Okay, so the Soccer World Cup bug has definitely bitten me. I don’t generally follow much soccer, but wow, what a vibe!

If one steps back and takes a look at what the world experienced not even an hour ago, it’s quite miraculous, actually. An entire nation, across all continents of the world, united in support of Bafana Bafana as they went up against Mexico in the opening match of the 2010 Soccer World Cup. And that first goal… wow!

The game itself was a mix of various emotions. While we didn’t have the majority of possession of the ball, we managed to take what possession we did have and make some real magic out of it… which made the game all the more entertaining. The end result of a 1–1 draw was the result of both sides fighting for that last goal, which was a truly incredible sight to see.

On the whole, I’m just super proud of Bafana Bafana and really proud to be a South African. Feel it, it is here!

Fusion Cafe is a sports bar/restaurant hybrid. The sections are separated by a perpendicular walkway which allows visitors to eat in the restaurant and not be disturbed by rowdy sports fans, if they’re looking for a quiet meal. The division between the two is subtle yet just right to be convenient for virtually any visitor.

The food at Fusion Cafe is a small yet varied menu, consisting of fish dishes, hamburgers, nachos, salads, starters and desserts. Essentially, there’s something for everyone. The unique factors come in with the presentation… wow. The non-soup dishes with side items (for example, a hamburger and chips) are presented in a stacked method, with the side order as the base on the plate. This is, I’d say, quite unique and an interesting concept for presentation.

Ultimately, the experience was top class. The environment is pleasant and welcoming, the food is well presented and extremely tasty and I’ll be going back there again for sure.

Photos will be up as soon as possible. The food presentation is best seen, rather than read about.

Today is Freedom Day in South Africa… yes, yet another public holiday in April. This day is, however, more than just another of the many April-based public holidays. Freedom Day remembers the first post-apartheid political election, held on this day in 1994. For South Africans, this day was truly one of a unique nature, as for the first time in a South African election, the entire nation was truly free to cast their vote as they wished… or to even cast their vote in the first place.

If you were in the country at the time in 1994, try to think back on how things were at the time, and before. However you choose to spend today, please set aside a moment to think about the concept of freedom and what it truly means.

At this moment, it’s a little misty outside my window. It’s early and I’m almost on my way to a nice hot cup of tea. This doesn’t seem related to the post at all, does it? It is. All of these factors are instrumental in driving productive output from within me. A relaxed environment with average, slightly overcast, weather conditions and the want for a soothing cup of tea.

But… how?

It’s really straight forward, actually. The environment affords me the calm and free space to think laterally and let my mind wonder a bit. This, I’ve found, is incredibly important with the majority of tasks I do (whether it’s writing a blog post or exploring a code snippet). My mind is allowed to wonder naturally down the various avenues of possibility, possibly exploring areas I may not have arrived at, had I been in a different environment. This post is itself a product of said environment.

Okay, and how does that drive your output?

This part, like the first, is person-specific. It’s about finding what works best for you. The solution I have found that works for me is almost a domino effect. The output of one task drives the output of the next.

While many people may choose what I refer to as the “reward” system of “oh, I worked so hard on task A, let me relax for a bit as a reward and then get on to task B”, I’ve adopted a similar, yet slightly different method. The output of task A drives me to work on task B. This continues until there’s either no time left to spend for that period of time, or a simply cannot do any more at the time. In today’s case, task A is writing this blog post. Task B is various errands and such and then task C… well, who knows.

I was thinking about my output this morning, stopped and realised, “wow, this is actually kind of weird”, so I thought I’d share it with you all and see if there’s anyone out there who has a similar process. Right, on to task B.

Magic: The Gathering is a collectable trading card game in which you play the role of a powerful wizard (duelist/player/planeswalker) who, along with a library of spells, enchantments and summonable creatures, duel against one or more other wizard(s) in a battle of mind and wit.

Recently on Zoopy, an insert was published explaining the game, discussing it with several avid collectors, judges and players and sharing the magic (pardon the pun) that is Magic: The Gathering.

If you’ve never really been the kind to play fantasy games, but enjoy make-believe of any kind (fantasy, comic books, vampire novels, you name it), I’d recommend giving Magic: The Gathering a whirl. I feel the clip below explains the game really well and can help new players to understand where the game has come from and how it is unique in it’s nature, making it a true one-of-a-kind game for all.

Arts and culture is a concept on which many thrive and many others bare teeth. Like it or not, arts and culture shapes us, as human beings, in ways that cannot be put into words. That song on the radio that we like, the play we saw last week with our loved ones and the many other performing arts that surround us can have such vast impact on us (for example, a song invoking happiness or sadness) that, how could the arts not form part of our daily lives? For a select few individuals… a select talented few… the arts are a way of life.

The Cape Town City Ballet is a dance company that has, since 1934, hosted productions with a varied cast of students, teachers and professional dancers sharing a single stage for an evening of magic. Realise it or not, the Cape Town City Ballet has had an impact on our lives in one way or another.

