Crisis. The word crisis is at war with itself. Definition 1a squabbles stressfully with 3a. Give irony its due: Crisis is a Greek concoction. Krisis meant decision, hence the first (Webster’s) definition: “the turning point for better or worse in an acute disease or fever.” A crisis was momentary. Turning points don’t…

For some, indignance is like arguing with weather. Wind and rain take their toll on Rome windows. Caulking turns into pizza crust. This transformation led to the summoning of Tommaso the housepainter and his do-it-all brother Ignazio. They brought corrugated buckets and conversation. Tommaso spoke melancholy and gripe, Italy’s two…