend you lay a curving line so it will flex a bit and
not sheer at one end in a quake.


Agree. But not on the amount of time it took!

My backyard was full of rocks, old brick walls, and trash
pits from way-back-when. It took me about of month
of working each night for an hour or so, to dig a 3-foot
deep trench, about a foot wide, 50 feet out to the garage.

The real come-down was when I was flailing away with the
pick, and my neighbor (70 y.o.) came over and said 'let
me do that for a while.' And he made three times the
progress in about half the time, with about 1/4 the effort!

Ditch diggin isn't the career path
it used to be. My grampa was a soft
coal miner and I'm sure that he could
have outdug me any day in my youth.

Proving once again that's there's skill in almost everything.

Thanks for the reminder.

--RC
"Sometimes history doesn't repeat itself. It just yells
'can't you remember anything I've told you?' and lets
fly with a club.
-- John W. Cambell Jr.