by Madeleine Johnson | April 29th, 2020 | Memory Lane, “Notebook” For a good long time, I have been fascinated with old photos of Milan that I’ve found on the internet. My favorites show the city when it was the “little Venice” and Via del Senato, where I once lived, and Via Melchiorre Gioa were still canals. On the web one thing always leads to … Continue reading 10 minuti dentro un bar anni 70

by Madeleine Johnson | March 27th, 2020 | “Notebook” Friends who know I lived in Italy for thirty years ask me, “Aren’t you glad you aren’t in Italy now, with the coronavirus?” “Well, no,” I reply. “I actually I wish I were there.” I wish I were with friends and family who supported me in my own rough times. I wish I were participating in … Continue reading Gold in a Strange Time

by Madeleine Johnson | March 24th, 2020 | “Notebook” The Germans probably have a lengthy compound word for that feeling you get when an engrossing TV series or book comes to an end. If not, it’s time to coin one. It should combine “angst” (anxiety), “geist” (spirit) and the already apt German word for television, “Fehrnseher,” which is a compound of “far” and “see.” This … Continue reading Repairing to The Repair Shop

The other day I braved the water of Milan’s Cozzi swimming pool after weeks of absence. A few of my skirts were tighter than usual and a writing project was stalled. The only way to loosen the skirts and justify not dealing with the writing was to get in some laps. The Cozzi is around the corner from my house. It’s a huge temple to … Continue reading Fit for Mozart

by Madeleine Johnson | February 7th, 2020 | “Notebook” Living in Italy, a sense of futility can be a constant companion. Nothing can be changed, you are told time and again. It’s always been that way. Pazienza. While living in Milan, America’s political scene only exacerbated my feeling of impotence. I vowed that when I returned to the United States, which I did three years ago, I’d put … Continue reading One for Warren: The Greening of a Campaign Worker

With English-born director Sam Mendes’s film “1917” landing on movie screens the world over, I’ve been hearing variations on the same refrain from people who know my interest and family connection to World War I: “You must be happy to see your great uncle’s experience in the trenches on the screen.” I sigh. Because if there is one thing we won’t be seeing in “1917” it is … Continue reading Getting Beyond the “British” War

Godwin’s law, also known as “Godwin’s rule of Hitler analogies,” has this to say about the Nazi dictator’s role in public conversation: “As an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches 1.” This principle, formulated by American lawyer and author Mike Godwin in 1990, has gained widespread application only now, as people see apparent similarities between today’s America … Continue reading Hitler Was Then, Not Now

The detail that seemed to most often excite my friends when I told them I’d once lived in Italy was that I also spoke the language. “You’re so lucky!” they’d say. “Italian is so beautiful; so poetic and romantic.” In fact, all languages are beautiful and poetic. And the only romance I sensed in Italian was its romance language, or Latin, roots. Mostly, knowing Italian … Continue reading A Personal Lexicon

One of the losses I’ve had to compensate for since moving from Milan to New Hampshire two years ago is the effortless fitness I picked up as a side effect of riding my bicycle through the Italian city. Though there’s plenty of cycling in the American northeast, most of it involves climbs that demand shifting gears. Plus, much of that cycling culture is nerdy, equipment-focused, … Continue reading Out of the Moment

What often struck me when I lived in Italy was the way people identified themselves as from Tuscany, the Veneto or Sicily even though they had never lived there. For the descendants of people who had left those regions for better lives in Milan or Rome, the regional origins of their parents and grandparents remained important to their identities. Except when Italy competes in soccer’s … Continue reading When Capricorn Equals Naples