August-Inspiration

Last night was GeekDinner time again!  As I pulled up to our venue for the evening, Capello, I was greeted by a loud speaker with thumping bass inviting people inside from the ferocious Cape Town wind, like a foghorn calling out to lost souls.  The inside was cosy and I really liked the “gangster” theme mixed with the bright floral themes.  It’s difficult for me to put into words, so it will have to suffice for me to say that I really liked the feel of the place.

Unfortunately I was rather tired last night, so I didn’t get the full experience of the evening.  But lets run through the vitals.  A buffet is always a winner and Capello gave us a descent one: starter, mains and dessert, I found something I really liked in them all (although the dessert wasn’t a buffet).  The minestrone was simply delicious and, as an Afrikaner, I felt very much at home with the “rys, vleis en aartappels” selection from the buffet.  (Pasta with mussels and livers were also available, of which I obviously steered clear.)  I also thought the service was great: the waiters were really professional and “played” their role really well to fit into the restaurant’s theme with their fedoras.  They seemed competent, at ease and even as if they were enjoying themselves, which helps a lot to influence the vibe of the dining experience.  Sadly, the restaurant seemed indifferent to “strict” vegetarians, which is always a shame.  I cannot, however, comment on the restaurant’s menu proper, as I didn’t see it.

The talks were good and really had (and kept) my attention.  The “experimental talk” we had, though, promoted some severely subjective (and unfortunate) views, but at least there was full disclosure on this fact.  Henk Kleynhans did a good job with the slideshow karaoke, although whoever was in control of the slides did not seem to be, uhm, in control.

Last, but not least, was, of course, our generous wine sponsors Delheim who provided us with top quality wine.  Thanks guys, you’re awesome and I really enjoyed it!

So, that’s my story.  If you couldn’t make it this time, I hope to see you at the next GeekDinner!  A big thank you to everyone who had a hand in organising the evening and bringing everything together in the end.

Last night we had another GeekDinner, this time at the Pasta Factory.  It was a fun evening, despite all signs: a lot of people (including some friends I had hoped to see there) cancelled for various reasons, a bunch more cancelled because they were sick and I myself was feeling a bit under the weather.  I’m therefore probably not the best person to give an objective review of the event.  But, one thing that I have to say, is that I was a bit disappointed in the food.  The food was good, don’t get me wrong, but not worth the price.  I realise that it is not uncommon for Italian food (especially pastas) to be hellishly expensive, but one has to draw a line somewhere.  I was actually looking forward to a nice pasta, but on seeing the selections available to us, I opted for one of the pizzas.  While I think those who has pizzas “scored” in terms of volume, it isn’t difficult to find pizzas of at least the same quality for nearly half the price.  So, that was a bit unfortunate.  But, at the very least, last night was the first time in a looong time that a pizza bested me.  (Its because I’m sick, you see.)  So now I have lunch… mmm!

The staff was, however, very friendly.

Thanks again to Delheim Wines for sponsoring us!  I wish I could have had some wine last night, but didn’t want to risk taking any alcohol into my system.

I just got back from the May 2009 Cape Town GeekDinner and, man, was it great!  There was good vibe, the venue was excellent and the people awesome!

Our location was at Neighbourhood in Long Street in Cape Town.  I went there with some friends after the Cape Cobras-Rajasthan Royals match and thought it a good candidate for a GeekDinner.  I suggested it and we eventually settled on it.  And we weren’t disappointed!  The staff was very friendly and the food was excellent!  The starters were different platters served as a buffet: I’m sure that alone filled up some of the people in attendance.  For mains we were given a relatively generous set menu to select from.  I decided on having the Foghorn Leghorn Burger, and it was delicious!  For dessert I had ice cream, but by this time I was so stuffed that it was an uphill battle I didn’t quite win.  Having worked with the managers before to arrange the venue, I can testify to the lengths they went to  accommodate us and were always friendly, open and helpful.  I’m not trumping anyone up because I have to: these guys really are tops!

We also welcomed a new face to GeekDinner: Delheim wine estate generously sponsored us with good quality wine!  Thanks guys!

