The Scribbler

London - published on 9 September 2004   Beyond Images Briefing 107 – www.beyondimages.info/b107.html In the aftermath of the Beslan school massacre, the following article was published by prominent Arab journalist Ahmed Rahman Al-Rashed in the pan-Arabic newspaper Al-Sharq Al-Awsat.  It was also published on various news agency websites.  Al-Rashed is general manager of Al-Arabiya news channel.   In the article, Al-Rashed describes terrorists as the “end-product” of a “deformed” Islamic culture.  He calls for Muslim societies to embark on self-criticism, and to end their “history of denial” and their justifications for “heinous crimes”. Innocent Religion Is Now A Message of Hate by Ahmed Rahman Al-Rashed 6 September 2004 It is a certain fact that not all Muslims are terrorists, but it is equally certain, and exceptionally painful, that almost all terrorists are Muslims. The hostage takers of children of Beslan, North Ossetia, were Musl...

Today is Shira’s 2nd birthday. It is pretty special in that it’s probably the last one she’ll have that she’s unaware of. By next year, she’ll be pretty clued up to what birthdays are all about. I have to say that I’ve thorougly enjoyed her innocence! Shira is entering the terrible two’s as they call them. If she’s anything like her sisters, she’ll be fine until next August 31st and then, she’ll provide us with nine months of the terrible three’s. Right now though two years down the line, she is 100% edible and gorgeous. Long may it last and although you don’t quite know what it means….Happy Birthday Shir Shir. You’re a stunner!

Please read the following scenario carefully before attempting to answer the question. A newly qualified teacher starts working in a State School. As instructed, he sends his bank details via the school the Payroll Department in the Local Council. As per the norm, he is paid by cheque for the first month since he hasn’t yet been put onto the payroll system, which will pay his salary straight into his bank account. In the Council’s Human Resources Department, HR Assistant Alex Dashmuck receives the teacher’s bank details, soon after they are sent and promptly files them away in the teacher’s personnel folder, instead of submitting them to Payroll for processing. As a result, at the end of the second month, the teacher doesn’t get paid at all. You are the Head of Human Resources at the Council. Do you: a) Have a gentle word with Alex and admonish him/her for this mistake (even though this is already the fourth time this has happened in the last six months)? b) Give Alex a verbal warning ...

I went back to school today, for the first time since 22 July. All new starters have been invited to attend two induction days, ahead of the commencement of the new term. The fact that we are also being paid extra to attend, does not come into it in any way (perish the thought!). Anyway, it was nice to meet the new faces. Tomorrow, we are going to have our photos taken for the staff bulletin board (say “don’t you dare throw that thing at me or I’ll have you in for six hours on Sunday morning, you little shit”) and get to know the new year 7 intake. The biggie will be next Monday when we give our first lessons. If we screw up, we’ll be paying for it throughout the next year. I have to basically be a total bastard until Christmas if I want to have any control over my class. If I don’t get it right on Monday morning, they will be all over me by the next lesson. Talk about pressure! I still don’t have too much of an idea of what I’m going to be covering but I met with my Head of Department...

My heart goes out to anyone who has experienced the horror of Katrina. If you are reading this and have been affected, please know that my thoughts are totally with you and your families. Today, we are all Louisianans and Mississippians and may the Good Lord protect you all from any more harm.

I know that I said I would be stopping with my Gaza stuff, but (!) I was sent this and really feel it is important to show a different opinion, parts of which I agree with. Yakar is an orthodox study centre which takes an alternative viewpoint to traditional Judaism (more in line with Kabbalistic thought). The centre in London (there are a number in other cities, like Jerusalem) is headed by Rabbi Jeremy Rosen who wrote this article. “There have been so many different reactions from all over the world to the withdrawal from Gaza and parts of Samaria, focussing on different and often totally opposite perspectives. This is my personal response and, as usual, it is concerned primarily with the religious aspect.   If one is going to take a religious position, then I stand fair and square with the Hassidic Satmar anti-Zionists. They argue that the religious ideal of a return to Zion is in the hands of God. Any attempt to return to Zion formally and officially is, to them, a blasphemy which ...

Israel has left Gaza and the terrorists thank us by sending suicide bombers from the south Hebron Hills – one of the few areas where the fence hasn’t been built. If that’s not a reason to continue with some frenzied fence building, I don’t know what is – cos I sure as hell don’t want our brethren to leave the birthplace of Judaism: Hebron.

