Christos Kalantzis’ Blog

So I bought this bottle at a recommendation from Gary Chevsky and the gang at Vineyard Gate Wine Sellers.  So I opened it on Sunday night, and had a small glass to figure this wine out.  It had a black pepper nose, which I liked.  I took a first sip and immediately tasted dried berries which, I am told, is classic for a Grenache.  It also has an earthy tone, its a little acidy and has some fruity tannins.

I immediately thought it would go with meat, but not a strong meat like beef and especially not anything gamy.  I didn’t want to pair it with chicken or pork.  Then my favorite meat jumped into mind.  Veal!  Veal would have been great but unlike Montreal, veal isn’t easily found at your local supermarket.  Then I found out pastitsio was on the menu tonight.  Pastitsio is oven baked pasta and meat sauce, with a bechamel sauce on top.  It was a great pairing and worked great.  For around $8 ~ $10, its a great buy.

Although my Greek background makes me a little biased, its a bouquet of exotic fruit, grapefruit and traces of beeswax. Its mouth is fresh and balanced, with the aroma of exotic fruit prevailing, with touches of oak wood and a lengthy palate.

Another piece of home that cannot be found in the Bay Area is ketchup flavored chips.  Chip flavors have always been regional.  The south likes things sweet and spicy.  The mid-west likes savory flavors.  The east coast likes vinegary flavors.  Salt & Vinegar flavored chips can be found all over the east coast.  However, Ketchup is where it is at!  I have only been able to find that in Canada.

The lack of Greek pastry shops in the Bay Area means that one cannot get some classic Greek deserts, such as a Bougatsa.  Its a sweet, cinnamony custard wrapped in philo dough and topped with powdered sugar.  Its was originally a peasant dish.  Like all peasant dishes, today they are considered delicacies and are highly regarded and sought after.

This is a taste of Greece that one can only get in a heavily populated Greek area, such as Montreal, New York or Chicago.

I flew back to Montreal last Saturday (April 4th, 2009) to visit my family.  This is the first extended trip back since I left last year.  So what do I think?

The weather sucks!  However, I didn’t come here for the weather.  What really sets Montreal apart from Silicon Valley is the grittiness.  Silicon Valley prides itself on its vast diversity.  What it misses, is the grittiness that characterizes each culture.  Greeks are loud.  Italians are full of themselves.  The French are rude.  In the Valley each culture is a mere shadow of themselves, conforming to socially acceptable behaviors of that area.

Of course, this is a personal choice.  I prefer experiencing a culture to its fullest, instead of just getting a whitewashed version of it.

Stay tuned for tastes of Montreal.

One thing that is great about the US, is the lower tax rate.  However if you are there on a TN, and are Canadian, then that advantage doesn’t apply.  A Canadian has to report his universal income.  So although the US doesn’t tax me a lot, Canada wants the difference.

So here is the bottom line.  Every penny paid in taxes abroad receives a credit towards the Canadian tax man.  As long as one is on a TN, taxes need to continue being paid to the Canadian Government.  The only way around it is to stop being a Canadian permanent resident.  However, there is no dual intent with a TN Visa.  Although you can begin the process from the US, you have to eventually go back to Canada to fulfill the process.

The only way around it is to either have the company get you an H1-B so that you can stay in the US while you apply for a Green Card, or go home.

In the meantime, at least you can go see a doctor for free back home.

It Works!

During installation you have to make certain BIOS changes identified on the EFI-X webiste to get this thing installed.  The forums are a great resource if you are stuck, and they answer questions within 24 hours.  I had reseated some drives, which made me loose the EFI-X chip in the BIOS.  I was quickly told to reset the CMOS, and it came back.  Thanks Forum guys!

I am now rocking my new MacPro!

Cheers!

Parts

So the EFI-X website has lots of  parts to choose from.  I have settled for the following:

• Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3R
• Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 (2.40GHz)
• Radeon HD 3870 Video Card
• 2×2GB 800Mhz RAM
• LG DVD Burner (SATA)
• 2X500GB Hitachi HD (SATA)
• Cooler Mater 550W Power Supply
• Cooler Master Case

I hadn’t assembled a computer in a while, and it was fun to get my “hands dirty” again.

I got the hardware from  various sources.  At the time I purchased them, Amazon, Fry’s and NewEgg where my friends.  Look around for the best deals.

Next Step….Installing Mac OSX.

I have decided to upgrade my iMac to a Mac Pro. However, have you seen the price of those things? Can you say Apple Tax? Too bad you can’t build your own unless you want to go the hackintosh route and deal with hacking the kernel and updates that you cannot apply. Until now!

EFI-X is a German company that developed a chip thatplugs into your motherboard and duplicates the EFI hardware instruction set. So once it’s installed all you need to do is install using a retail copy of OS-X. I do mean retail. Not advocating piracy here. Just a little EULA breakage.

On their website they list a bunch of supported hardware. As long as you choose the parts they support, your golden. So follow my next few postings as I choose my hardware and build a homebrew Mac Pro.

Have you seen the latest Apple add? Actually you saw it the first time. It’s the same add over and over again.
I, personnaly, have gotten a little tired of that theme. All they are, are pot shots at Microsoft. Why not tell me what you can do, instead of spreading lies (and i mean outright lies) about your competition? Funny that one of their selling points is that you can run Windows!
The adds no longer are aimed at getting new users, but to make fan-boys chuckle.
By the way Apple, a PC also runs Linux. Latest numbers show that there are more world-wide Linux users than Mac users.
So tell me what you can do for me and how much it will cost to switch to you (hardware and software), instead of just spreading FUD. It’s getting a little old.