September Birthdays
Wednesday September 23, 2015
The NZHerald posted an infographic detailing the distribution of birthdays in New Zealand. It turns out that September is the most popular month for birthdays, and sure enough, I've been up to Auckland twice in the last week to celebrate two birthdays. Both were very special occasions and good times were had by all. For my step mum's birthday, we went to Chiko's out in Lincoln Road for dinner; for Mat's birthday, we were at Snapdragon on the water front. It was good to catch up with family and friends alike over the two weekends.
Work is getting busy now that we have some hard deadlines. There's something exciting thing on the horizon that I can't publicly reveal at the moment, but when the veil of secrecy has been lifted, I'll write more about my experiences and where I've been.
Though Wellington on a Plate has finished, the foodening continues. We started the month off with a big steamboat at Jordan, Mike and Mana's, then headed to Dianne's for a flat cooling party. Six people bundled into my little car - we stuffed Philip in the boot and he wouldn't shut up for the whole journey. This weekend is Mooncake Festival, so I will be organising yum cha on Saturday and then cooking up a storm on Sunday. I've got my favourite pandan mooncakes ready to go! In addition to it being a supermoon this weekend, there will also be a total lunar eclipse visible from Europe and Africa - a very auspicious event for the mid-autumn festival!
Posted by Jeremy at 11:55am on Wednesday September 23, 2015 :: 0 comments :: 
It's Over :(
Sunday August 30, 2015
Wellington on a Plate 2015 has come to a close. I've been so busy eating that I've fallen behind on my food blogging, but I will be trying to catch up as fast as I can over the next few days. How much did I spend? How many burgers did I eat? What was the best and worst? You'll find out soon! It's back to cooking, gymming, and all those other routine things I do during the week. It was good having my parents down last week, and I also caught up with Reuben, Shereen, Sam, Andrew and Julia. We visited all the regular Wellington sights - Makara, the wind turbine, Mt Victoria, Oriental Parade, the Weta Cave and so on. We had a quick squizz around the Lux Festival too. Oh, and yeah, we ate heaps of food.
As a result of all these things happening, I missed a chance to go back to the US for my big secret project. Instead, I'm locked away in a room with special access, working away by myself lonesome self until Rob returns next week. Things are progressing... but that's about all I can say! Yep.
I was out with Joe on Thursday night to see Suddenly! A Musical, an improv show where a musical is created before your very eyes! That night we saw the epic tale of a recently engaged couple who return to Wellington from the OE with their cat Trixie, only to have her lost in Mumbai (it rhymes with Hataitai) due to the carelessness of the baggage handlers! I can't imagine how difficult it must be to try and come up with rhyming couplets on the spot like that, but these guys were amazing and it was such a good show. So impressed, congratulations to Playshop crew and Jen the director!
Posted by Jeremy at 11:40am on Sunday August 30, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Wellington on a Plate
Sunday August 16, 2015
WOAP 2015 is well and truly underway, with several establishments serving their special menus for this 17 day festival celebrating the region's finest produce - Wellington craft beers and seafood, Wairarapa meats and wines, Kapiti produce and dairy. Some have embraced the festival with open arms, others have dropped the ball and had troubles coping with the sudden influx of keen foodies. Who are the winners? Who are the losers? Check out my food blog for regular updates during Wellington on a Plate 2015!
It's been a busy few weeks. Rob and I arrived in San Francisco safely and had the rest of Monday to settle in. We went into work on Tuesday until Friday and then spent the weekend in San Francisco, seeing all the familiar sights like Chinatown, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Castro, Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39. I had a mango key lime cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory in Union Square, and it was everything I had dreamed of. I had some good seafood from Pier 39, did some shopping, caught up with Tobias and thoroughly enjoyed being back in this vibrant, energetic city, especially with some magnificent summery 25C weather.