For me, this was a special GeekDinner.  Not only did I have a hand in helping to organise it a bit, but I also gave my very first GeekDinner presentation!  I gave a brief talk on Asperger Syndrome.  It served a dual purpose: to raise awareness amongst the GeekDiners (although I suppose a lot of them already knew much on the topic) and it also helped my studies by forcing me to study this subject and getting me to try and wrap my mind around it.  The only downside was that I wasn’t able to cover the topic as thoroughly as it should be.  But I believe I got the jist through, and that is what is important.  It prompted some discussion and some interesting comments and questions afterwards, which I’m glad about.

Thanks to everyone who pitched in and pitched up and made this a great evening!  And a special thank you to everyone who supported me!

Last night I attended the thirteenth GeekDinner which was held in Sea Point at Tao Yuan.

Now, before we begin, I should make a couple of points clear.  Firstly, I am not a big fan of oriental food.  Secondly, the previous GeekDinner (the Stellenbosch one) completely eclipsed anything we had experienced before.  Therefore, measuring most GeekDinner experiences against that one could be considered cruel and unusual punishment.

To fairly rate Tao Yuan and any future GeekDinner events, I have come up with the following solution.  Anyone who watches Top Gear will know of the “Star in a Reasonably Priced Car” segment.  In this segment, they interview a celebrity and then have them race around their track.  Their time then gets recorded on a board for future guests to compete against.  But if the guests are in fact part of motor racing, it would be completely unfair to measure their times to the film stars.  F1 and rally racers therefore have their own board.  So, I shift Lovane to one side until the rays of tranquility and enlightenment fall on me in a dining establishment again.  I am now ready to objectively evaluate Tao Yuan.

But, the reality is that this whole exercise wasn’t strictly necessary.  This is because Tao Yuan did not disappoint.  The staff was friendly and there clearly was good and efficient communication between the organisers and the management.  From my point of view, the restaurant’s trial-by-fire began with the appetizer, which was sushi.  I am a feverent opponent of sushi.  I have tried sushi more than once before and it never accommodated with me.  But, under the guidance of some fellow GeekDiners I was led to my first half a dozen bites of sushi which didn’t completely revolt me.  It was quite nice, actually.  The main course was served as a different dishes anyone could help themselves to.  This included pork ribs, salted chicken, noodles, steamed beef, rice, sweet and sour fish and something limp and green (I didn’t have the first and the last).  Everything was delicious, but an honourable mention needs to go the the rice and sweet and sour fish.  I have never had sweet and sour fish, but it is a winner idea that goes above and beyond expectations.  Dessert was watermelon slices and dough with a sweet syrupy centre.  Everything was incredibly yummy.  Tao Yuan is (from what I gather) already prominent in the Chinese community in Cape Town.  Now, however, I’m sure there is going to be a protracted surge in other patrons frequenting this neat establishment.

The only thing which was a bit of a bum was that the vegetarians had to be relegated to their own table.  While this provided for some joking about on the organisers’ list, it was a shame that not everyone could sit with whom they wanted.  No-one is to blame for this, however: it was a consequence of circumstance.  But perhaps it would be something to look out for in the future.  (Besides, after the previous GeekDinner, I learned that vegetarians sometimes also gets yummy food! )

I also want to thank everyone who presented last night.  You guys outdid yourselves.  There was a common underlying theme in most of the talks (money)—whether this is coincidence or not, I’m not sure.  But everything went well and the talks were quite enjoyable and informative.  Special thanks to Bryn Divey who delivered an amazing slideshow karaoke.

Last, but not least, thank you again very much to Perdeberg Winery.  You guys are family and it just wouldn’t be the same without you!

I’m sorry for again not having any pictures to share.  I took my camera with this time, but all my batteries were kaput.  More than you, the readers, loosing out, I lost out on some amazing Sea Point sunset pictures.  It was second breathtaking sunset in a row and really lifted by spirits.  Man, I love Cape Town!

Last night I attended the thirteenth GeekDinner.  Or the first.  Or 10½.  It depends on how you look at it.  Because it was a very special GeekDinner; for more than one reason, as it turned out.

