Above and beyond the call of duty

At the airport in Bologna, they confiscated my hair product. Some of you may be equally dependent on yours. I said, "There's only a little left!" and she said, "We have to go by how many ounces it says on the bottle." Then she gestured toward the big bin in which they throw out all the passenger loot and said, "Is it okay?" I can't say no to an airport security personnel, so I just said, "Okay, but I will not look as good tomorrow."

She nodded. She had long hair so it seemed she got it, even if it wasn't curly (curly people have more dependence on hair products). Then I had a thought. I had a small empty bottle I was bringing back (a good leak-proof one is hard to find) that I showed her. "Is it possible to...." I said the first half in Italian and the second in mime. She actually agreed and walked over to the bin, dove into it, and retrieved my hair product. I squeezed what was left into the small bottle. I think I said "molto" about fifty times when I thanked her.