Last evening in SF
A hand holding a partially eaten foil-wrapped burrito inside Taquería El Farolito
Philip Ilic Thomas
Philip Ilic Thomas is an engineer living in New York City, working at the intersection of math, software, and business.
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Morning fog
I went to Mount Davidson before sunrise to take photos with friends. My Waymo dropped me off alone on a trail in the pitch black, and I hiked up with my iPhone as a flashlight. As I reached the top, I took a photo of the fog.
What I'm up to - August 2026
My monthly newsletter about what I am up to, which I send in place of social media: What I did in July Concluded my trip to Japan and posted more photos to the Tsundoku pop-up newsletter. I am having a lot of fun exploring photography as a hobby.
Jackknife
Abandoned in its upright position, this bridge seems to defy gravity - an unintentional monument to the engineering of the industrial age.
Swivel
I went to The Flats in Cleveland to take some sunrise photography. I was fascinated by this bridge, which is a functioning swing bridge. On either side of the base are these large fields for the bridge to swivel over.
Borscht
A red Borscht cocktail with an orange peel on a floral tablecloth beside a glass of water and a drink menu
Open-sourcing Booklet
Calm community software
Swing
Two blue swing seats hanging beneath leafy branches, overlooking San Francisco rooftops and a foggy hillside
Introducing tidbits
An ongoing photo journal
Cable car
Black-and-white photograph of a cable car on a San Francisco street, with the Transamerica Pyramid in the distance
Sunrise in Chinatown
Chinatown storefronts and red lanterns at sunrise, with the Bay Bridge in the distance
Adding SMS support
As an experiment, I have added SMS subscription support to this website. To subscribe, text SUBSCRIBE to +1 212 347 3190. Then, you will receive a text message about all new posts. (I may add WhatsApp in the future for better international support.)
SFMOMA
Four blue, green, black, and red rectangular artworks hanging above a bench at SFMOMA
Farewell
My final photo on Tsundoku. Thanks for following along on this trip.
More Geisha
I shared a photo of Geisha coffee at Glitch earlier in the trip. This one comes from Hacienda La Esmeralda, a historic farm in Panama.
Leaves Coffee
My favorite roaster in Japan.
Bamboo
Tall bamboo stalks rising overhead in Arashiyama
Bamboo Forest
A path through tall bamboo stalks in Arashiyama
Torii
I returned to Kyoto to explore more of the city. For this photo, I arrived at the shrine at 04:30 to catch the sunrise.
What I'm up to - July 2026
My monthly newsletter about what I am up to, which I send in place of social media. What I did in June I left Chroma, and I start a new role in August. In this liminal time, I am spending a couple of weeks in Japan and practicing photography.
Koffee
A dark coffee drink in a low glass beside a folded Koffee Course menu at Koffee Mameya Kakeru
Pourover
Though the menu at Koffee Mameya can be innovative, they still serve high-quality coffees, such as this Panamanian Geisha roasted by Leaves.
Avant-garde coffee
This was my second time visiting Koffee Mameya Kakeru, which offers a tasting menu of coffee. They brew coffee in innovative ways, such as this clarified coffee milk drink.
Vinyl
I am continuing my tour of hi-fi bars in Japan. This one is fun because you can browse the vinyl collection and choose one song to play.
Library
I have read a few of Haruki Murakami's books, both fiction and non-fiction, so I stopped by his eponymous library at Waseda University.
Morning coffee
I have been going to this cafe most mornings. The coffee is excellent, and the small semi-outdoor terrace may be my favorite part: a wood deck with wall benches, tiny pedestal tables, a few broad leaves at the edge, and the street just beyond.
Vinyl
So many great hi-fi bars in Tokyo. This one is near my Airbnb.
Espresso
While walking around, I had a few minutes to kill before a train. I recognized the grinder in this cafe and walked in.
Introducing Tsundoku
A pop-up photography newsletter
Bench
A stone bench beside the reflecting pool at the D. T. Suzuki Museum