President's Day 2007

Nothing is quite as satisfying at the end of a long week as a long weekend. We began with a date night spent watching the masterful Judi Dench and the beguiling Cate Blanchett in Notes on a Scandal. Highly recommended. We could think of no better way of following it up than capping our Saturday night with a trip to Safeway. Meanwhile, Rami got to spend the evening with babysitter Paul. Foolishly, Paul brought his bass with him. That gave Rami lots of opportunity to harrass poor Paul.

Of course, Rami rarely misses an opportunity to pose. We're not sure if he wants to be the next Stanley Clarke or the next Sid Vicious, but the man knows what do with a guitar in his hands.

In reponse to the Rose family fraternal obsession with keeping that pesky hair away, we invested in a set of clippers last year. It paid for itself in our first sitting. Rebecca has become quite an expert. She's gaining a reputation neighbourhood wide. Rami's classmate Ami was so pleased with his recent haircut, that Ami's older brother Coby wanted one for himself. Coby came to our backyard looking like this:

And left but a mere 14 minutes later, looking even more fashionable and hip:

After a family brunch at our house, we hit the road for the capital. Rebecca used to live in Sacramento so Rami has lots of uncles, aunts and cousins there. We spent some time with Sandy and Art and their dog Ruby and their canine ward for the week, Molly. Later, we were hosted by Margarita, who took time out from her retirement to provide us with dinner, breakfast, shelter and great company. Later, we visited George and Jeannette and Rami's cousins Connor and Justine. We went hunting for treasure at Pirate Cove on the banks of the American river. With three young toughs covering our backs, security was not an issue.

The main thing when hunting for treasure is to keep an upbeat attitude and positive outlook. As a veteran treasure hunter, Justine is not easily rattled.


Despite the upbeat outlook, you never know if you'll find anything. So when you're looking, it's important to look cool, calm and in control.