Having delivered Spike to "dog camp" yesterday afternoon, we then had to make provisions for Carlos the Cat. Normally, Carlos is free to come and go through the pet door as he pleases, but that's not acceptable while we're gone for three entire weeks. We've attempted this before, and holding the cat in against his will is no small feat. In the past he has ripped through cardboard boxes barring the door and knocked over as many as three cinder blocks to make his exit. This time Tom meant business, though. He screwed a piece of wood over the opening and further blockaded it with a small table. Carlos was pissed. He got a crazed looked in his eyes like an animal in the zoo longing for the Serengeti. Our house is obviously going to be torn to shreds by the time we get back. And Carlos still may find a way out, even if he has to gnaw through the roof of the house. Oh, well, no use worrying about it. We're going on vacation!
6:10 p.m. to 7:20 p.m. Delta flight from Knoxville to Cincinnati. They've redone the airport. We didn't even recognize the place.
8:40 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Delta flight from Cincinnati to Los Angeles. Totally inadequate shoulder room, very uncomfortable.
Tom's cousin J.J. picked us up at LAX and delivered us to her parents', Alice and Joe's, unoccupied home in the Hollywood Hills that they very graciously let us use for the night. J.J. gave us the 50-cent tour, and we made plans for her to pick us up the next morning.