I was amazed at how huge everything is.  My perspective here on my terrace is no where near reality.  Everything is just wildly huge.  The Turner office trailers themselves have 12,000 square feet of space.  And there are 460 workers on site! I was so busy listening and asking questions that I didn't get everything noted down and hope that what I did get, I got correctly but I have to say that I was just amazed.

Before I get to the photos, let me warn you... they are all thumbnails of the very large originals.  I didn't want you to miss any of the detail.  Ok, on with the show!

 Here are the rusty thingies from the ground up.  They are, in fact, supports for installing the roof.  And they are also the very same ones used at Safeco field.  The boxes on top old the mechanisms for getting the roof up there.   They circle shows what is called (and I am not making this up) the goal posts.  These guide the trusses into place.  And, speaking of trusses, I saw a piece of one getting ready to go up...  See it in the circle in this photo on the right?  This is one section and the bottom half of that section.  We'll start seeing them go up maybe as early as next week.  It will take until April to get the whole thing in place.  Then they will move the rusty thingies over to the west side for installation of the roof on that side.  

Now, here's something really really cool.  The photo on the left is of the northeast lump.  Now, see those things sticking out the back (I circled them for you)?  Well, those are rails upon which the truss will be positioned while it's being installed.  They are temporary.  The lump itself is sitting on a Teflon base
plate near the top of the concrete pylon.  This allows for the small movement needed as the weather changes and the trusses expand and contract a little. 

 Here's a photo of the west side.  You can see that they are not nearly as far along here.  They haven't even started with the concrete seats.  Oh and those concrete seats?  They are poured in Canada and trucked into the site.  Remember the plastic that was over the seats?  Well, you guys figured that one out.  When they first place the seats in the joints are not caulked yet and the plastic keeps the rain out from the areas being worked below!

Here's a view from the middle of the playing field or where the playing field will go.  I learned that the current ground level is actually about a foot higher than what the field will be.  When it's time, they will dig out that foot to lay down the field.  And, after all this time looking down, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to look up at my house (it's circled for you).

And the big scoreboard that will obstruct my view of the stadium...  It actually will stretch between the two north towers and lead up to the platform thing that's growing in the center of our daily photo.  Here's a view of that looking north.  It will lead into the seats that will face the south.  In fact, there is a whole section of seats to be installed on the east side (our view) below where the lowest ones are now.  They can't put them in until they get the roof up and the rusty thingies moved out of the way.

I saw so much and I got so much information, I'm sure I've forgotten something.  I was promised another tour in the future and I'll do better next time.  Oh, one thing.  You know those supports they put on the walls while they pour the concrete?  They first put up the rebar and then the supports which sure look wooden from here.  Turns out, of course, they are steel and huge and come in pieces that are assembled according to what they need for the particular wall, and then hoisted up and left in place until the concrete is finished.  

And another cool thing I just remembered.  At the far south of the stadium there's a section that you cannot see from here.  It has a top block of seats not yet into place.  That's because there's a stairway going underneath.  They are dropping the pieces of stairway in from above and building it from the ground to the top that way and then they will put in the rest of the seats.  

It's just an amazing thing.  I realize I'm using the same words over and over again but, seriously, I was just knocked out by the whole experience.  It's going to be a wonder next year and a half to watch.  Hope you'll stick with me.

Susan