I’m sure I’m the last one to find this out, but you can now post your entries from Word, using the Blogger add-in. I know that some of you have lost some posts in the past when using the online method, so this should definitely come as a tonic. The only drawback is that you can’t include images (yet.) I’ve published a few posts this way and it works really well. You can find it somewhere on the Blogger website!

Today was Michal’s 5th birthday, hence the visit to the cinema (at 10 am!) which was followed by lunch in a restaurant (if you can consider hot dogs to be lunch) and a wonderful double birthday party (Shira is two on Wednesday) at home attending by my in-laws and Dana’s brother, sister-in-law and their very cute 14 month old daughter. Whilst the four of us were at the cinema, Dana ( no doubt ably assisted by Shira) cooked up a wonderful feast of cakes and tarts. Dana really is an amazing cook (and if this doesn’t get her to comment on my blog, I give up). My little Michali is five years old. I can’t quite believe it’s five years to the day since she popped out in that pool of water and her little screaming head emerged, ready for its first swimming lesson. Does time fly or what?

I have to say that I approached this film with a certain level of trepidation. My experience of 3D movies has not been too positive and I remember the last time the genre hit the big screen with very mixed emotions. In 1983, I went to see "Spacehunter: Adventures In The Forbidden Zone", a 3D space "extravaganza". The director fell into the trap of many of 3D film maker and concentrated on scaring the wits out of the audience by throwing everything he could (in 3D) at the audience - explosions, debris, meteorites - you name it - at the expense of penning any sort of comprehensible script. I remember emerging from the cinema with a gargantuan headache, still not knowing what the story had been about. Making films in 3D is therefore a tricky business and definitely not one to approach lightly. I'm therefore delighted to report that Robert Rodriguez has made a thoroughly enjoyable entry into the genre, that for once doesn't compromise a good storyline with overb...

As a matter of personal interest, like many other bloggers, I like to track the hits I get on this site. The program I use is called Statcounter and before you start worrying, it doesn't give me any personal information about who visits (unless their IP address is traceable and then I only know the domain name!). I enjoy writing the posts because it is a way of expressing myself. It's nice to know that people are reading your thoughts, although I don't write, so as to be read. If you know what I mean. Saying that, if people are reading my blogs, it's interesting to know where my thoughts are being read. With this in mind, I please look at the following screenshot of countries in which my posts were read yesterday: I find it staggering (and fantastically ego boosting) to see that I’m being read around the world – from Australia to Canada. I also feel quite vulnerable that all these strangers in countries I’ve never visited, know exactly what’s going on in my mind! On se...

I've added a link for the wonderful Dry Bones cartoon strip. You can find it just below the animated lady on the couch, in the left hand column. For those who don't know, it is an Israeli institution, debuting in 1973. I love the strip for it's wry, humerous and very Jewish way of looking at the Middle East situation (and the rest of the world) from a wonderfully refreshing angle. Always right on the mark, I highly recommend it.

I've noticed that a few of you (bloggers) have opted to ban anonymous comments from your blogs. I haven't had any yet, but the option to post thus, is available. Question. Should I restrict such comments? In doing so, would I be removing the option for people to post exactly what they feel and in doing so, invoking some sort of censorship? I suppose I would only need to do this if people start abusing the anonymous option. Right? Opinions requested please (anonymous or not.)

You will no doubt be relieved to read that I'm enacting closure on the topic of the Gaza disengagement as I think I've pretty much said (or quoted) everything I wanted to about it. I think it's "business as normal" from now on. Besides, school starts next week and I'll have enough to report from my first year of teaching, without flogging what is fast becoming "a dead horse". What's done is done, let's all move on.

Dana, my fab wife and the other scribbling teacher in the house is amused by my recollections of my first date. She really makes me smile though, when she comes back from the supermarket this afternoon beaming. "I bought you something to show that I support your blog writing." she says coyly. I'm intrigued. What can it be? With a grin, she gives me... ...The DVD of Trading Places . I'm still chuckling twenty minutes later......... and the best thing is that this one comes slap-less. What a gal!

