use Perl

After a long break, Sydney Perl Mongers Fraze, Stennie, gav, /-\ and the peripatetic Mike Bissett grogged on at the Evening Star Bar in Surry Hills last Tuesday night. And our mailing list is finally back up again (thankyou jarich!). So, after a dismal 2004, 2005 is looking very bright for Sydney.pm.

I really enjoyed Tuesday night. Many topics were discussed over the beers, including Mike's Birmingham.pm connection. Mike spoke very highly of Birmingham.pm head honcho (and new father), barbie, but was hazy when quizzed about the origin of this intriguing nickname. I'd always assumed it was somehow related to throw another shrimp on the barbie or perhaps Mattel's Barbie doll or even a shortened form of "barber" or "barbarian". But, if I heard Mike correctly over the pub boisterousness, it's apparently somehow related to either barbel (a carp-like fish) or barbell (a metal rod used in weightlifting).