The Burks' cat is trying hard to convey a thought: Pet me. His green eyes plead silently; his tail waves lazily. I laugh and scratch behind his black ear.
"Are you as bored as I am, Oreo?" The cat's only reply is to start purring.
Mrs. Burk, who I can tell has been watching, steps into the living room. Her off-white shirt somehow matches the color of the sofa. "You've got to watch that one. He'll be in your lap in a minute."
At that, Oreo's purring speeds up.
"How'd you get him?"
"Now that's a story. A friend found him starving and, seeing as he already had two cats, sent him our way." Outside, two cyclists flash by on their silvery steeds. The grandfather clock in the hall chimes four-thirty.
This is simply an experiment. Please be kind.
- and its background.