Well, it's been a somewhat animal-intensive day. William is spending a few days with us; Louise had to go to a funeral, and, charming as William is, he really couldn't go, too. So I drove to Davison today (about 45 minutes down the road) and picked him up. He was gratifyingly happy to see me, and jumped willingly enough into the car . . . but when we got on the freeway and it became clear to him that we were not simply going for a spin around the park, he became distressed. Not terribly distressed - but he was clearly under the impression that he was being kidnapped.

I got home just in time to drop him off, then head off to pick up Emma (along with another new friend) from class. When we returned home, I discovered that our other houseguest, Milo, had decided to make it uber-clear to the other cats that the closet in Emil's and my bedroom is his territory . . . time for that little guy to be repaired, as Kevin would say! Actually, past time. By a day. The closet smells beyond awful. I went to Pruess', our Destination Pet Store, and got some product that was supposed to neutralize the smell. It didn't work all that well . . . but tomorrow's another day; maybe another application will help. Theoretically Charlie will be coming back after work tonight to take Milo home to his new apartment . . . but Charlie has a less-than-stellar track record of coming back here after work, so I'm not terribly optimistic. I have made an appointment with a vet for young Milo. (Not until Tuesday, alas. I may call around tomorrow and see if we can get something earlier.)

William's presence has been duly noted by the entire pet community. Milo is not terribly fond of dogs, and William can't figure out why he keeps getting hissed and spit at. William knows enough to give Wally a wide berth - and all night Wally has been frantically playing with his toy (which of course William better not even contemplate going near). At the moment, Milo is on the dining room table, where Charlie deposited him earlier this evening (when William walks by Milo emits a low growl); Todd, the shy cat, saw William come through the door and skedaddled to the basement, where I expect he will stay for the duration of William's visit; and Emil just now managed to pry Freddy out from under our bed. (If you saw Freddy and also saw the small clearance under our bed, you'd be amazed that he was able to squeeze himself under there . . . ) Only Otto remains unfazed, going about his business as usual.

I feel sorry for the big dog. He's clearly happy to see me and Emil, but he could certainly do without Wally, and the cats just befuddle him. I'm sure that when Louise returns he'll be glad to go home . . . I'm hoping I can take him out for a romp in the park, so his visit isn't entirely dismal.

I hope that by tomorrow everyone will have calmed down a bit and life will return to semi-normal . . .