Abbey Disapproves of My Attempts to Keep Her From Getting Under My Desk

My mother and her boyfriend and her boyfriend's son (you know, this kid) have arrived to tour Maine's coast. My mother has another agenda, too, and that's to snuggle my kitten as much as humanly possible. In fact, when she left work on Monday afternoon she announced to the whole office that she was going to Maine not to visit her daughter but to visit her daughter's cat. And since my mother brought me an early birthday present that was packed in layers of tissue paper and ribbons, Abbey thinks she's just about the best thing ever because, well, ribbons are the best thing ever. She's enamored of the whole ribbon-bearing group, and she's taken up residence on their laps, in their arms, and in their shoes.

So, until they've gone and until I can come back up from the whirling, lobster-filled mini-vacation, there will be a new picture of Abbey here every day to fill the space. The first is one I like to call Abbey Disapproves of My Attempts to Keep Her From Getting Under My Desk. I used rolled up sweatshirts and stacks of envelopes to block the different entrance points--thin, claustrophobic--to the swampy area behind the computer, but she got around them anyway, and I'd have to reach behind and pluck her out of the tangle of wires every day. She is nothing if not resourceful.