For a long time, we who live in Stellenbosch have been campaigning for a GeekDinner to be held in the Stellenbosch area.  I had promised that, when I find the time, I would join the organisers’ mailing list and actively lobby for a Stellenbosch GeekDinner.  After the January GeekDinner, I joined and, low and behold, GeekDinner came to Stellenbosch!  The best part is that I didn’t even lift a finger!¹  We had a willing-and-able person who organised the whole affair nearly singly handedly and, boy, did she do a good job!  It was still decided, however, to hold the dinner in an “off month” to test the water and the willingness of Capetonians to drive “all the way to Stellenbosch”.  We didn’t have a full house, despite the fact that the venue could only accommodate 55 people, but there are other factors involved as well.  Personally, I believe that GeekDinner will return to Stellenbosch in the not too distant future!

And there is good reason for this optimism, which brings me to the second factor which made last night so special.  GeekDiners now have a new standard whereby to measure quality and service.  Our hosts, Lovane Boutique Wine Estate (a small start-up just outside of Stellenbosch), outdid themselves and, to be quite frank, most of the venues in the recent history of GeekDinners.  The venue itself was small, but the tables were well placed and spaced, and everyone could see the screen (a problem we have been having of late).  It is always interesting to see the menu we get for a GeekDinner and this one had my mouth watering from day one of the planning: beetroot stack with goats cheese starter (which I quite enjoyed, despite the fact that I am not a big fan of beetroot), sirloin steak served with a mushroom sauce and butternut ravioli (for the vegetarian option) for the main course with a side dish of rosemary and garlic potatoes, vegetables and salad served with apples, avocados, walnuts and spring onions, and, finally, homemade ice-cream served with a chocolate sauce and coffee.  At first sight I was a bit sceptic of the steak, as it was quite clearly rare to medium (I prefer my meat well done), but it was delicious, soft and succulent either way!  But the best part was the fact that it was a buffet.  This meant three things: I would be able to try the butternut ravioli (which was really tops in itself, although I doubt whether something can be called ravioli if it doesn’t contain meat…), we could pile our plates as high as we wished (no chic bird-dropping-sized portions) and there were seconds!  And, as a final, unexpected treat, after we finished we were all invited down to the cellars for personal tours.

So, what can I say?  Good venue, awesome and friendly hosts and staff, and food to die for.  Really, I don’t owe anyone any favours—when I say this, it is the real deal: go to this place for the food, go there to chat to the people, just go there.

But despite the rave of the “new kid on the block”, we haven’t forgotten our faithful wine sponsor, Perdeberg Winery for sponsoring us in this “off month” with their delicious wine!  You guys really are tops!

Oh, one final tip.  If you decide to go to Lovane, schedule your visit to coincide with sunset.  I didn’t explore the grounds as I was late in getting there, but on my way I saw the stunning sight as a blood red sun setting behind a tree (think of Lion King) directly in front of me along the middle of the road.  Yes, yes, I know it is bad for your eyes, but it was just so beautiful….

PS Sorry, I didn’t take any photos.  I went home thinking it was 17:00, realised it was 19:00 and turned around and went straight to Lovane.

1. I call this the “demi effect”, as in my years of being a student assistant, I have miraclously solved many programming problems by just arriving at a confused pre-grad. [↩]

Greetings friends, family, acquaintances, esteemed information highway travellers and otherwise freaky internet people!

It was roughly four years ago when I was both bored and feeling creative enough to start a blog.  After a short hiatus, I am happy to report that I am still going   And, to boot, a long awaited promise has been fore filled: a revamp of my website!  Originally a friend had inspired me to write my own blogging software and for a long while that idea stood strong.  In fact, I consider the work to be nearly finished and I was proud of what I did.  But the reality came and dulled my ambitions.  The previous host of my blog, Blogger, unfortunately drove me insane, and I decided I had to get away.  With another August on the horizon and enough inspiration to write a little book, I switched to a new web host, installed WordPress, and viola!  Reality is still getting in the way, so there remains a lot still to be set up: about pages, photographs, perhaps a widget or two… expect the theme to change a few times before the dust settles down.  But, I am happy and I feel that I am in a good place (not just regarding the blog, but in general), so I am excited about what is happening!

So, is this the extend of the revamp?  Some server side changes?  Not at all!  I am hoping to gradually move towards a much more general blog… something more “me” than just the occasional spike in emotions or guilt over not having posted in a long time.  With my academic website up and running, I’ve found that I enjoy writing about useful things, or even little nonsense things.  So, beware technophobes (and perhaps even non-Afrikaans speakers)!

