I slowly drove to our group corporate headquarters. I had not been there for the last two years or so. There was no reason for me to go there before today. I had to pick some documents that the never-evolved-enough bank sent me.
I entered the highway and made my way to Milan downtown. Our offices down there are close to Piazza Duomo, and getting there is a real challenge. I thought that many people were already enjoying their holidays and that it would have been an easy drive. I was mistaken.
It took me one hour and a half to drive those bloody kilometers. The traffic in Milan downtown was chaotic. People were going evil, and I had to pay attention to many scooters and bicycles. Plenty of angry people on the road. I avoided a collision a couple of times, and the drivers wrongly addressed me with something I could not repeat.
I felt confused.
I spent most of the two recent years in my house on the lake. A quiet environment that made the pandemic much more tolerable. I live in a small village that counts something like 900 residents. Apart from spring and summer weekends, there are no people around. It’s quiet, it’s beautiful, and it’s close to the water.
Driving through the streets of Milan made me confused. I didn’t like it. This is definitely a side effect of the pandemic. I can’t stand the traffic anymore.
I rushed to the 6th floor, grabbed my package, and went to the car to drive home.
I thought that in half an hour, I could reach the highway and be on my way back to my private paradise.
I saw the mountains getting closer and the traffic slowly getting better. I reached my exit, and I saw the lake. I have already started to feel better. A few more minutes and I will be able to start working in my garden in complete solitude.
I finally felt relaxed and in the right mood to do my stuff for today.
I can’t avoid noticing that the pandemic has affected me. I like being in our studios when needed, but I hate getting there. I visited our Lugano studio a few days ago. I moved from my house around 6am to avoid traffic jams and most other drivers.
I guess that I became what they call “laghee” around here. With this term, we identify those people who were born on the lake or that live on the lake. A proper ‘laghee’ usually hates those who are coming to visit the lake during weekends or holidays. They feel like it is an invasion of their space.
I have lived in Milan downtown in the past. I think I am not made for that. The place I live in now is perfect for me, and the pandemic has accentuated this trait.
I am writing these lines sitting in my garden. I can hear the waves from the lake, and there are no cars around. Buzz is lying down close to me, and we will go for a walk in a few minutes.
It is almost perfect.