Handyman Extraordinaire

New base for the hinge and re-positioned latch

Allow me to present M. Gomez, the most wonderful handyman I have ever met!  I hear horror stories all the time about how the French workers are rather lackadaisical and march to the beat of their own clocks.  My experience couldn't have been more different, and I want to sing his praises to the skies.

New hotte and new paint job

He made some small and some not so small repairs here. He replaced the hotte (extractor hood) which shorted out when a hard rain caused water to leak down through the vent.  Because the new unit is slightly smaller than the old, it meant a paint job for part of the kitchen wall.  The "gap" was small and I certainly could have lived with it as it was, but he would have none of it.  He also quickly took the front door off the hinges, made a quick adjustment, rehung the door and within 5 minutes it was back in place and once again swinging freely.  He repaired and rehung the shutter in the front bedroom--and then re-positioned the latch so it matched the newly installed one.  Again, they don't have to match--he did that for esthetics rather than function.  So French!!!

New paint

New spot in the WC

No more bare wires in the closet

He installed three new light fixtures for me--no more bare wires with a bare bulb hanging from them--- and drilled some needed holes for handles on my cupboard.  I agreed to pay for the lights and the cupboard--and he was very reasonable.  Let's just say it was considerably less than 50 Euros!! The landlord will cover the replacement hood, the front door and the shutters.  

Finally--handles!!!

I have never seen anyone work quite so fast, but there is nothing slipshod or halfway about his work. He is pleasant, gregarious, and he helped me with my French.  He speaks as rapidly as he works, so he had to repeat--a lot--for me, but he never lost patience.  He has offered to introduce me to his mother-in-law, because she is "nice, too and he thinks "we would get along great."

What a treasure!

Busy-ness

Lots of activity in town

Drained for cleaning

There's been quite the buzz of activity here in Carcassonne for the past week or 10 days.  There was an editorial in last week's paper lamenting all of the traffic sticky spots due to all of the construction and works projects underway.  The biggest and most inconvenient traffic mess is on Antoine Marty, and has forced rerouting of traffic to the train station---especially inconvenient because there aren't so many ways to get across the Canal.  I think they are replacing water or sewer pipes.

Just a little trickle

Upper gates of the lock hold back all the water

Hinge pin for the lower lock gate

Gates removed for inspection and cleaning

And they have drained the Canal to the east of the port.  It's interesting to thing that those two lock gates are holding back all the waters of the Canal.  The lower gates of the lock have been removed from their hinges and are resting on trestles or workhorses or tables under their own tent.  I imagine that they will be examined thoroughly for soundness,  and given a brisk scrubbing before being re-hung on the posts on which they pivot.  The last time I saw the Canal empty was in Castelnaudary, and the bottom there was littered with dead fish.  I haven't seen any of THAT here, but maybe any fish carcasses have been removed.  The Canal looks forlorn without all the water, but there's a certain beauty to its contours, too.  And I am even more impressed with the manpower it took to dig this ditch 350 years ago!  

Image digging this with shovels and pick-axes

Andre Chenier looked deserted and torn to bits

I stopped by the park, Andre Chenier, which has been closed and fenced off from curious eyes for months now....and poked my nose through an opening in the fence sections to see how work had progressed.  It looks mightily unfinished to my inexperienced eyes.....piles of dirt everywhere I looked.  The local paper that very day had an article in which the mayor promised that the park would be unveiled this week....I think they have a way to go....and even today there didn't seem to be a worker in sight.

Finished this week?  Really?

Red sky at night......

The weather has been cooperating, too, to get all of our "chores" done.  Sunsets are burning orange and giving proof to the old saying, "Red sky at night--sailors' delight." The days have started out cool in the mornings, but sunny and warm by mid-afternoon.  Perfect weather for working...the city is busy putting up Christmas decorations and the huts have started arriving at Place Carnot for the Christmas market.

Neptune has his icicles

                                                                                                                          The ice rink will go up soon and Neptune has his icicles ready to greet the skaters.   I noticed today that the rides for the Magie de Noel are being set up on Boulevard Barbes....but I see no sign of the Ferris Wheel, which, since the renovation of Gambetta, has been twirling at Chenier, overlooking the Canal and the Bastide.  Where it will be this year is still a mystery.   We are all busy getting ready for upcoming holidays. 

Huts for the Christmas market have started to arrive

I will be cooking an "American Thanksgiving" meal for some French friends.  I now have dishes to serve from, thanks to a great find of antique Digoin porcelain in my favorite antique shop.  Thanks to my sister, I have the ingredients now for a mince pie.  And today---score!!!!!  Fresh cranberries at Carrefour.  

Ready for mashed potatoes and cranberry relish

I think I have started a choir at the Protestant church, but it's too early to tell.  And that first meeting/rehearsal will have to wait for another blog.....when I have had time to process the events, 

 

11/11

Flags on the monument  11-11-2017

I missed the All Saints' ceremony at Saint Michel's cemetery this year, so I was determined not to miss the Armistice Day ceremony at Place Davilla.  It wasn't raining when I looked outside, so I didn't bring an umbrella along.  Thankfully, I did wear my raincoat.  Perhaps I should have looked more closely before leaving the house.  It wasn't cold, just a little wet.