This article explains my own reasons for backing the Gaza disengagement. I have always gone with the fact that Gaza was never really a "Jewish" area (although Jews may have lived there on and off throughout history). From today's New York Times Palestinians on the Right Side of History By BENNY MORRIS There is, from the historian's perch, something fitting about the Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. I am not speaking about the fact that this appallingly overcrowded area has 1.3 million Arabs who need every inch of its 140 square miles to even begin to imagine a better life and who regard their former Jewish occupiers as nothing more than robbers. I mean instead that for the greater part of ancient history - that past in which the Jewish people anchor their claim to Israel - the Gaza Strip was not part of the Jewish state. The embattled settlers may have screamed last week that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was expelling Jews from part of Eretz Yisrael, "the l...

I have been asked to post this on my blog. Background "Oct 4, 2003 - Assaf Staier, 11, of Haifa was one of 21 people killed in a suicide bombing carried out by a female terrorist from Jenin in the Maxim restaurant in Haifa. The Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack. The blast devastated the restaurant, of joint Jewish-Arab ownership, on Hahagana Boulevard near the southern entrance of the coastal city. It was packed mostly with regular Saturday customers. The bomber, Hanadi Jaradat, a 29-year-old lawyer from Jenin, managed to get past Maxim's security guard before blowing herself up in the middle of the restaurant. The security guard, an Israeli Arab, was killed in the attack, along with three other Israeli Arab employees of the restaurant. The victims included five members of the Almog family from Haifa and five members of the Zer-Aviv family from Kibbutz Yagur. Four children were killed and 60 people were wounded in the bombing. Three generations of the Almog f...

Between two o' clock and four o'clock this afternoon, I reached a state of perfection in my life. Let me explain. I don't know if this idea exists in other countries, but here we have some farms that operate a P.Y.O. (pick your own) system. You turn up at the farm, see what they've got growing, grab some baskets and a trolley and fill them up to your heart's content. You walk back to the shop, pay and go back to your car, laden with filled baskets and carrier bags. We took the girls to a nearby P.Y.O. farm. There we were, the six of us, enjoying a rare family outing. The sun was out, the kids were not arguing and both Dana and I were in fabulous moods. We walked across fields and hills filling our baskets with fresh strawberries, raspberries, spinach, red and white onions, corn and beetroot. The wierdest moment was stepping through the onion field. I have to confess that I never knew how onions grew and it seemed really weird just being able to pluck them out of the...

Thanks everyone and wow!

I was sent this by the Middle East Media Research Institute . I think that it speaks volumes about the value of human life, as seen in different cultures. Al-Jazeera Special on Female Suicide Bomber Hanadi Jaradat The following are excerpts from a report, by Al-Jazeera TV that aired August 16,2005, about female Palestinian suicide bomber Hanadi Jaradat. Jaradat was responsible for the October 2003 bombing of the Arab-owned restaurant Maxim in Haifa, Israel, which killed 19. (To view this clip, click here ). Hanadi Jaradat: "By the power of Allah, I have decided to become the sixth female martyrdom-seeker, who will turn her body into shrapnel, which will reach the heart of every Zionist colonialist in my country, and every settler or Zionist who has tried to sow death in my country. We are not the only ones who must sow and reap..." Reporter: "Her cousin Sami was the one who filmed her." Sami Jaradat: "I filmed her with a video camera. There was no need to pre...

I'm feeling pretty down today. I don't know if its the shitty weather (grey skies and nothing but rain) or the fact that the alarm clock woke me up at the ungodly hour of 4.30 this morning - but I really don't feel happy. I'm pondering whether I'm finding my marriage or parenthood more challenging right now. My throat is raw from all the screaming I've done at the kids over the last few days and my T.Q (temper quotient) is at an all time low. You sneeze at the wrong volume and I'll bite your head off. I'm an absolute bastard to live with and I know it. I prefer not to engage in conversation with any of the family because I can't be bothered to be sociable. At least on my blog, I can let my emotions rip, without someone interrupting my rant. The underlying cause for it all? It could be a growing sense of panic that school is approaching and I really haven't done any preparation yet. When I sit down to start work, I get a feeling of total paralysis...

My father has been blessed to learn at the feet of a human being who was, without a doubt, one of the greatest Torah scholars of the Twentieth Century, Rabbi Joseph Ber Soloveitchik, known throughout the Jewish World as The Rav . My world view of Judaism stems from the knowledge my father taught me and so, by extension, I feel that in many ways, The Rav was also my teacher. I would therefore like to reprint an article which I found, that explains The Rav' s views on territorial compromise in Israel. I feel that it completely vocalises my opinions regarding the involvement of numerous Rabbi's ( both inside and out of Israel) in the disengagement debate. I am reprinting this article from www.mesora.org , a superb site which I subscribe to and support. I have translated any Hebrew words that may not be understood by some of our visitors to the site. Translation of a five-minute segment of the Rav’s 1967 Teshuva drasha (speech) (although the drasha was summarized in “Al Hateshuva...

