Food, Glorious Food!

The end of the Rotary year is rapidly approaching, and I have finally managed to send out invitations to my induction on 1 July.
     I have to thank Steve du Plessis for putting the invitation together, proof if any is needed that Rotarians are reliable, even after they leave your club.
     Another example is that of Graham Donet, who has agreed to be MC for the induction evening, even though he's left Rotary altogether because for the pressures of work.
     Graham, as most of you know, is an excellent MC and is bound to help the party along.
     It just shows, you can take some people out of New Dawn, but you can't take New Dawn out of them!

     Once all the protocol is observed, there's another party on the horizon, our joint social evening with Rosebank Rotary at the Cheese Gourmet in Linden.
     This promises to be another great party. The invitations will be going out after the induction, as we don't want anybody to get confused between the two!
     The idea is for a joint social evening with Rosebank and Brian and Jo Dick of the Cheese Gourmet have put together a wonderful offering.

Jo and Brian Dick, proud owners of the Cheese Gourmet and the Cheese Cafe next door in Linden

     The evening will start off with a cheese and port and wine tasting (three ports, two wines, five cheeses), the cheese obviously from the shop and the port and wine supplied by Axe Hill in Calitzdorp along the famous Route 62 in the Klein Karoo.
     Axe Hill regularly wins awards for their wines and were recently named 2016 Cape Port Producer for their 2013 Cape Vintage.
     The wines will be presented by Mike Neebe, a partner and the winemaker at Axe Hill, who will be offering his wares for sale after the tasting for those who wish to buy.
     The tasting will be followed by a main course of "cheats" cassoulet with Peter James Smith's excellent Toulouse sausages.
     Cassoulet is a traditional stew from Southwestern France with duck confit, Toulouse sausages and sometimes lamb or chicken instead of duck, cooked with haricot beans and topped with a crust of breadcrumbs, real winter fare.
     Dessert will be an Eton mess.
     The cost for the evening, wine included, is R250 a head.
     Please diarize the date: Friday, 15th July, 6.30 for 7pm. The shop and restaurant are in 7th Street, Linden, corner 3rd Avenue.

Lucille explains the dangers of rabies

           The meeting last week was very informative when Lucille first spoke about the rabies outbreak in Muldersdrift (beware those attending Discon next week) and then about the Hluvukani project in Bushbuckridge she's been championing since having to go there regularly on NICD business.
     Wheelchairs donated via New Dawn have made a huge difference in the lives of many residents, as has other help to the community through book donations from the Humanitarian centre and the recent handover of solar lanterns to school kids to help those without electricity to study for exams.

Jankees spoke about his first RI Convention

     She was followed by President Jankees Sligcher, who told about the wonder of attending an RI convention along with something like 48 000 fellow Rotarians.
     As we know, Jankees will be District Governor for the year 2018/2019. He and Judy have therefore already registered for the next RI conference, to be held in Atlanta in the USA.
     It seems food plays quite a role in our lives, what with the Cheese Gourmet, Lucille telling us about the best slap chips with chili sauce in the world and the ginseng sweets with a matching pair of chopsticks that Jankees and Judy gave to everyone at the breakfast.
     To get back to the induction evening: please respond to Carol Stier about whether you can make it that evening or not, and please bring a bottle of wine or two (or even a whole case!) to help the evening along.
     A Thought for the Week: Laugh, and the world laughs with you;/ Weep, and you weep alone./ For this brave old earth must borrow its mirth,/ But has trouble enough of its own. - Ella Wheeler Wilcox, poet (1850-1919)