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Last night I celebrated an odd anniversary… I’ve survived one year in Johannesburg.

Why did I celebrate? Partly, it was a tongue in cheek celebration, poking fun at all the people that predicted my hasty return to the coastal life… And partly a celebration with the people I’ve met (and known from before) in this last year.

We met at McGinty’s in the Brightwater Commons in Randburg. My thanks to the people that arrived and celebrated with me:

• Matthew and Marti
• Gary and Kati
• JJ and Vanessa
• Rozz and Nick (and John, however briefly)
• Jacques and Jenny
• Louise and Lana
• Karl
• Pieter, Tania and their daughter, Zania
• Grant and Rika
• Jon and Elke
• Peter

Today, one year ago, I moved into the commune where I live now. A year down the line, it looks like I may be the only resident of the original batch that remains, the landlord having taken matters into his own hands to remove some unwanted elements.

Tempus fugit… time flies…

Today I went through to the Good Food and Wine Show at Gallagher Estate with Gary and Kati. I’ve often heard of events at the estate but never been to any of them since I’ve moved here to Johannesburg, so I was looking forward to seeing what all the fuss was about.

The show wasn’t bad, but I must admit, if not for the company, I probably would not have stayed there long. Seeing as I’m not a wine drinker (it has a nasty habit of leaving me curled up in a ball of pain after even one glass) the only other item was interest was the food, which, sadly there was not much of.

I did manage to find some decent chili relish and some jalapeño cream cheese though. So not all was lost. Had some semi-decent sushi, some dry wors, plenty of samples of pesto and relish, some gluten-free breads and chocolates, brandy berries, cheeses, etc, etc…

Other than that… it was crowded. Noisy. Hot.

It was a far more pleasant afternoon, having a simple braai with Gary and Kati, talking about graphics, games (they are two World of Warcraft addicts), networking, horses, photography… And to end it all off, a perfect Johannesburg storm to add some pyrotechnics. What more can a person ask for?

Anyway, back to work tomorrow… these weekends are too damn short.