How the Italians are facing quarantine

The attitudes of the Italians towards the virus can be compared to a mixed appetizers plate (Tripadvisor)

There is the sociopath happy with the situation, deeply in love with Netflix and the blanket. The hyperactive who is consuming exercise bikes and tapis roulant or going to run at night to keep the others' eye out. The suspicious one who, as soon as sees the second one leaving home, immediately calls the police.

A suspicious man about to report a night runner to the police (dreamstime)

The foresight with full fridge and cellar that nevertheless continues to stock up on supplies. Mothers who entertain children, whose energies are slowly fading and whose hair are whitening visibly. Fathers who are becoming obese on their sofas. Those who keep going around as if nothing had happened (usually they are elderly, the most exposed to the virus). In short, Italy is like a mixed appetizer plate.

An Italian coming back from the supermarket (tiscalimotori)

And then there are union, solidarity, brotherhood and sharing that, it is true, are born only in case of need or when we have to face a common external enemy, but in any case, they are there, at least.

Like what we see in this video of songs from my city, Siena, now viral more than the coronavirus and not the only example in Italy:  https://www.huffpost.com/entry/coronavirus-singing-italy-siena-lockdown_n_5e6b7f37c5b6747ef11b5f28?utm_campaign=hp_fb_pages&utm_medium=facebook&ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000063&utm_source=main_fb&fbclid=IwAR39IijQPvfs3L8qlHTx99TpxkCjdVqLuQgTDpqtmrvRvIvyD5xYxUvTkKs&fbclid=IwAR1soPOopCHCdTN92xpM-36IHuOmmlJHX2lSpMO61dKoqkPCRNKstqRmW60&fbclid=IwAR10z_KX6cd04DeofR_520_mHdknwiZJCA0lqlCcugAk3cN6sFjUIluoEKk&guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZmFjZWJvb2suY29tLw&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAABgFZlOCIQL_w4jj88S0EWj7E755YPBxJxJuKf2O9GGXHeCg1Pq2mH-2BnOdse4IIDIVqL2VG87u0fxzciTgMNb9wiLYb6G7Uj0_QlfeEunHsbNKtnTLmHyu8AHcZaXzQ-r3z8PdW7lSfTK0KDdRt3kVaId56Xg71IWpg7Nx-cka

As far as I'm concerned, although it's difficult, I'm looking for positive sides in this story.

On a personal level I can say that:

- I finally managed to leave dried beans in whater six hours before cooking them;

- I have never had a house so clean that we could have picnics on the floor;

- my husband cut the grass in the garden;

- we have been more in the garden (usually cluttered with grass and infested with mosquitoes).

This is my garden before the quarantine (metallirari)

At national level I can say that:

- Italy is finally red (with the paradoxical situation that we have the support of a communist dictatorship, China, while Trump, president of the historic US allies, on the other side of the Atlantic makes tongue to us);

Italy is finally red (linkiesta)

- parents who never see their children can spend more time with them;

- smog has decreased (very true news, it's not a fake!).

Meanwhile, there are 21 days left until the end of the quarantine, hoping that it will be enough and the archbishop of Siena does something that is done in cases of serious and difficult situations, for example during the last world war: he puts the city under the protection of the Madonna. Mamma Mia.

The last hope of Italy (Paolo Tescione)