July 2008 was the first month in four years in which I did not make a post to my blog.  I am thus going to fill in some gaps before I start hammering away at the Big Post I’ve been meaning to make for two months now.

Last time, on August-Inspiration…

I was preparing for my first ever overseas trip along with my parents.  The trip was a success and we enjoyed ourselves a lot!  Much love and thanks goes out to my brother and his wife for all the trouble they went through to make the trip as memorable for us as it was!  I shall delay the details of the trip until another post, as I won’t do it any justice by trying to stuff it in here along with all the other miscellany.  After getting back home, I thought I got into the regular routine rather effortlessly, although, looking back at the quality of my work I produced back then (or lack thereof), it probably took me a while longer than I thought it would.  I retrospectively named this period my “post-overseas-holiday-blues” period, but that only lasted a couple of weeks.

The largest shock to the system came in the form of classes, which I haven’t attended in six months but now had to get use to again.  Its not that bad—at least the lecturers are making it bare-able.  My extracurricular work has theoretically been reduced since I decided to resign as technical assistant at Stellenbosch University’s Computer Science department.  The decision serendipitiously coincided with a inception of a grand restructuring at Computer Science.  I have recently explained the situation too much to want to recount it here also, but I believe that some of the changes taking place (despite them happening out of necessity rather than innovation) are a good and healthy thing for the department.

Speaking of academic institutions, my masters is slowly gaining momentum.  I have found a couple of free 3D models for my avatar which I now hope to bind to an H-anim skeleton.  I also found an interesting library for a rule-based model of affect, which is going to be the first component which I aim to incorporate into my avatar.  Unfortunately it, getting the Java into C++ is going to require a bit of work.  My advisor also told me today that I should start work on my thesis with my literature overview.  Uh, ok…

Something which I have been feeling guilty about these past few weeks is not reporting on the July GeekDinner.  The past GeekDinner was absolutely fantastic!  First of all, I wish to state that our venue, Da Capo! at 52 Shortmarket Street by Greenmarket Square, was superb.  They had arranged little personalised menus for every table—no-one asked them to do it and they did not charge us for it.  That little bit of effort on their part spoke volumes to me and I felt welcomed, as opposed to some venues who seem to regard us with much suspicion.  But the highlight of the evening, for me, was the food.  I had a three course meal of beef carpaccio, pollo piccata and Amarula tiramisu.  Everything was just delicious, but the chicken deserves special mention.  It is a cliche, but based on the fact that it literally (as opposed to metaphorically) melted in my mouth pardons the ill of saying so.  Truly, five stars for the venue and the food!  If I have to nit-pick, I would say that it was a shame that our personalised menu did not provide a vegetarian menu.  I know of a couple of vegetarian GeekDinner regulars and some of them make special efforts to report on the quality of the vegetarian option.  At this GeekDinner I shared a table with vegetarian, but she luckily had done her research and was able to order from the regular menu.  She had no problem doing so, which tells me that the staff and/or management was willing to “bend the rules” for the vegetarians.  Hmm, I wonder if they do a kosher option…  Another heartfelt thank you goes out to Perdeberg wineries who sponsored our wine again!  The talks were interesting, although the slideshow karioke left little room for innovation on the speaker’s part.  I shudder to think what the next person is going to have to go through

Ok, so that is all that I have on my chest at the moment.  Now to commit my first WordPress post!  Ooh, I’m coming over all funny!

So, here I am, Friday evening, hammering away at a guilt post. And what a guilt post it is. I feel like this website has become a red-headed step-daughter of mine. But it does not help to dwell on the procrastinations of the past: one must look to the here and now; and the future. What I am going to do, however, is reflect on some Significant Events of late.

First thing is first. The eighth GeekDinner was like a sequel nobody expected to be better, but then pleasantly surprises. Because I am a week and a half late with reporting on this event, I shall refrain from commenting on the details and rather refer you to the reports of my fellow geeks. Again I met some interesting people, although the batch I was seated with specialized in hammering in the Small World Theory, which made for 180º of fascinating conversation. A special thanks to Mel’s Village Kitchen in Rondebosch and Perdeberg wines for facilitating the core ingredients of this GeekDinner.

