Manufactured Landscapes (with bonus musical accompaniment)

This place has been hopping this week! Or should I say trembling... So, what you need to know about backfilling: There's a good shot in the Nov 9 post of the hole that previously encompassed our new building. Next step is to bring in dirt:

Then, move the dirt around:

And compact it to make it nice and sturdy. This little machine is deceptive in appearance. It made the entire building shake, even down to the residence wing! Computer screens vibrated, the mailboxes in the mailroom were buzzing, we all felt pretty much like this for three days.

So, remember that picture last week where the worker was standing up on scaffolding to pour a column? And that retaining wall? Check Oct 26's post to see how much of it there actually is. Well, the elevation in that area has risen considerably. It's actually quite amazing how dramatically the landscape has changed - they are regrading the entire area, which will eventually slope down from the new entrance.

Things have been changing inside, too. We have a charming new addition to the atrium (don't worry, it's temporary!). There are plans to decorate it as Santa's cottage for Christmas... This picture also illustrates the regular influx of business for the coffee bar from the crew. Our Atrium stairs are currently closed, so everyone is using the temporary corridor (there's a picture in the Sept 21 post). It's a bit of a maze, but with copious amounts of signage and directions, people seem to be managing.