Medal recipients

I didn't know if there would be the normal Saturday market or not--since Saturday was a holiday and holidays are taken very seriously here in France--no buses, almost nothing is open,.  But eating is also taken very seriously, and Saturday market is important.  There weren't as many vendors as usual, but there were enough.

No raincoats here

I walked up Rue Verdun to Place Davilla where the WWI monument is located.  The crowd was mostly dressed for the weather, but the participants, even the students were mostly bare-headed. The ceremony started on time, unlike many things here.  I missed maybe the procession and the opening remarks.  They were pinning medals on those who earned them, and I heard Iraq mentioned time and again.  They look so very young to me.  

Elder drummer

Saluting in the rain

Several of the groups represented  and their motorcycles

Firemen (left) and the red SAMU (French EMT's) add a little color

I was especially moved by the speech given by the Prefect of the Aude, and have sent the Prefecture an e-mail to see if he will send me a copy so I can share it with my friends and family back in the States.   I guess he is the highest-rankling representative of the French government among all the dignitaries attending.  There were brass fanfares before critical parts of the ceremony:  the speeches, the dipping of the flags, the laying of the flowers.  This year there was a band in addition to the brass, and it seems to me that their playing is improving.  After the names of those military members who'd died since last year's ceremony were read, the choir intoned, "Mort pour la France."  I was impressed that their names were read aloud....so we don't forget.  

The crowd, even the youngest members, were respectful and observant of  the minute of silence.  The proceedings were not flashy or slick, but they were heartfelt and memorable.  Next year will mark the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day, and I suspect that the local organizations responsible will pull out all the stops.  

One of the student participants

It was not a long ceremony, and the crowd, while respectable, was not overwhelming.  I walked back down Rue Verdun with the band and the contingent of flags.  We were mostly quiet and reflective.  France lost 1.3 million men--how that must have devastated whole villages.  My grandfather Heatherly served in the Regular Army in WWI--how I wish I had had the opportunity to know him and ask him if he ever got to France. 

Time is having its double-edged effect.  It eases the horrible pain, but it lulls us into forgetfulness.  I am sure that the causes of this War were not simple; they rarely are.  But there is something reassuring about this ritual of observation.  It means we are less likely to forget, if not the origins of the conflict, the consequences it brought.   And if we don't forget, we may be less likely to repeat.  

If one must carry an umbrella.....one with style is nice.

Chrysanthhemums and Color

Yellow blooms catch an afternoon ray of sun

I missed the Toussaints' Day ceremony at St. Michel's cemetery this year, and I was a little sad about that.  It's a lovely, simple ceremony and I have managed to attend for 3 out of 4 years I've been here.  The military and the dignitaries are in their full regalia with medals and sashes, and flags and sprays of flowers lend additional color to that provided by the rows of chrysanthemums throughout the lanes of the cemetery.

Colors on a tidied grave

Couldn't really capture the rich wine color of the center basket

Love the multicolor baskets

Looking toward the Pyrenees

Thus, after church yesterday, on a spectacularly crisp autumn day, my camera and I took a walk to Saint Michel's.  I knew the place would still be decorated for last Wednesday's holiday.   We had enjoyed???? a heavy downpour Saturday night and I wondered if the baskets of blooms would be worse for the wear, but chrysanthemums are sturdy little flowers, (especially the ceramic ones) and with the exception of a few toppled baskets,  the flowers didn't disappoint.  

Flag shadow over the Mjslim soldiers' graves

The tri-couleur

I called my friend and neighbor from up the street to see if she'd like to join me and  bring along her sketchbook.  I operate often on the spur of the moment, and so, it would seem, does she.  We set off through the deserted streets of the Bastide and made our way out the Portail de Jacobins, past the Caserne and up the hill to the main entrance of Saint Michel's.  

A new monument to unknown patriots

I was surprised by a new monument.  It was not there the last time I paid a visit to Saint Michel's, which, I admit was perhaps last Toussaints' Day.  It was installed to commemorate the unknown patriots who lost their lives during the Nazi occupation.  It's simple, and moving.

The angel in the military looks pensive

We were the only ones there, at least for a short time.  We made our way to the military section, where I was able to occupy myself with some attempts at art while Shelley busied herself with her sketching.  I love wandering through most of the \cemeteries here, but Saint Michel's remains my favorite.

White for children

The blue watering cans

Cite and our fall colors

There were colors everywhere--in the baskets of chrysanthemums, in the flags, in the blooms of the cyclamen, in the surrounding countryside. We don't have the brilliance of a New England deciduous countryside--our fall colors are more muted and reflective of the stones and soil around us.  Most of our autumn color comes from the changing leaves of the vineyards.  

Blue white red from the Prefecture

Looking down the alleyway

Ivy on the corner house

One of the things that strikes me is that the story of Carcassonne is revealed there. Not all, but most of the graves are tidy and cared for and at this time of year, if at no other, they are visited and bedecked with plaques and flowers. The families of these residents are still here--doing what families have done for centuries--caring for the places where their dead relatives repose.  It testifies to the stability of the population here.  Families have been able to stay in the area, raising families who in their turn have been able to stay and raise their own children.  I don't know how much longer this will last--but it's one of the things that makes this place so special to me.  It's solid....stable. 

Plaque of bakers on a home in the neighborhood

Little dancing flowers

Ageless street