A number of you have been filling in the polls that I've placed in the left hand column. I see these as a bit of fun and also an interesting way of gauging the views of my erstwhile visitors. You might notice that I vary them from time to time ensuring that since they are randomly set up, you should be able to get a choice of which ones to fill in. One poll that I've had up for a while asks if you would want to meet your first boy/girlfriend again. For some reason, this seems to have been the most popular poll, with 67% of you answering positively! In light of the question and with reference to my friend Rachael, I too shall take you for a short trip down memory lane. I remember that my first relationship a) didn't last too long and b) was 100% platonic. When I say platonic, I really do mean it. We didn't even kiss, which begs the question as to whether she was my first girlfriend! But, let's assume for argument sake (and I love a good argument)that she was my first...

It's been a lovely day. Michali and her friend Chloe had their joint birthday party. It was a total success. The entertainer was top class, the food was just enough and the hall was perfect. Shira was a total delight (she kept on disappearing behind the entertainer's display)but the best moment of all (which I captured on Video...yes!!!) was when the kids were told, during a "Who Let The Dogs Out?" musical game to crawl over to Dana and chase her as though they were dogs and she was a postman.... all this unbeknownst to her. It was great! She found herself running away from twenty kids. You should have seen her face when the penny dropped. As they say "Priceless"!

By Tuesday, Gaza will probably be Jew free. The Palestinians can't wait to get their claws into the land and tenements left behind by the Settlers. Like buzzards picking over the carcasses of the dead, they are moving in for the "kill". The problem is that the "kill" they've received is the equivalent of rotting meat. Welcome to Gaza. In the next few months, as Israeli politics move on and the Settlers re-settle and rebuild the First World existence they created in Gaza - in a new location, the Palestinians will do what they've done wherever they've lived, that is, turn beauty into dross. They might start by building new tenements on the newly freed-up land, but you can bet your bottom dollar that the average man on the street won't notice any change. In dirt do you live and in dirt do you survive. A political struggle between secularism and fundementalism is already underway within Palestinian society. Hamas is on a mission to create an Islamic...

This is a hard review to write as I don't want to give away any crucial plot twists! Suffice to say that I was pleasantly surprised with the finished result. Not being a fan of Sci-Fi, I started watching the film with some reservations, but I was soon pretty much engrossed in the original and thought-provoking premise. Ewan McGregor is perfectly cast but I found Scarlett Johanssen's role to be underwritten. Basically, her part could have been played by any other pretty actress, which is not exactly complimentary to her acting skills. She's not the most natural actress on screen at the best of times, although I think she performed her best work to date in "The Girl With The Pearl Earring". A good, crisp script and some pretty nifty special effects. I know that the movie isn't performing that well at the box office, but don't let this factor put you off. For once, some people have put together an intelligent sci-fi movie with a contemporary message (and that...

Through the tears I shed for Gaza, I see a positive element emerging from the fire. I am so impressed with the way the soldiers have handled the almost impossible situation. They are dealing with their fellow Jews in an incredibly compassionate and humanitarian manner. Where else would you see soldiers who are evacuating protesters doing their utmost to avoid hurting the evacuees? Where else would you see soldiers/policemen and women crying alongside the people they are being ordered to take away? Where else would soldiers/policemen who are removing protesters, go into the field unarmed? Where else would soldiers/policemen exhibit such restraint in the face of extreme provocation, such as their being called Nazis by the Settlers, having food and chemicals thrown at them or continuously being screamed at? There is total empathy by the soldiers/Police as to how the protesters are feeling and this is demonstrated in their extraordinary behaviour vis a vis the Settlers. In the Bible, we Je...

I feel that there needs to be a balance on this blog, between the serious and lighter sides of life. With this in mind, here are some jokes I recently received: Marketing Several people have asked for an explanation of Marketing. Perhaps the following analogies will help clear it up: You see a handsome guy at a party. You go up to him and say, "I'm fantastic in bed." -- That's Direct Marketing. You're at a party with a bunch of friends and see a handsome guy. One of your friends goes up to him and pointing at you says, "She's fantastic in bed." -- That's Advertising. You see a handsome guy at a party. You go up to him and get his telephone number. The next day you call and say, "Hi, I'm fantastic in bed." -- That's Telemarketing. You're at a party and see a handsome guy. You get up and straighten your dress. You walk up to him and pour him a drink. You say, "May I?" reach up to straighten his tie brushing your brea...

