Leicester

Today it was Uncle Chris's birthday; he turned 74. At 11:00 we went to a gas museum because he was a plumber. He started as an apprentice when he was 22 in 1972 and he retired at 65. We learned that gas was first in public use in 1812. We found out that in England each year about 75 million pounds ($150 million) is spent on research and development. Seventeen hundred people - about half of them science or engineering graduates - are employed in the company's research stations. We also found out that gas lighting was installed in Buckingham Palace only after Queen Victoria requested that it should be tried in the servants' quarters to see if they suffered any ill effects. What Mama found most interesting is that all the old gas pipes were made from Napoleonic guns. Their barrels were slotted together, and the joints were sealed with rags and tar.
Originally gas was created by burning coal. Papa's favourite thing in the museum was the retort, which is the oven to cook or heat the coal which then released the gas that we used. Papa liked this best because he did not know that. Making the coal gas this way was dirty work and lots of workers got very sick.
They found out if the gas from the retort was ready for use by measuring it in units of Therm. Mr Therm, a comic character, became the face of the gas industry.
Coal gas was used until 1974 when it got slowly replaced by natural gas found in the ground. People knew about natural gas in the ground but it took decades for them to figure out how to extract, transport and store the natural gas. Natural gas is a lot cleaner and better for the environment.
All the old dishwashers, hairdryers, and fridges were all powered by gas because there was no such thing as electricity.
I liked how the old hair dryers were like a chute with a big hole in it. I also liked the old dryers that squeezed the water out of the clothes. I learned that when they became powered by gas, a lot of people got their hand stuck, because you used to have to turn the handle by hand.

We then went to a brewery for lunch. It is Leicester's biggest brewery. I had a cheeseburger, and for dessert I wanted to have a brownie sundae but they had run out and we had to chose a cookie dough sundae. After lunch Uncle Chris dropped us off. He went home to go to sleep, we explored the city center. We got lots of stuff. I got a lanyard that could carry my phone and stop pickpockets stealing it, and a new phone case. Papa got some shoes, and Mama got a jumper. We walked home, had dinner and went to sleep.

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