I just took down my first two Colossi in Shadow of the Colossus. My impressions so far...

• It's a lot closer to ICO than I expected. It seems to take place within the same world. It also has the same semi-chaotic but with weight to it jumping and climbing physics. Thumbs-Up
• The graphics are also a lot closer to ICO that I expected. They are an improvement but there's still shimmer everywhere from anti aliasing and low color bands of lighting that make far away objects hard to understand. The result is a beautiful world that you can never quite get the look you want at (I have yet to see a scene as crisp and clear as the screenshot below). Thumbs-Down
• Your horse isn't just a car. It has a bit of it's own mind... Like it will veer away cliffs and things rather than run straight towards them. Thumbs-Up
• The colossi are far more animal like and docile than I was expecting. They have patches of fur and sad eyes. You aren't told what they are at the outset. Just kill them so your girlfriend (I'm assuming) can come back to life. The two I've taken down so far both came with a bit of guilt. Thumbs-Up
• The camera is strange. It likes to position it's self with your character in one of the lower corners. Especially while riding the horse. While the angle is dramatic, I find it really awkward. It's hard to get my bearings. I end up constantly shifting and re-shifting it around. Thumbs-Down
• I still have 14 more wonderfully designed giant creatures to see. Thumbs-Up

I'm a friggin' podcaster!

Henceforth, I shall be known as "Sir".

Some statistics:

• Median Price of an existing single-family home in San Francisco (2004): $641,650
• Number of single-family home's selling for under 600k: Q2 2004 - 188 / Q2 2005 - 49
• Percentage of San Francisco that earns enough income to afford a median priced home: 8

I'm not thinking about buying a home here anymore. The completely insane prices are a big factor, but they've also forced me to step back and take a hard look at where I live. San Francisco is in the midst of some serious changes. It's a city that clings to an old reputation. Sure it's still the most progressive big city in the United States, but that will mean something else entirely if it becomes a city without a middle class. The cultural and community aspects that sat along side it's natural beauty, helping make it what it was, are being priced out. It's shifting from a city of well-meaning progress to one of well-meaning excess. The Diggers feeding people for free in the Haight wasn't an answer, but it did help move things forward. It's harder to say the same about a painfully pretentious raw food cafe that can easily run $30 a person for a full meal.

Not that it's horrible here. Not by any stretch of the imagination. In fact it's incredibly comfortable. For a person of my tastes and pocket books, there is no more convenient neighborhood than The Mission. None in the world.

Good? Bad? That's all the same mythical measurement. Forward progress, on the other hand, is a comparison I can get behind. My progress hit a wall a long time ago. I've finally manage to shake the cob webs it created. Yet here I stand sitting still. And not at all in the good way. Comfort can be good. It can afford the energy to really see what's in front of you. And the time to stare. But comforts perspective is always limited. Comfort doesn't force anything. Comfort isn't progress as much as it is understanding.

I think I've had enough comfortable for a bit. It's time for some change again. I want new. Even if sometimes none of the choices are ideal. Experience has taught me that it's amazing what you can find out when you come out of the far end of an uncomfortable time. And happiness is always around.

Maybe it's time again to pack up for somewhere else. Somewhere like Chicago. ...Where pretense gives way to homogeny, summer burns, winter freezes, and no one is interested in patting you on the back for ordering an "I am self aware".

Maybe.

I never saw the old de Young museum - It's been a construction site since I arrived in San Francisco almost 5 years ago. As a result, the various controversies surrounding said construction and it's architectural design mean very little to me. It's just a new museum housed in a progressive and highly considered new building. In a city as small as San Francisco, that doesn't happen everyday. It's pretty great.

To celebrate the de Young opened for 31 straight hours and let everyone in for free.

I'm not a big fan of crowded museums... but had to go anyhow. We arrived to a very long line around 9:30pm last night. It moved surprisingly quickly. We probably waited around 45 minutes total. Once inside, there's a lot to see. The design of the building encourages exploration - I've never seen a more welcoming museum. I don't think we saw much. It was too crowded to really stand still an appreciate the works they have on display. What I did see, I loved. Especially the room dedicated to the Hudson River School... Martin Johnson Heade is a straight up madman.

I can't wait to go back.

See also: SFist's excellent write up. Lane took some great photos.

Chicago photos are online.

is a cold blooded killer disguised as a displaced hippy somewhere in the midwest. if you ever come across this man, let him pass.

On the advice of a friend, we decided to skip the obligatory trip to the top of Chicago's Sears Tower in favor of a vist to the 300ish feet lower Signature Room on the 95th floor of the John Hancock Center.

It was incredible.

For less than the price of admission at Sears, you can enjoy a fancy pants drink with your friends, in a comfy seat, while soaking in the awe inspiring view. If you time it just right, you may even get to watch a stunning sunset while sipping your martini.

Chicago is exponentially better than food poisoning.

They aren't even in the same category really.

It's 4:30am.

The last time I as up this early was due to food poisoning.

This time it's Chicago.

13 & God put on a fine show last night. Sincere and soft and noisy and aggressive and beautiful and completely unique. At some point I was trying to figure out how to get to LA so I could see tonight's show too - That didn't work out. But I did take this dark and shaky video of Soft Atlas using my digital camera.

Actually, that didn't really work out either.