Piping 配管作業

Very fine weather from morning. But the the top of the Mt. Etna was surrounded by swirling clouds which looked like a hat on the mountain.

朝から快晴だった。エトナ山の頂上は渦を巻く雲に覆われていた。山が帽子を被っているように見えた。

We started our work on the restaurant to-be, made room for electricity installation work, carried doors or wooden plates, mattress to other place. Jan and Kim started to joint rain pipes which leads rain fell on the roof of the storage to the main house, Ton, also a electric engineer started to dig the walls to build electric terminal box into the wall. Sergio, Evelien and I went to fetch sannsa hamp bags which we left at the collecting place, carried bags to the storage house. It was sunny and warm, very comfortable to work under the sun. A transporter car which we expected for the day was not available and we went to the collecting place and brought hamp bags back for several times.

今日はレストランの予定地で、電気配線作業が出来るように室内の片づけをする。ドアや木製の板、マットレスを別の場所に運ぶ。ヤンとキムは倉庫の雨どいを繋ぐ作業を始める。電気技師でもあるトンは電気端子箱を埋め込み出来るように壁に穴を掘り始める。エヴェリンと僕は集めたままおいてきたサンサの麻袋を取りに行き、その後上の倉庫へ持って上がる。陽が射していて暖かく、作業には心地いい天気だった。この日予定していたトランスポーターが手配できないとのことで、我々はサンサの回収場所と家を車で往復する。

Kim & Jan @ work

Our lunch today was spaghetti in soup, chicken roll and baked mash potato. Carmela was surprised that I continued to eat while others finished eating, and mentioned that I am so thin although I eat a lot. I finished the chicken roll left on the plate and took some more baked mash potato which I liked very much. She should be happy to see that I ate very much every day. Especially the days when I carried heavy bags, I got very hungry and needed energy for the further work.

今日のお昼はスパゲッティが入ったスープ、チキンロールと潰したジャガイモを炒めたもの。カルメーラは、みんなが食べ終わっても食べ続けている僕を見て驚いて、よく食べるのに痩せているわねと驚いたように言う。更に残っていたチキンロールと、気に入ったジャガイモを更に皿に取る。毎日僕がたくさん食べるのを見て、彼女も嬉しいだろう。特に重いものを運んだ日にはお腹がすいて、作業を続けるのにエネルギーが必要だ。

While we drove and back between collecting place and home carrying hamp bags, Sergio ashed us how we feel out his family and the project we joined. I honestly told him that I feel very comfortable to stay home with his family, sit at table and eat together, and especially found it nice that they always try to have meal together. Sometimes his children start to quarrel but they well take care of the youngest Maria. This might be a typical old Italian family. Even without their parents, brothers or sister would say Maria what she should do not, or sometimes scald her for what she had done. I mentioned that even parents nowadays cannot scold their children, the number of children reduced and parents take it wrong that what they are doing for their child as out of love but just spoil the child.

サンサの回収所と家を往復している間に、セルジオが彼の家族について、それからこのプロジェクトについてどう思うかと聞く。正直に、この家に居ると落ち着くし、特にみんなで一緒のテーブルに座って食べようといつも努力をしているのは本当にいいことだと思うと。時々子供達が喧嘩をするが、みんな下のマリアの面倒をちゃんと見ている。典型的なイタリアの家族なのかもしれない。両親が不在でもお兄ちゃんやお姉ちゃんがマリアにするべきじゃないことをちゃんと言って聞かせて、時には叱っている。最近は自分の子供を叱ることすら出来ない両親が増えてきている。子供の数が減って、たくさんの親達は子供のためと思ってしていることが結果的に子供をダメにしていることに気がついていない。

I translated what he said and I did to Evelien, then she told that she honestly expected more small children but really enjoys the work here. She started to understand more Italian Sergio would speak, at least she would grasp the context properly. She actually brought a kite with her as a present for children. Evelien told me about the story when we was playing some sport and was the only girl in the team, other team members called her Evert, a boy's name, because she is so active like other boys. Evelien is absolutely slim and I could hardly imagine that she did exactly the same as we do. I told Sergio that it was much easier for him that he did not have to prepare or think about tasks for girls. Sergio told me that he had female volunteer workers and French girls were relatively well built in general and were able to carry heavy things as other men would do. He agreed that a slim girl like Evelien would be able to work like this. She had got some blisters on her hands since we started to collect sansa. But she worked without complaining nor trying to avoid it.

セルジオが言ったことと僕が話したことをエヴェリンに英語にして話す。エヴェリンはもっとたくさん小さい子供達がいるかと思っていたが、ここで働くのは楽しいという。彼女はセルジオが話すイタリア語をだんだん分かるようになり始めていた。少なくともおおよその内容は。エヴェリンはスポーツをしていて自分が唯一の女の子で、チームのほかのメンバーは彼女が男の子みたいに活発だからエヴァートと呼んでいると話をする。エヴェリンは間違いなくほっそりしている部類で、彼女が我々男性と同じ作業ができるとは正直思っていなかった。セルジオには、女の子用の作業をあれこれ考えなくてもいいのは楽だろうと話をする。彼も同意する。エヴェリンはサンサを集める作業を始めて以来、手にいくつかまめをこさえていていたが、愚痴をこぼす様子も、作業を避ける様子も全く見せなかった。

Sergio asked me in the end, if I would like to have my own children. I answered to him briefly, although I would want it, I would have a problem in advance to find a partner in Europe and it seemed to me far from reality at the moment.

セルジオは最後に僕に、自分の子供が欲しいかと聞く。手短に、たとえ欲しいと思ったとしても、それ以前にヨーロッパでパートナーを探すほうが問題で、今の状況からすればとても現実的じゃないと答える。

Sergio bought some pipe diameter reducers in the city and brought them back home, water channels were connected to each other. There are still lots to do. Will be all finished before snow falls? Honestly I would like to stay here and help them for their work. I really enjoy the work and meal with Sergio's family every day.

セルジオは街中で配管の異径ジョイントを買い求め家に持ち帰る。配水管は繋がった。まだまだたくさん作業が残っている。雪が降る前に作業を終えてしまえるか？正直ここにいて彼らの作業の手伝いをしたい気持ちだ。ここでセルジオの家族と毎日一緒に作業をして食事をするのを心底楽しんでいる。

For the dinner of the day, we had soup, quiche with spinach, We had an extra bottle of red wine today, not only Sergio's wine as usual which all of us really love. The wine had a strong aroma and was very nice. Kim asked Rocco if it is possible to visit Mt. Etna because he had never seen volcano before. Well, after we finished all our work they thought of, my internal voice whispered. Let us see. After dinner soccer game on TV started from 21:00, but I was tired and watched just for some 10 minutes and went to sleep.

今日の夕食には、スープとほうれん草のキッシュを頂く。 いつも通りのみんながこよなく愛するセルジオのワインだけでなく、今日はもう一本赤ワインの瓶がテーブルに。そのワインはとても強烈な香りがし、とてもおいしかった。キムがロッコに、まだ火山を見たことがないがエトナ山にいけないかと話をする。もちろん期待されている作業が済んでからだよと心の声。後のお楽しみ。食事の後は21時からテレビでサッカーの試合をやっていた。今日は疲れていて、少しだけ一緒に見た後で床に就く。