My professor in Journalism once declared in class that blogging has turned the publishing industry upside down. People can now “publish” their news, ideas, and opinions without going through the trappings of mainstream media. All they need is a computer and an internet connection. Many authors and even journalists have turned to blogging as a [...]
The “First”
It is often the “first” that defines the greatness of an achievement – first to set foot on the moon, first to reach the summit of mount Everest, first to discover the polio vaccine, first to photograph deep sea vents, first to map the human DNA structure, etc. The “first” of Ricky Bermudez is a [...]
Photography as Poetic Statement
If you show a photo of canine food to a dog, it wouldn’t salivate much less eat the picture. However, a mother who sees a snapshot of her dead son would cry. Only humans react emotionally and physiologically to a photograph. Whenever I look at that sunrise photo I took one frigid morning last December [...]
Fiat 500
Here is another addition to my growing photo collection of Italian micro cars. I spotted this two-door roadster parked a few meters from my residence in Via Asmara. It is the Fiat 500. Most Italians simply call it the Cinquecento (the Italian word for five hundred). It has a rear mounted engine driving the rear [...]
Film Review: Constantine
I watched the movie “Constantine” movie last night. Since the original version is not screened here in Rome, I watched the Italian-dubbed edition of the film. The character of Keanu Reeves introduced himself in an 007-like fashion, saying, “Sono John. John Constantine. Stronzo!” or something to that effect. From a Christian standpoint, suicide is immoral, [...]
Way of the Babysitter
On my way to church this afternoon I met this middle-aged Filipina babysitting her employer’s son Lorenzo. Filipinos are hard to miss in Italy, considering that they number more than 200,000 here. Or a hundred thousand if you don’t count those who have no legal permit of stay in the country. In the church I [...]
Another Micro
Che bella! Finally the clouds made way for the sun today. Everything suddenly seemed jazzy and alive. On my way home from school this noon I saw this red micro car. I was walking to the bus stop with Daniela, an Italian coed, and this red car literally blocked our way as if knowing I [...]
Monochrome Tuesday
It’s been three days now since I last saw the sun. Everywhere you look you see life in monochrome. The overcast clouds, the wet streets, faces of people, the bare trees, the dust hanging in the polluted air – everything in grayscale. What brought sunshine to my day was a small notebook, a gift from [...]




