September 15th 2023

Bertie and Jeeves

A couple of months ago Tom and Yuri were foolish enough to mention in Mary's hearing that it might be nice to have a pet cat. Personally, I do not think that either of them was being particularly serious about this, and they certainly had not taken into account such things as the fact that the catflap disappeared with the back door when it was replaced a year or so ago. Mary, however, had no doubt that Yuri's heart was set on a feline companion and was excited to be able to phone Tom and Yuri on their honeymoon at the beginning of August to say that she had found not one, but two, lovely kittens needing a home. To give Yuri her due, she was able to sound thrilled.

A new catflap was installed in the French Window at the end of August, and on September 2nd, Bertie (ginger) and Jeeves (black and white) were collected from their temporary home in Norfolk and taken down to London . They have, of course, both settled in quickly and are loved dearly by all. Initial daily WhatsApp updates on important milestones including first, second, third, etc. use of the litter tray (often as videos!), and mishaps including first, second, third, etc. non-use of the litter tray, have become less frequent, thank goodness. Another flurry of videos about ten days after the kittens' arrival documented their first use of the catflap, an especially important landmark event as it meant that the inceasingly smelly litter tray could, firstly, be moved outside and, subsequently, disposed of completely as the kittens learnt to use next-door's garden for their daily ablutions. Unsurprisingly, whilst we are of course thrilled by this, it has not been greeted with as much enthusiasm by our neighbours.