Well, we’re not particularly cash people, so we couldn’t really buy much, as no-one accepted cards for payment. We did however get to try some of the most interesting Garlic Mayonnaise.

We decided to take a stroll and look for something to eat at a place that would accept plastic.

We ended up walking into Pomodoro’s and were seated and given menus. After waiting quite some time not getting any service, we decided to leave. On the way out, we were thanked for coming, and we politely told them that we were leaving because we did not get any service. The manager was all to eager to sort us out and make us happy, but we continued out the door.

We then moved our way up the road and had a look at the Blue Olive, and what a good decision it was. The service was great and the food was good too. You get the feeling from the moment you walk in the door that it is an owner manager establishment. The only thing I would personally like to see is a proper uniform.

If you are going to own a restaurant and want to make it a success, the best way is to be personally involved, but then again, I guess that only works if you’re a restaurant person yourself.

After landing at OR Tambo, I headed to where I stay when I’m in Midrand and was surprised to find Pieter Cloete from inikak.co.za at the house.

We had a great discussion about social media and the web in general. It is awesome to be able to talk someone who is as excited about technology and social media as I am.

Pieter is an iPhone guy and puts his one to good use in keeping his various social media profiles up to date and keeping track of all things digital.

If you are looking for a good laugh and some South African humour, check out inikak.co.za.

Considering our meeting ended early and we were catching a lift to the airport, we decided to go to the airport early, that way ensuring we won’t get stuck in traffic.

We had some fish and chips and the Keg and Aviator which was pretty good. Herman also spotted Sekoati Tsubane (Kabelo Padi) from 7de Laan. We then headed down to the security check point which was busy as hell. The staff were also hasty as could be and practically threw us through the checkpoint.

After gathering my things together and getting comfortable again, I noticed I had dropped my ticket, fortunately for me it was on the floor underneath the check point.

The wait had only just begun and we heard our plane was going to be about 40min late. I looked for a decent coffee shop but only found the wimpy. Herman, who sits through hours of 7de Laan also spotted Hennie Jacobs(Diederik Greyling) and Christo Davids(Errol Pieterse) who ended up sitting right behind us on our flight to George. He also spotted Nico Panagio (George Kyriakis) who is now presenting on Top Billing. It seems that OR Tambo is the place to be if you want to spot SA Celebs. Now craving a good cuppa, little did I know that I would find I Vida E Cafe on the way to the plane, now why weren’t they placed closer to each other… Well at least I know for next time.

The trip into George felt faster than the trip to Johannesburg, but got really noisy on descent, with a few children screaming, probably due to the change in cabin pressure on their ears.

We landed just around 20:00 after getting to the airport well before 15:00, we truly spent most of our trip at the airport.

Buzz is new and will probably take a while to stabilise but already it feels as if it will be adopted very quickly and I presume that it will draw more people to the Gmail platform.

I am glad to see the integration with Google Profiles, this is going to make Profiles more relevant and content rich.

If you’re not on Gmail yet the now is the time to open an account. I recommend Gmail to all of my clients as a system to keep track of all of your various mail identities and manage your digital life. Once you’ve got a Gmail account check out all of the other services offered by Google, most of them are also available directly on your mobile phone which is great.

The past twenty five years have been full of learning and a lot of work, not always doing stuff I wanted to but nonetheless earning some money and learning about business and dealing with issues and people. This year looks promising and I’m excited about all of the opportunities that lie ahead both personally and for MyEcommerce.

Amelia and I started off the day in a mad rush to get ready for Daniel and Marile’s wedding. For some bizarre reason, weddings always seem to invoke a form of natural chaos, even if it’s not your own wedding. The day was perfect, not a cloud in the sky, they had their service at the Moederkerk and their reception at one of the halls at Saasveld. The food was cool and they had the most awesome pumpkin dumplings in a caramel sauce and some really great desert too. Amelia and I left the wedding stuffed and jealous.

I hope that by next birthday I’ll be driving something with four wheels and hopefully be closer towards achieving my endless list of goals.

This morning, I got a call from Jovan and was asked to play in the Fancourt, Members Bar to welcome 2010, and I was more than stoked to do so.

I kicked off with a mellow mix from 19:30 till about 21:30 then picked it up a bit as some of the guests were looking for a slightly more upbeat vibe.

While we were waiting for more guests to arrive, Amelia and I had an awesome seafood pizza, prepared by the La Cantina Chefs, along with some really good coffee. If you get the opportunity to visit Fancourt and enjoy seafood, I’d highly recommend you have one of their seafood pizzas, if you don’t like seafood, you can’t go wrong with the coffee.

The crowd streamed in from about 22:40 and it was pumping through till 23:50 when I called last rounds for 2009. At ten seconds to midnight, we started the countdown and welcomed in the new year. One of the guests lead us, in singing Auld Lang Syne after which, I brought the pace down a bit, with some chilled dance tracks and good old classics. I gradually slowed things down from then and finished off my set at 02:00.

Placing and Sound provided by Jovan & Thelma.

There were supporters dancing and drinking in the most elaborate outfits. We even had a guy who fell in love with a chair for the evening.

I kept things drifting between chilled and uplifting, with a spread of local, and international house and underground. I was on the decks till last rounds were called and began striking at about 03:00.

Outdoor sound was provided by AudioWorx.

After getting all the gear together, I decided to take advantage of McDonald’s 24 hour drive through and went there to grab myself a McFeast Deluxe… I ended up in the cue for about forty minutes, before getting my food, it was well worth the wait though.

With a number of Flat screens spread throughout the premises, some people were watching the rugby, while others were eating, and the rest were partying it up.

By 22:00 the night was alive and the party was happening outside under the Bedouin Tent in the Castle Chill Zone. I held the tempo through till just after 02:00 when I started slowing things down, as people started leaving.

All in all a good night was had by all.

Google Voice

I recently got an invitation to Google Voice, I’m sad to say that it is not currently supported in South Africa, but the concept is great and I really hope that it becomes available internationally soon. I think this is going to make telecommunication providers think again about their exorbitant cost levels and hopefully spark some innovation on that front.

Google Wave

I have been one of the lucky few to get access to the Google Wave Sandbox. The day my invitation came, I was so excited. Wave is still a bit slow and as it is still in beta, it is a bit buggy, but it is great. Just as Gmail has changed the face of email I think Wave is going to change the face of collaborative working and social communication.

Currently Wave Sandbox users are only able to interact with other Sandbox users, so we’re not really getting the feel of what it is going to be like using it on a daily basis, but get to see just enough to look forward to the public release with eager anticipation.

Chromium

Since the release of Chome, I have switched to the developer channel and have seen Google roll out some really awesome features and serious speed. Chrome is seriously the best way to interact with any Google Powered product and if you haven’t tried it yet then now it is time you do.

Chrome OS

Since the release of the Chrome Browser, I think most of the web community have been waiting for the announcement that Google will be releasing their own OS. I simply cannot wait to get hold of Chrome OS and hope that I can afford a new little netbook to run it on when it is released.

Google is revolutionising the web, the way we use computers and changing the world.

Ziyaad and Parveen went all out with the catering and their was still some great tasting pudding left, that we gladly indulged in.

I made OB and myself some coffee, using his awesome Siemens Espresso Machine, i could so do with one of these at home and the office.

The youngsters decided to go out clubbing, so Amelia, Parveen and I, after finishing our coffee with OB hit the road back to George.