Wednesday, September 12, 2018

What I Will Never Be / Lo Que Nunca Seré

La versión español está después de la primera foto.

I HAVE DECIDED to never pursue a career in knife sharpening. Just washing dishes puts me in enough danger.

I stabbed the tip of my finger with a fork last night. I had a moment of panic when I saw a lot of blood. 'What did I hit?' I wondered.

By the time I cleaned and wrapped my finger in two small Band-Aids, the bleeding had already stopped. But when I returned to the kitchen, there were drops of blood everywhere. So, that wasn't my imagination.

The first time I saw a knife sharpener plying his trade on the streets was when we moved to Sevilla in 2011. Local tradesmen make the rounds of the old neighborhoods with their equipment attached to bicycles and motos. They make their presence known with the use of a repetitive tune played on a pan flute. Here in Fuengirola, they carry their tools in cars and vans, as well. Next time one is in the neighborhood, I'll probably take our knives down.

Our forks are already sharp enough.



HE DECIDIDO NUNCA seguir una carrera como afilador de cuchillos. Solo lavar los platos me pone en suficiente peligro. Anoche apuñalé la punta de mi dedo con un tenedor. Tuve un momento de pánico cuando vi mucho sangre '¿Qué golpeé?' me preguntaba.

Cuando lo limpié y lo envolví en dos tiritas, el sangrado ya se había detenido. Pero cuando volví a la cocina, había gotas de sangre por todas partes. Entonces, esa no era mi imaginación.

La primera vez que vi a un afilador de cuchillos trabajando en las calles fue cuando nos mudamos a Sevilla en 2011. Los comerciantes locales recorren los viejos barrios con sus equipos conectados a bicicletas y motos. Hacen su presencia con el uso de una melodía repetitiva tocada en una flauta de pan. Aquí en Fuengirola, también llevan sus herramientas en automóviles y camionetas. La próxima vez que uno esté en el vecindario, probablemente baje los cuchillos.

Nuestros tenedores ya son lo suficientemente afilados.

SEVILLA, 2011.
FUENGIROLA, 2017.

LAST WEEK / LA SEMANA PASADA. 


WATCH THOSE FINGERS!
¡CUIDADO CON ESOS DEDOS!

26 comments:

  1. Yikes, Mitchell! However did you manage to do that?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wilma:
      Oh, it's a gift. Let's see... I was holding the fork in one hand, the sponge in the other, slid the sponge down the fork spearing the extended finger onto the fork. Easy!

      Delete
  2. I remember seeing housewives sharpening their knives on the stone steps of their houses - something that never worked for me just don't have the knack - I guess.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Heron:
      We have a knife sharpener in the house -- a simple hand-held cylindrical rasp. Jerry uses it. I do not.

      Delete
  3. I don't believe for one second that you cut yourself with the fork while washing dishes. Tell the truth now. You were trying to steal San Geraldo's dessert and he stabbed your hand with his fork, didn't he?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Debra:
      San Geraldo is very generous with his desserts. I DO blame him for every black eye I've had in our time together... and he's never been at fault.

      Delete
  4. no wonder you don't cook! you are a danger to yourself and others!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. anne marie:
      I shouldn't even have to wash dishes. Too many sharp objects.

      Delete
  5. Hm-m-m....another accident prone husband!!
    Please be mindful, Mitchell. I say this all day long here.
    What a good business to be in! Everyone needs sharp knives.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jim:
      I get over-confident and then careless. Working as a graphic artist was a very dangerous line of work. Xacto blades! I cut off a number of fingertips while cutting mats.

      Delete
  6. Not only should you not take up knife sharpening, you should probably also switch to plastic sporks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Deedles:
      I'd probably accidentally break a spork and slice a wrist!

      Delete
    2. Ah, a kindred spirit! My shins look like I've been playing futbol with a bowling ball! Pesky furniture and dishwasher door always jumping in my way.

      Delete
    3. Deedles,
      Not to mention bed frames, doors, and kitchen cabinet knobs!

      Delete
  7. "You call that a fork?"

    -Croc Dundee

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Adam:
      Good thing it wasn't a Croc Dundee kind of fork!

      Delete
  8. Ouch! I took a divot out of a finger with a potato peeler not too many years ago.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Walt the Fourth:
      I can't even begin to count the number of divots I've taken out of fingers with sharp objects. Seriously.

      Delete
  9. That is super handy, I have never seen anything like that before. I guess we are a bit more isolated in Australia so this does not happen. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Snoskred:
      I had never even heard of this before moving to Spain. The music of the pan flute by way of announcement is kind of magical, too.

      Delete
  10. How would I word the evaluation, A danger to self, but harmless to others. Stay safe!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Travel:
      I haven't stabbed or cut anyone else... yet. Plays well with others, as long as there are no sharp objects nearby?

      Delete
  11. Have you been sharpening your forks in error? Only knives Mitchel! I guess it's the universe saying you need to stay out of the kitchen altogether

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cheapchick:
      I never sharpen ANYTHING. When I met Jerry, I had a set of steak knives that wouldn't cut butter. (I don't know why. I paid a whole dollar for a set of four!) Anyway, Jerry uses my carelessness with sharp objects to excuse me from cooking but not from washing up!

      Delete

Please visit www.movingwithmitchell.com if you would like to comment or stay up to date. I stopped posting here and reproduced all previous posts, as well, 25 September 2018. Thanks!!!