The Company has recently hit a financial bump in the road and may be forced to close its doors. According to the “Save The Cape Town City Ballet” campaign website, “Unless Cape Town City Ballet receives urgent and significant funding, the company is in very real danger of being forced to close it’s doors in the near future.” To aid the Company in soliciting said funds, the team at The Forge Web Creations have launched an online initiative to appeal to the public at large. The campaign aims to appeal to bloggers and blog readers alike and to encourage donations to and support of the Cape Town City Ballet.

What’s the story?

For each donation made, the donor will be entered into a draw to win:

• Tickets to a gala event
• 24 bottles of wine
• A poster sized print

Every bit helps, guys. The arts are an outlet for everyone– watching or performing. They are a means of self-expression and emotive release. I know how I feel when I play music or when I watch a band that has that certain something about their sound or stage presence. For others, this feeling comes from dancing and being free on a stage. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of sitting in a full auditorium and witnessing a full stage production. The feeling is one to simply be experienced.

To donate directly to the campaign, the “Donate Now” page on the Campaign’s website has all the necessary information (please use reference number MC1).

Find out more about the Cape Town City Ballet or the “Save The Cape Town City Ballet” campaign via their websites and other bloggers supporting the “Save The Cape Town City Ballet” campaign. This is an extremely worthwhile cause, guys, of which I feel honoured to be a part.

// Update — Vincent over at Moral Fibre has written a detailed blog post explaining the lack of funding for the Cape Town City Ballet, the reason for this as well as how we can assist the Company. A definite recommended read.

Okay, just a little bit of techie stuff (let’s get it over with, shall we?). Over the weekend past, I released the WP Section Index WordPress plugin. Check it out and let me know what you think and how it works for you.

I find that, throughout the day, I get ideas for blog posts I’d like to write. Posts about music, WordPress or random thoughts that enter my head. Gradually, I start forming the skeleton of the post in my mind and, at times, the post gets entered as a draft in the administration console, eagerly waiting to be finished, polished and published. This approach, more often than not, doesn’t seem to work.

I formulate the idea, draft it out and then it sits. Waiting. Waiting for a finishing touch. The finishing touch that takes weeks to arrive as it simply isn’t on the tip of my fingers to login and finish the blog post. So there you have it. Draft posts simply don’t work for me. I find that, if I sit down and write a blog post in one session, the post gets done. A while ago, I wrote a blog post about making time to blog. I wrote another about blogging in general around a similar time. I’ve also tried several routines for blogging, such as my June 2009 blog-post-per-day idea, which lead to some interesting blog posts.

The aims of this post are to a) explore the concept of changing one’s location when online and how it affects productivity (currently blogging from the couch, by the way… super productive, actually) and b) to mention that this entire blog post is being written in one sitting with no drafts being manually saved (save the auto draft feature in WordPress, ofcourse). I’ll open the post up in a bit, do some linking and check things over, but generally speaking, the post is being written “on the fly”, as it were. It feels good and I think I may just keep it up… in between all the techie posts about all that coding stuff.

So yeah, there you have it. A nice long ramble about where and how to ramble on your blog.

As a developer, the problem and solution are usually quite clean-cut (such is the nature of code, prodominantly). The solution, however clean-cut it may be, isn’t always visible when approaching a coding task. At times like those, I employ a theory:

Whatever you do to figure out the solution, whatever pencil-tapping or repeated contact between your head and desk occurs, the end result will work and be exactly as per the task set out to you.

Knowing this, the task of achieving the goal becomes seemingly less stressful and a bit clearer to tackle. In addition, I find it important to clear one’s head, move away from the problem for a few minutes and give it some thought from a different angle.

That’s my theory, anyways.

Stop. Think. Re-evaluate.

The other day, my mom discovered blogs. This got me thinking; how many people discover blogs and blogging for the first time every day?

I believe that fitness, health and exercise is all about one’s mindset. Getting up, packing a gym bag and heading off to the gym is the first part. If you’ve got that waxed, you’re well on your way. The second part is where many stop: the actual gyming part.

So many people walk into a gym and have no idea what to do and where to do it. A few things I learned when getting started on a new machine are the following:

1. Anything yellow you can touch. This applies to “Technogym” machines, found in many gyms in South Africa. These yellow levers are for adjusting the weight intensity, the seat position and any other settings on the machine.
2. Check the weight and seat height before you start. You wouldn’t want to damage your body.

Right. Now that that’s sorted, where to now?

Going to gym alone or with a friend, a jumping sporadicly from machine to machine, is an interesting way of gymming. However, how do you know that you’re getting a proper workout? Enter, the Super Circuit.

The Super Circuit is a series of machines designed to work the majority of the major muscle groups in your body. It is a controlled environment, comprised of a series of sessions per machine, where you move from machine to machine in a specific order, using alternate time sections to exercise (keeping your heart rate up) on the steps in the centre. This is a great way to get a full workout as well as enjoy gym time. This is also where the above-mentioned mindset comes in.

The Super Circuit is also a group exercise. Each person needs to move in the correct order at the correct times for the entire group of Super Circuit users to achieve their goals. A team effort which ultimately benefits everyone.

So if you thought you were alone at the gym and had no idea what to do, the Super Circuit is the way to go. If you’re unsure of something, just ask. It’s definitely helped me become more of a gym bunny.