Day 22 - SkyLines from the French Lock-down: Stay-cay-tion!

Salut!!  (Hi!!)  ** imagine this is being typed in an excited, happy voice)

Well, the English have a saying, "A change is as good as a rest!"  I didn't understand that phrase when I heard it first in 1985.  But as an older, more experienced, person I get it.  It's good to change things up sometimes.  And on a day like this - it can even feel like a holiday!

Canigou looks so close some mornings!

Day 22 - The sun sparkled on Mount Canigou when we opened the bedroom shutters.  Early morning conversations were held from balconies in the village with those nearby or below in the street as they returned from buying essential needs like bread, eggs, or the newspaper.  We were standing on our front balcony and joined in with the commiserations.  The feeling was

If you look, you can see the
kitty in that flowerbox below.
She's grey and white.

pretty much a consensus about the quarantine.  It was: "C'est de la merde!" (Really - doesn't need a direct translation... let's just say, "This sucks".)  I was looking at the cute kitten on the next door neighbor's balcony and taking photos, like always.  Life was good.  The sun was shining and for the first morning, I didn't feel the need to shut the sliding glass doors as we went back in to have our breakfast.  

Our cat was purring in the sunshine on the salon floor when I made the suggestion.  "While the weather is still cool enough, maybe we should try out the instructions for adjusting the radiator boiler." This was because they hadn't work right when we had guests earlier this year.  After doing a bit of reading online, we thought we knew what the problem was.  Pressure. Or a lack thereof. The pressure gauge was at zero but we had no idea how to adjust it.

The internet had no ideas to offer us for the particular boiler we possessed and it seemed they are all a little different. The one thing all the sites mentioned was having adequate pressure. But how to regulate it? We were stuck.

My French partner, Y, was certain the previous owner had given him instructions on how to use

A happy at home cat.

the radiators and that he had taken notes. He knew the radiators were working then as they had been on. So, yesterday he was on a mission.  As I worked to de-clutter my computer files, he went through every paper from the purchase of the house. Eventually, I heard a triumphant, "Je l'ai trouvé!" (I've found it!")  But by then it was dinnertime and so we said we would try it out the next morning.

Today arrived.  It was now morning.  We'd eaten and done the dishes.  We took the instructions downstairs to the garage.  I watched as Y consulted the notes and filled the boiler.  The gauge rose to the level in the instructions.  Yes!  We were going to have working radiators. Then the penny dropped... well dripped actually. To our ears came the sound that all homeowners and renters dread.  The sound of water falling from a ceiling where there should be no water!  Merde!

Fortunately it was dripping down a wall nearby so we could see it happening.  We shut off the house water.  Grrr!  This was going to be a problem.  And then it dawned on us the way the first day of summer vacation comes to you when you're a kid.  We looked at one another.

Hey - we realized, this was not going to be a day like the previous 21 days!  Something new had happened.  And - it was an emergency!  We were permitted to have a professional deal with this! Oh of course, we also could have called the hardware store for tools and parts to deal with it ourselves, but we do not possess those skills. I'm not a fan of steep learning curves when it comes to water running in the wrong places or the idea of not having water at all.  We called the handyman who had done all the work on our house last year.  He lives in our village so a few minutes later, we had opened the garage door and stood the correct distance from each other.

The neighbors were just as excited to have something happening.  They called out from their front doors and windows to ask what was going on.  They shouted greetings to the handyman and asked how he was doing.  Apparently, this quarantine means he's as busy as always.  Instead of renovations, he's dealing with daily emergencies that range from blown fuses to replacing water heaters.

We apologized for not making him a coffee but said if he'd like one, there was a clean cup and spoon next to the kettle where instant coffee jar stood. I discovered that offering an espresso or

tea was a common courtesy when my roof was being replaced two years ago.  The workmen

My workstation got cramped!

arrived and we all had coffee in my kitchen. Months before, I'd seen my neighbor do the same when her house needed work and made an astonished comment about it to my friend.  She said, "That is the correct thing to do." I love the French lifestyle. There is such a "We're all in this life together" attitude.

So, today, I'm writing to you from the office!  Usually, I work at the kitchen table but when the faulty pipe was not found to have a leak in the garage, we were directed to empty the far left cupboards.  Boy, was I glad that I'd de-cluttered and cleaned those kitchen cupboards last week!  We cleared them out and then went to the other room (the office).  I set up my computer and my partner, Y, went out onto the back terrace to read in the sunshine.

And soon, the fault had been traced to the kitchen wall. He had to remove a part of a false wall

he'd installed last summer to hide the pipes.  He moved aside and called us to see. Yep, even

The culprit was found!

without pressure it was obvious that water had been leaking down inside that wall and probably longer than just today. It was good the pressure hadn't been on in February, we might not have stayed in the garage long enough to hear the water when it was so cold.  And thank goodness the walls of the French village house are made of stone!  He said, "Merde." and explained that he had obviously caused this when he moved the pipes for our new kitchen.  The joint had a small leak.  

The pipe was repaired and the drywall replaced.  It will take a few more coats of plaster to make it look like new again, but that's not a biggie.  Dry walls and a dry garage are what matters most.  The other will get done when it gets done.  The first coat of plaster is drying as I type.

We couldn't shake hands with our friend the handyman the way we would like to.  But he certainly understood.  We nodded and agreed that we would share an espresso at our usual cafe when this quarantine is finally lifted.  Add that to the list of "things we'll do after the Quarantine."

  Well!  That's sorted.  Who ever thought it would be nice to have a a pipe leaking to relieve the monotony?  It felt like a little vacation  - even if it's just a "stay-cay-tion" from quarantine.  

And that's that.  A little change that did us both good.  The English are right - "Un changement est aussi bon qu'un repos!"  Later today we will restock the cupboard.  At the moment, we're on holiday.  I think we'll have lunch on the terrace!

All tidied up again - how thrilling!

A demain, mes amis!  (Until tomorrow, my friends!)  Link to Day 23