An oil painting of a lit candle.

Sight Unseen

A blind expat's musings on life, death and the Trump era

April 24, 2026 | Rome, Italy
Red and orange, the colors of alert.

Cells

Weather can seem to take the temperature of humans, not the other way around.

The lure of the fitbit

Fitbit waits

How a gift given in passing became a creation capable even of rekindling a love affair — with a city.

Memories of his son Jimmy, who died of a brain tumor.

Insider

In 1970, talk of death intruded on a butterscotch sundae, but for good reason.

Language, forever in motion.

Reaching out

How the tyranny of a one-size-fits-all expression damages a language of that once swore by specifics.

Berlusconi in 2008: unabashed flirting, and more.

Circle game

Donald Trump may resemble Silvio Berlusconi, but the real parallels between Italian and U.S. politics run deeper.