I turn on CNN and watch a Palestinian, unable to hide his glee at the disengagement, explaining how he "loves the Jews" whilst stating that he wants them to get out of Palestine (and he's not just talking about the territories) for their own good . I then tune into the Jewish Settler network (Arutz Sheva) only to hear Jews calling Ariel Sharon, the democratically elected prime minister of Israel, a criminal and referring to the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) as the INA - Israel Nazi Army. If that's not bad enough, a Rabbi comes on to be interviewed and states that Sharon and his ministers are the "Erev Rav" (literally the mixed multitude) i.e. the half Jewish half Egyptian troublemakers who left Egypt with the Israelites and caused all the problems in the desert (such as the making of the Golden Calf and the Korach rebellion). I despair at the situation in Israel right now. The Settlers are understandably bitter and the Palestinians see the disengagement as th...

I'm going to cut to the chase - I loved this movie! From the moment the credits rolled, I was totally captivated. Johnny Depp is creepily wonderful as Willy Wonka and the Oompa Loompa's are incredible (all played by the same versatile actor). The sets are magnificent and Christopher Lee adds that extra sparkle. The film is magical as well as funny...and I can't wait for it to come out (legally) on DVD! Any criticisms I have are minor - such as the ending which doesn't seem very Roald Dahlish...and the absence of the lovely Oompa Loompa song from the Gene Wilder film, that I would have liked to have heard again here. Other than that, I can't fault the film and as a result, I am awarding it my very first top rating. Thats' right - five Claudy's!! Go see this movie, take your kids and have a great time. I don't think it deserves a PG rating -this being based on the fact that both Michal (5) and Tali (6) thoroughly enjoyed it (Dana has just gone with Dassi)....

The girls, my parents and I decided to take advantage of the lovely weather and so we spent the day at the seaside. Dana was meeting with her brother in town and therefore there was no rush to get home. Unfortunately, due to (ahem!) our getting lost, it didn't seem as though we were in too much of a rush to get to the seaside either... When we got there, we sat in a quiet beach and the kids went about doing the usual kinds of things that kids do when they see a lot of sand (the tide being miles out). Shira was an absolute scream. The girls went about looking for crabs to resuscitate as they all looked half-dead (the crabs, not the girls) whilst Shira, trousers and all, jumped in and out of shallow pools. By the time we got all four of them off the beach and back into the car, they were all trouserless (and the washing machine will no doubt be chugging away tonight).

I'd like to clarify that, despite my getting carried away in the last blog, I do not wish that innocent Palestinians in Gaza starve to death. They are just pawns in a very cynical game being played between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority. I have no problem whatsoever with people who wish to live peacefully alongside my brethren - so the comment was wrong. I should have stated that I was referring to any Palestinian who is involved in planning or carrying out terror attacks - although I think starving is too good for him/her. I will gladly make peace with anyone who wants to be my neighbour - but first, I need to know that he/she wants to make genuine peace with me.

So far so good. I know this is only the beginning of the disengegement process, but the settlers seems intent on demonstrating peaceful resistence and this fills me with a great deal of pride. They have a right to resist, but when push comes to shove, they are saying that they will not fight with the police. When every single Jew has left Gaza, the Palestinians will once again be in control. I put hand on heart when I state that I honestly don't care if they rot in their own shit. The Jews will no longer be (unfairly) held responsible and as far as I'm concerned, the Gazans can literally go to hell, which is what I bet Gaza will come to resemble. Israel must not have anything to do with the area - apart from protecting herself against the inevitable terrorist attacks. If the Palestinians need milk or bread , let them sort it by themselves. If they need vegetables, let them start growing. For all I care, they can all starve to death - they wanted Gaza and now they've got it...