On Monday, at long flippen last, I finally shook-off the bonds of dail-up and entered the civilised phase of broadband. Granted, as far as DSL goes, it is as slow as it gets, but for the caveman the candle is just as good as the light bulb (better? nah, I’m not going to start arguing that). I’m not sure if being excited about fast internet is necessarily quintessentially geeky, but I have been told that my enthusiasm around this has been a bit over-board. Nevertheless, a new age has dawned, so drink and be merry! (Ironically, I am home in Bellville this weekend, so this post is still being written off-line as usual and will only see light of foreign HTTP request on Sunday or Monday.)

Last night, some friends and I went to see the Chris Rock No Apologies Tour. It is his first comedy tour of South Africa and first show here in Cape Town sold out very quickly, and the second show was very nearly full-packed as well. It was hilarious and I enjoyed it very much, but he did dwell a bit on American politics, as I feared he might have done. Of course he also tailors his jokes for the audience, which, one has to admit, might be a bit difficult in an environment as foreign as ours (to Americans). But I did enjoy it very much and have a lot of respect for him for actually coming out all the way to the extreme end of far-off continent.

Tuesday I’m going to see the Counting Crows live. Lacking foresight, my commentary is at this stage only limited to stating that it is going to be legendary!

Other news is that we are entering the critical planning phase of our overseas trip. The whole situation surrounding my father (I still have not been able to find that “lost post”, so forgive me for the fact that you as the reader will be in the dark as to this point) has soured things a bit. I suppose that there is a sense that this trip is going to involve a lot of sacrifice from everyone, although I know that it is important, now more than ever, to look on the bright side of everything and look forward to the trip. My psychiatrist brother has been a bit elusive of late and I wonder what is going on there, but I can’t help to analyse the situation in the background as I know he does. I try not to see the world as he does – I contend that I am too young and ignorant to try and start enforcing other people’s experience of life. Still, I don’t think one (I) should polarise completely, especially not now.

I think I am going to dedicate another post to describing our travelling plans. At present I would say it is about 70% planned, with another 20% suspended and awaiting some decision-making.

Yesterday I attended the seventh Cape Town GeekDinner, “Garrulous Grape”, which is also the fifth one I attended. Along with “Dangerous Drumstick” (the one at Summerville in Camps Bay), this was one of the GeekDinners which I enjoyed the most. The experience was largely dominated by good company, interesting new people and excellent food. I have to admit that I started feeling like a GeekDinner veteran when I elicited several “wows” from people when I told them that this was my fifth GeekDinner. I have never felt uncomfortable at a GeekDinner and it is not cliquey at all, but I suppose that, as with everything else, some are better than the rest. This one was definitely one of the better ones.

Our venue was Greens in Plattekloof. The food was… well, let me put it this way: I could not chew slow enough to absorb the magnificent taste of it all. Definitely thumbs up.

For a long time I have endeavoured to persuade some of my friends to join us at a GeekDinner, but the enthusiasm was always less than convincing. But, after this one, it appears that there is an entire group eager to get in on the event. The Stellenbosch posse seems to be swelling; soon we shall have a majority vote over the venues.

Last night I attended my very first GeekDinner. A GeekDinner is exactly what the name implies: a bunch of self-proclaimed geeks getting together to share good food, drink, company and fun, but also to meet new and interesting (of varying degrees of geekiness) people and to network.

Last night we all assembled at Krugmann’s Grill in the V&A Waterfront. Tania, winterkindt, and I went together and drove from Stellenbosch. I was pleasantly surprised by the relaxed atmosphere and the friendliness and openness of the people there. Everywhere you could make out people telling geeky jokes and showing off gadgets like new cellphones: the type of things which mostly only geeks can appreciate. We chose a table at the back of the room, mistakenly thinking that it was actually the front, but we still had good company at our table. A few people who had confirmed did not show up, which was a shame. I urge people to not forget about this event: the people don’t bite and are really all very friendly.

The food was great and some of the presentations were really insightful. Attending a geek dinner is not only fun, but can also be useful and practical. But apart from that, there appears to be this amazing energy of goodwill and cooperation which not only makes a GeekDinner possible in the first place, but also sustains it through the night and long after when everyone has gone home.