I am Plumber, I am oven Engineer, I am Carpenter, La Ville Rose: Toulouse

I am Plumber, I am oven Engineer, I am Carpenter

Our plumber came round to look at the airlock in our shower. He tried some basic tricks which wouldn't fix it and said he would need to come back with some different tools.

Fair enough. Except I decided to consult Gemini AI which told me precisely what to do. Previously I would have been too worried about unscrewing the wrong pipe to attempt such repairs. But prior to touching anything, I showed Gemini the precise pipe or nut I was about to tackle and asked for confirmation it was correct (by uploading a photo). Just as well as I was going to loosen the wrong pipe. Well it took me about 5 minutes to fix it and cancel the plumber. 

I fixed the shower.

We also had a problem with our oven door. The glass pane had come loose and was going to fall out. Again, consulting Gemini with pictures, it immediately identified the oven type and the issue and told me which glue to buy (one that can sustain very high temperatures). I followed the instructions precisely.

I fixed the oven door.

Finally, we had an unwanted gap in a wooden door that was letting air in following a very hot summer of expansion and contraction. Gemini to the rescue again. It told me how to apply silicon so easlity that I did the job in 3 minutes and made no mess! That's a first for me as I have been terrible with silicon.

I fixed the front door.

What makes all the difference it that if you have a doubt (which I do all the time and I don't want to make things worse) I just take a picture, and another question and most of the time I get the re-assurance I needed to proceed.

Well worth the £20 monthly subscription.

La Ville Rose: Toulouse

I recently visited Toulouse for the first time in a few years.

And what a transformation! A city that used to be covered in dog poo (I had to look at the ground when I walked there and miss all the amazing architecture), a city that used to stink of traffic and was blighted by cars queuing and parking everywhere, has been TRANSFORMED!

Typical Toulouse pink bricks, Rue Croix Baragnon / Place St Etienne

It's clean, no more litter, no more poo; much of it has been pedestrianised and the buildings look in better condition following some wide-scale renovation.

The suspended organ in Cathedral St Etienne. The cathedral once had five organs, built in 1463 for different functions. The current large organ was begun by Antoine Lefèbvre between 1612 and 1650.

For example, the stunning Hôtel-Dieu Saint Jacques by the Pont Neuf has just been completely renovated at a cost of over €7 million. It operated as a hospital since the 12th century but its last medical wards closed in 1987. Today it houses a good number of the Toulouse University Hospital's 16,000 administrative staff. It also has medical research units and 2 museums of medicine. 

Hôtel-Dieu Saint Jacques

It seems quite a fitting testament to France's huge medical administration that such a fine building should exchange patients for admin!

Of course for me a visit to Toulouse is never complete without queuing and eating at l'Entrecôte on Boulevard Strasbourg.

 

L'Entrecôte, Toulouse

Steak frites with their trademark sauce

Quote for the Month: Summer is finally over

And what a summer it was. Will this be the new norm, or was it an exception? I think it may be the former and the consequences will be far-reaching.

"August rain: the best of the summer gone, and the new fall not yet born. The odd uneven time."

Sylvia Plath