A week ago I visited a friend with a litter of kittens (I mean, she lived with a cat who'd had kittens), and it just about tore me apart that a couple of them had the identical black-and-white tuxedo markings of my old friend Jules. I don't think this place would be good for cats, so I resisted the impulse to take one, but, ahh, I wanted to so much.

It's always been true that one way or another the cats have chosen me. Funny to say, but Jules wasn't my first choice in his litter, but he's the one who kept climbing up my leg to purr in my face, and I got the message. The strays wandered in and stayed, and a few chose to wander off again when it suited them. You can't hold on to a cat.

Enjoy Mercury and Phoenix, man. And take pictures. It's always a trip, a few years down the road, to compare your adult cat to the kitten and say "my how he's grown", just like a proud parent.

Seems like the theme o'the day is cats. I just posted the story of another remarkable cat, ChiChi, and our encounter with a skunk when I was a kid.

I warned 'em, don't get me started!