DESPITE toiling in the hot sun all week Con Merkouris, 77, reckons he’s the happiest bloke in Perth.
He’s restoring 300 metres of the old stone wall at the Greek Orthodox church on Charles Street, starting at “half-past-six in the morning and not stop for a second!”.
Mr Merkouris recalls jobs were scarce when he was young, so any time he’s working, he’s happy.
Plus, he laughs, “if I stay home, the missus says ‘fix this, fix that!’”.
The well-muscled septugenarian has been in the building trade since he was 10, but spent some time as a boxer before coming to Australia in 1974.
He says he can’t believe kids’ attitude to work these days, taking jobs for granted and having no pride in their work.
“This will last for 40 years!” he boasts, brandishing his trowel.
by DAVID BELL
Perth Voice Interactive 
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