大学申请书选登：修理管道教给我的事

Trash, the Library and a Worn, Brown Table: The 2019 College Essays on Money

‘Life is a process of accepting the messes and learning to clean them up.’

“生活就是一个接受混乱并且学会清理的过程。”

—Kelley Schlise

——凯莉·施利斯(Kelley Schlise)

solder 焊接；使联接在一起
pilot light : a small gas flame in a cooker, stove, boiler, or fire. It burns all the time and lights the main large flame when the gas is turned fully on.（煤气灶具、锅炉等用于引火的）常燃小火
a regular 90-degree PVC elbow 90度普通PVC弯头

plumbing business 管道业务
elicit physical and mental discomfort 给身体和精神带来不适
attitude of grittiness and grace 坚韧和优雅的态度
plumber 水管工；堵漏人员 , 水暖工

tape measure 卷尺
passenger seat 副驾驶座
white minivan 白色小面包车

shifts nannying 兼职保姆
lifeguarding 救生员
the gold-plated master bathrooms 镀金主浴室
dank, mildewed basements 潮湿发霉的地下室
water meter 水表

primordial jungles 原始丛林
fiberglass insulation 玻璃纤维隔热层
floor joist 楼板搁栅
cast iron 铸铁

wrenches 扳手
be smudged with 沾染.....
pipe dope 管道涂料

microcosm 微观世界；小宇宙；缩影；
avocado toast 牛油果吐司
peers 同龄人

trivial qualm 小小不安情绪

And when I think about it, I cope with messes all the time. The uncertainties and contradictions of my teenage brain are far more tangled than any extension cord, but I keep trying to sort them out. Life is a process of accepting the messes and learning to clean them up, and plumbing work is no different.

当我思考这个问题的时候，我也一直都在处理混乱。作为青少年，我头脑里的不确定性和矛盾比任何延长线都要复杂得多，但我一直在试图理清它们。生活是一个接受混乱并且学会清理的过程，管道工作也不例外。

cope with 处理，应付
uncertainty 不确定性
contradiction 矛盾；否认；反驳

As much as my dad and I create chaos, we create order, and if I look carefully I can find it in each newly soldered array of copper pipes or in the way my dad’s toolboxes all fit together in the back of his van. Moreover, when customers express gratitude for our work, I understand that, in a small way, we bring order to their lives. The physical and mental discomforts of plumbing are worth it.

我和爸爸不仅制造混乱，我们也创造秩序，只要细细观察，我可以在每个新焊好的铜管阵列中找到秩序，在爸爸货车后座上排列整齐的工具箱里找到秩序。此外，当客户对我们的工作表示感谢时，我明白，我们在一些小处给他们的生活带来了秩序。管道工作给身体和精神带来的不适都是值得的。