Susi:
i was sitting in the lobby yesterday and a bunch of daysider 1Ls walked by and they must have been like 23/24 and it was so cute the way they talked like they knew anything

Jon:
did you pat them on the head and then send them on their way

Susi:
it was that or punch them in the kidney and tell them "this is life"
i just sat there though

Here is Andy and I using our various nerd technologies. Andy's playing DS (N+, I believe). I'm probably trying to post something to some website. Or Twittering. Or something.

Seattle is one of my all time favorite cities.

I haven't been to a ton of them, so my exposure is limited--but out of the ones I've been to, it's hard to beat the Emerald City.

There are a lot of Minnesota imports to the Seattle area and I can understand why. Like Minnesota, there is plenty of water and pine trees. In addition, there are also mountains. It's like taking the best parts of Minnesota and making them better by transforming the plains into gorgeous peaks and national parks.

And then there's the coffee.

Okay, yeah. Seattle is known for Starbucks. And don't get me wrong, I actually LIKE Starbucks. The coffee, for a chain, aint bad. Their light drinks beat any other places' and their pumpkin spice latte is to die for. But thanks to Rachel Ray, I found a local chain that I can't recommend highly enough--Caffe Ladro.

Espresso shop and bakery, the place is delicious. I walked in on my first day back in Seattle over PAX weekend and looked at the board. I noticed the drink named "Yankee Dog" and asked what it was. An Americano with steamed milk on top? All you had to say was Americano+something else delicious and I was sold. So I ordered me one of those and I don't know if it's the organic free trade coffee, the organic milk, or the delicious dollop of foam resting atop the coffee, but it was magical. It instantly made all of the coffee I drink here in the Twin Cities taste like burnt butt.

I'm not joking.

Caffe Ladro is a must if you like coffee and find yourself in Seattle.

Other places that were delicious!...
Piroshky Piroshky down by the Pike Place Market, if you like tasty things wrapped in warm pastries. Yum!

Umi Sake House in Belltown, which was trendy yet superb for sushi. Even the water is trendy--it has cucumbers in it. And the sushi was fantastic. I wish I had eaten more of it.

Other places that were okay...
The Pike Pub & Brewery. The food is OKAY at best and overpriced. Several of the brews are delicious, including the Kilt Lifter, a tasty Scotch Ale. The stout was not so good though--steer clear.

Fado Irish Pub. There are a few of these around the nation, but this was the first one I had been to. We have plenty of Irish pubs in Saint Paul and Minneapolis, so it felt pretty much like home. Fairly standard. I had a Guinness, which made up for Pike Pub's travesty. Some things are hard to beat, it's true. Nothing special, but the food was good and the beer was just fine. Prices, also decent for downtown.

We ate at several places in West Seattle as well, whose names escape me. But they were also delicious. There's a cupcake place there that has the most delicious strawberry icing I've ever tasted. Also, the Husky Deli has fantastic home made ice cream and waffle cones.

We also stopped down at the Utilkilt store where my old friend Eric works and got a tour of the operation (and picked up a Survival model). I recommend a trip to the storefront down in Pioneer Square for fun.

On the sports front, the Mariners have a beautiful baseball stadium. The seats are right down on the field and there doesn't seem to be a bad view in the house. It is far and away better than the Metrodome. Plus, where else can you order sake and sushi at a baseball game? Sure, it's overpriced, but there's something novel about eating fresh sushi while watching Ichiro out in right field. The food options were great and the stadium was clean. Whoever voted the Brewers as having the best stadium for food options was dead wrong--I disagree. Safeco field is where it's at for your dining pleasure (there's more than just Miller and Brats!). I even managed to pay attention to the whole game.

All in all, there's a ton to do in Seattle, from touristy to just relaxing and enjoying fresh fare. Everytime I go back, I find something new and delicious or exciting. I have never had a bad time in Seattle--I just don't think it's possible!

My caramel apple is gone.

I accidentally hosed my database while trying to upgrade Drupal and didn't back it up beforehand. Oops.

So the old database full of content doesn't work and rather than tear my hair out, I just made a new one that was better for the new Drupal anyway.

So I'll be having to pull content back onto this site the hard way. By hand. In the meantime, I'll just consider this a fresh start!

Welcome to Four Lettered Words! It's shiny and new!

Tycho sums up what PAX means in today's post over at PA. I think he hits the nail on the head.

Leaving PAX is like... it's like leaving that steamy love-affair you had in Italy with a handsome, dark haired stranger who has eyes as deep as the seas. It's having to come back home to your regular life after a weekend of goodness that you can't entirely describe, but you know it's something you want to hold onto just a little bit longer, as Tycho says in his post.

PAX feels less like any other con I've been to and more like a community. It feels whole.

ILU PAX.

Edit: I've only got about 1/3 of my caramel apple left that I bought on Thursday. When that's gone, then the trip will REALLY feel over.

Here are some photos from Friday & Saturday:

MC Frontalot is one of the nicest guys. He's always around and always so sweet to his fans.

This is from Friday, waiting to get into the con. We got there right away, hoping that they'd pass out wristbands for the concerts first thing like they did in 2006. Instead, we waited for several hours for that to happen. That was dumb, guys. Just one of my few gripes.

Mike and Jerry answer questions in the opening Q&A on Friday. I love how Jerry subtly mocks people who ask stupid questions.

Andy plays some Sam & Max. Yay for Telltale!

I wish this photo were better because I think it sums up, well, everything. Video games are fun. And they're fun for everyone.

What's this "Warhammer" I keep hearing about? No, seriously. I signed up for the beta TWO YEARS ago at PAX 2006.

These kids are rocking the fuck out at the new Guitar Hero booth. Look at the dedication on the drummer's face. Look at the classic Beatles guitar playing style. Look at the guy with no posture staffing the booth.

Yes.

Godspeed, PAX08.

Some photos

My poor lens couldn't cope with the lighting in the Exhibit Hall this year--less so than in 2006. So next year, I'll have to borrow my brother's nice lenses or finally invest in more of my own.

I'll write more about PAX tomorrow... but I'm worn out and I didn't even do half of the things I wanted to.

However, great success!