I'm twenty hours into the fast and feeling OK. Yes, my stomach is grumbling, my knees are shakier than they were this time yesterday and my head feels somewhat heavier - but I'm alright. They say that fasting is good for the soul and I can surely testify to this. After nearly a day of not eating, I feel very humble and in myself, closer to G-d. I feel that my existence on this earth has more meaning and that, with prayer, I can achieve something. Before you start worrying, I am not delirious. I know exactly what I'm writing and thinking. This is a critical time for our nation, both within Israel and without. Like everyone else, we face the threat of terrorist attack the minute we leave our homes and it therefore doesn't hurt to use a day like Tisha B'av to reflect on how the world could be a better place, if we only just believed a little more in the power of G-d to sort things out. I don't apologise for getting all religious here -for once I'm leaving behi...

Last night was the start of Tisha B'av, the ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av. On this very day throughout history, terrible things have happened to the Jewish people. Both Temples in Jerusalem were destroyed; the Inquisition began; the Jews were exiled from England in 1290; The First World War started, which directly led to WWII and so on. These events are documented in the annals of history and if you compare the Gregorian dates, you will see that they do indeed match up with the same Hebrew date. It is truly bizarre and horrifying. Without labouring the point, let me take you on a little journey and tell you about one of the most incredibly powerful moments of my life (aside from getting married and watching my kids being born, which as any parent knows, is as good as life gets). Twelve years ago, I spent a month in Israel, from Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) through to the Simchat Torah (the last of the festivals after Sukkot, Tabernacles). I decided to visit the newly o...

You may be aware that in the Jewish calendar, the new day starts at night. Therefore the Sabbath runs from dusk on Friday night to nightfall on Saturday night. The origins of this lie in Genesis, where the description of each day's creation starts with the words "and it was evening and it was morning on day...." Why do I mention this? Because tomorrow night, the fast of the ninth of Av begins. As you know, Tisha B'av (Tisha= Ninth B'av= of Av) is the saddest day in our calendar. This year, it has extra meaning because, come Monday, the disengagement from Gaza begins and none of us know what that will lead to. Tisha B'av is the culmination of the three weeks of mourning. I can literally feel the heaviness in the air. There is a sense of depression that overcomes me, whether or not I observe the strict laws of the nine days to their fullest (e.g. not listening to music, eating meat or drinking wine, washing clothes, taking hot showers, buying new items, shavin...

Satellite Photo of Gaza (2005) The ancient Rabbis say that the Second Temple was destroyed because of sinat chinam , (i.e.)baseless hatred between one Jew and another. In other words, the Jews hated each another so much so, that they literally ripped apart the most treasured possession they had, which was the Temple. G-d therefore sent the Romans to finish off the job for them. This Tisha B'av, my heart cries for yet another reason. I constantly read the reports coming from Israel regarding the ongoing conflict that is developing between the Settlers and the Israeli Army over the imminent disengagement from Gaza - how Jews are once again quarreling - and I can feel my heart and soul being pulverised from within. Is Gaza worth the earthquake that is taking place in Israel right now? No no no! It's certainly not. The sad truth is that all parties involved have been wronged for one reason or another: The Settlers , in my opinion, are justified in feeling betrayed by successive Gov...

Today is our ninth anniversary. Sadly, we are not together on the day (although Dana will be back tonight) but there you go. The last nine years have been wonderful, not so great and sometimes, plain awful - but here we are, another 365 days down the line, still together. I know that Dana sometimes wonders whether she made the right choice marrying me and I suppose, the thought has crossed my mind, but isn't that what happens in most marriages? Or is it just us? For me and I would suspect Dana, the greatest result of our union (both physical and metaphorical) has been the gift of four incredible daughters. Whenever I feel a little despondent, I think about how the two of us (and G-d!) were responsible for creating these amazing little girls. Had two other people got together, they wouldn't have existed and the world would very much be a poorer place for it. Next year will be the first big one - the tenth. Hopefully, things will be a little brighter (i.e. I will have been workin...

I found this article on CNN quite amusing.

This is very funny - please press the "play" button - it might take a few minutes to run if you're using dial-up.

Two words: Thank G-d.

Dana and her mom have gone to Lille, France for a well deserved mini-break. They are due back on Thursday evening. This means that I have the pleasure of looking after all four girls till then. Thank G-d my parents are in town, so they'll be able to help. I have no hesitation in branding myself an absolute wimp, when it comes to taking care of the girls for more than 12 hours! The situation is however made much more bearable as the three eldest kids are in a summer day camp which finishes at 4 p.m. This means that I only really have Shira to look after and if anything, she seems to be taking care of me. Right now, she is sitting in the garden at her favourite kiddie table, playing. She looks sooooooo cute!