Five days, lots of friendly faces, and one bikini-ed booth babe later, I’m back from San Fran.  So much bay, so much fun.  Check out Flickr for photos, Wired News for coverage, and home sweet home (over the next few days) for commentary.  Nice to meet you, San Francisco.

Also, just a side note: If by chance you’ve tried emailing me in the last week or two, try, try again.  My account should be working now.  Fingers, as always, crossed…

Before we get started, I have to warn you: Things may get a little religious.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m the girl who at age fifteen got up on the bima and announced that God was dead. So no worries, no one’s trying to lure you into Judaism with promises of lazy Saturdays and sweet sweet hamantaschen. Though those hamantaschen are damn good.

So, I was at synagogue the other day for my brother’s confirmation (sitting up straight, crossing my legs like a lady, smiling at overly-friendly old people; you know, the normal) when I happened to tune in for a prayer I’d never heard before. Nothing life-altering in the overall, but here’s the part that caught my eye:

Blessed the One who spoke and the world came to be
Blessed is the One!
Blessed the One, who continues creating.
Blessed the One, who creates by speaking.

As a writer and a general lit dork, I’m a big fan of the idea of text as world — virtual or otherwise. And here it is, as literal as it gets: creation through language.

Also, having recently spent some time wandering through the Jewish quarter of Prague, I’ve still got the Golem on my mind — that mythical creature made out of mud and brought to life with a prayer written on his forehead. He also makes for an adorable souvenir.

Forming worlds with words… Just saying, maybe there’s more precedent for the idea than we might think.

Anyways, it’s off to San Francisco in a few hours for the Sex in Games Conference. No idea what to expect, but I’m hoping to come out all tingly-like. Of course, I’ll be rambling about it when I get back, but if you’re looking for dedicated blog coverage in the meantime, check out Noche at ApogeeVr.

A laidback, liberal outlook, a thriving gay community, and a fortune cookie factory… What more could you ask for in a city?

I have to admit, it’s taken me longer than it probably should have to give a damn about the Wii. Funny name, funny controller… I just wasn’t convinced.

And then, one fateful day, gameplay footage game flooding in from E3 — and now I’m counting down the theoretical days until Super Mario Galaxy will be mine. All mine.

As the more astute observers — and Nintendo themselves — have been saying, the Wii (and all it’s kooky coolness) won’t be aimed at the mainstream Xbox360/PS3 crowd. Who will it be aimed at? People who love innovation, colorful graphics, and unique gameplay experiences.

In other words, girls?

Don’t get me wrong: I’m not saying, in any which way or form, that this is a girly system. I’m just saying, the direction Nintendo is taking seems to be much more female-friendly than that of it’s ammo-heavy, graphics-obsessed former rivals.

Maybe this is the just the open door that women need to make their full presence known in the “alternative” gaming scene — a welcome mat for the world’s non-traditional gamers.