Ch #3 - A “SOLD OUT” SITUATION... IS NOT DESIRABLE

There’s a catchy song that has become a favourite not only of my youngest daughter but of the whole family. The band, called “Pinguini Tattici Nucleari”, literally “Tactical Nuclear Penguins”, became third at the recent Sanremo Music Festival. 

We laugh about the re-wording the little one did to the original text of the song, which is about the Beatles, but to which she has found her own, new meaning.

She sings, we laugh, and together we bite through the bitterness of fairytales put on hold. 

One of them, the long-awaited and sold out concert in Milan of the previously mentioned “Penguins’. They were supposed to perform tonight, at the indoor sports arena Forum, in Assago, near Milan, a place that has hosted among others, Madonna and U2. You might well imagine what it would have meant for the young lads - 26 years old - of the band. And what infinite sadness it must be to postpone it. 

Quite at the same level, is the disappointment of my older girls, who wanted to see the band perform in Montichiari, near Brescia, scheduled for 14 March. 

Francesca and I are as bummed because honestly, we wanted to see them as well, with or without the ‘excuse’ of having to take the kids. 

And now we, as the adults, have to explain to the girls why all this is happening. 

It is always the fault of the Coronavirus. This virus certainly is a master party pooper! The Geneva International Motor Show cancelled, Milan’s Salone del Mobile postponed till June. So many events either cancelled or postponed. 

As it is hard at times to find the right words to ward off melancholy, we try to stay positive. We sing the refrain of a song of the Penguins, this one from 2014, while as young students they sang “Nessuno riuscirà mai a passare in test d’ingresso di Medicina”. 🎶, “No one will ever pass the admission tests for med school”.

Lucky for us, someone does pass the tests. Today, they are the ones fighting on the front line to protect us from the epidemic, with all the medical staff. 

Thanks again to all of you, particularly to the people I know in the ICU of Brescia Hospital where, contrary to concerts, a “sold out” situation, is not desirable.

Take care!!