Man I’m happy that it triggered such an engaging discussion. So I’ll throw some of my thoughts in here again as well.
I get what ya’ll are saying. But why mention the fridge at all? When you say they had no eggs in storage because they had to eat them because they had nothing else to eat I don’t assume a fridge would make any difference?
Why would they have nothing but eggs to eat when they have their supermarket (river) in front of the house which was described in detail in the previous chapters?
The interpretation they “had to eat them” to be full is totally unrelated to fridges in my mind.
My logic mind just told me that this interpretation is the one that makes sense. Equating the no fridge with no storage possibility. Though eggs are storable, and like discussed were stored, without fridges at that time.
So my mathematically trained mind comes to the conclusion that the logic is inconsistent!
(Daisoujou’s logic would check out though)
Interesting egg discussion. Asking some family members I had readily available who grew up around that time (not Japan, but sort of similar conditions), eggs were a rare commodity and always readily eaten or distributed to neighbours if there was a surplus. I guess the 運動会 was in the summer, and with the weather being hot and their being accustomed to only eat freshly laid eggs (because why let such a valuable source of protein wait while you eat veggies from the river), maybe it didn’t even cross their mind that an egg was something that could be stored (and maybe it really couldn’t in the heat, and with chickens being unvaccinated? You can get seriously ill from eggs). Also, we really don’t know how many hens they had - not many, I’m sure, maybe even just one (Japanese and the lack of plural…). Hens don’t lay eggs constantly, so maybe they really didn’t have any eggs laid recently enough that they would think to save them for the lunch box?
I think it said five, though? (That even works without plural ) But still, it doesn’t mean they laid every day (the text also mentions that they don’t) and I fully agree with all of your reasoning.
Nothing much to comment on this time. It’s just said that they have to sleep hungry and freeze. Even waking up in the middle of the night because of it . They did use the hot-water-bottle (seriously? english doesn’t have a word for it??? Thank god we have a nice word in german for it!) to the fullest.
間髪入れず was interresting to look up.
Oops, I completely forgot that part. But yes, five still isn’t a lot, I guess.
. They did use the hot-water-bottle (seriously? english doesn’t have a word for it??? Thank god we have a nice word in german for it!) to the fullest.