We were back in New Zealand two Fridays ago, just in time for Dewi's last day at PikPok. I took it easy on the Saturday, but on Sunday I was at the zoo with Linda, Campbell and Will for the red panda up-close encounter. Honestly, these critters are the cutest things ever. We got to go into the enclosure and feed them fruit right out of our hand. They're fuzzy and playful, and super keen to get the noms. We were fortunate enough to meet one of the newer red pandas, a girl who had just started doing the encounters. Her face had distinctive white markings and she was a bit uncertain at the start, but as soon as she sensed the fruit, she was all over our laps. At the end, as we left, she scampered up into the trees to watch us, and I held out my hand to see if she would react... she lent in to see if I still had fruit, and I managed to capture this adorable photo.
The game I've been working on for the past year or so has finally been released on iOS and Android - it's published by AdultSwim and it's called Monsters Ate My Metropolis. Using the monsters from Monsters Ate My Condo, you battle it out against unsuspecting cities with the most outrageous abilities, like Trojan Unicorn Attacks, cake bombs and chunder attacks! The game looks amazing and is full of colour and action, so well done to the team for putting it out and making it look as good as it does.
Posted by Jeremy at 8:57am on Sunday August 16, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
Wellington 150
Sunday July 26, 2015
It's been 150 years since Wellington became the capital of New Zealand, and in celebration, there have been several events around town celebrating government and Parliament. Parliament House was lit up with several projected images, much like how the War Memorial was done for Anzac Day, and under the clear skies of Wellington, we listened to the Kiwi tunes of Dave Dobbyn - so poignant was the moment he sang Welcome Home. I absolutely love the imagery that this particular lyric holds:
There's a woman with her hands trembling - "Haere Mai"
And she sings with a mountain's memory - "Haere Mai"
There's a cloud the full length of these isles
Just playing chase with the sun
And it's black and it's white and it's wild
All the colours are one
Standing with the half moon and Southern Cross clearly visible in the sky, with hundreds of other Wellingtonians and New Zealanders on the lawn of Parliament - where we gave women the right to vote, where we stood strong against nuclear policies and where we recognised equality for same-sex marriages - it was hard not to tear up and be proud of the country. Though there are still issues that divide the country, it was good to celebrate what we have achieved and what we hope to achieve in the next 150 years.
I was with Loic, Tim, Mana and Mike, and after Dave had finished his set on stage, we sang Happy Birthday and then left the ground of Parliament, slightly disappointed at the lack of cake. We ended up at KFC because of Hot n Spicy, then Espressoholic for dessert, and then JJ Murphy's to meet up with Kiel, who had been drawing there. We saw Victoria there too, whose boyfriend was part of the live entertainment for the night.
Today has been pretty manic for me, I need to sort out my life due to a very short notice trip to the US! This project I'm on has been codenamed "Enchanted Fixer", from Nic's cryptonym generator. Can't say too much about what I'm working on, but it's an opportunity I can't pass up. It does mean I will miss the ski trip next week though, which is a bit sad, but with a stunning weather forecast of 25C to 35C and sunshine every day, I'm not too disappointed.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:11am on Sunday July 26, 2015 :: 0 comments ::
The End of an Era
Wednesday July 15, 2015
The weekend turned out to be busier than usual; we had a big party at Mexico to celebrate the "end" of our project - though we haven't officially finished, we decided it was a good way to get the team together for some sangria, margaritas and fried chicken. We ended up at Goldings for a bit, then to Pineapples for the rest of the night.
On Saturday, there was badminton in the morning, and then I met Jono and Karlyn and others at Strawberry Fare. I tried their black doris plum pie - the only item on the menu I hadn't tried before. It was a warm, hearty pie on a cold winter's day, without being too sickly sweet or overly rich. Yum! We had walked by the waterfront to the TSB Arena and had a squizz at the bookfair, but I was tired so I went home and napped for a bit. That evening, I was at Joe's house playing board games and party games like Quiplash over Steam. I had music on Sunday at Central, then went for yum cha at Big Thumb, then back home for a quick nap before heading to Beth's new place out in Newtown.
The big news in the gaming industry at the moment is the tragic passing of Nintendo's President, Satoru Iwata. One of his best quotes is "On my business card, I am a corporate president. In my mind, I am a game developer. But in my heart, I am a gamer". You can see in his work the passion he had for creating entertainment. He was a huge contributor to the industry and he will be sorely missed.
Posted by Jeremy at 10:26am on Wednesday July 15, 2015 :: 0 comments ::