Slightly inspired by 28 Weeks Later, the sequel to 28 Days Later. I had a Newsletter titled "14 Days Later." I decided the "weeks" wouldn't work for my biweekly Newsletter, so I thought back to Another 48 Hours.

        I went to Half Price Books to sell some books, but I was not happy with the offer, so I didn't sell the books.

        I got a funny e-mail forward from Jennifer Jones.

        Otherwise, it was an uneventful, relaxing vacation day.

        More vacationing. Nice time off. I went to a Frisch's on Colerain with my sister from California and my mother. It was nice but not perfect.

        Melanie Krebs sent a card that arrived today. She suggested that I get another cat. She did have sympathy for my loss. I can't realistically get another cat right now. Maybe later sometime. I did have a dream where I had a new grey-striped kitten. ["No doubt the universe is unfolding as it should."]

        I put my flag out for Flag Day. It rained later in the day, so I brought it back in.

        I had to make a trip to work to set up a timer to record something for a faculty member. I promised myself I would not go to work at all on Friday.

        I got a postcard from Dr. Donna Summers thanking me for the picture of myself and Halloween. The postcard was from St. Simons Island in Georgia.

        Diana Deacon sent a story about her cat Heinrich in the time right before his death. [It seemed Heinrich felt he was leaving Diana in good hands.] Diana also sent a link to a website about a Rainbow Bridge. The site has a poem which describes a place in the afterlife where pets happily and healthily await their owners to be able to cross the bridge together when the owner finally dies too. It made me cry, but I was touched at the thought of such a place.
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Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of  food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.
All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

Author unknown...
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        Jennifer Jones forwarded a message about a cat, a black cat like Halloween, who needed adopting. I said I was sorry that I could not do it right now. I appreciated the thoughts, though. I hope the cat did get adopted.

        I did continue my vacation, and I did not have to go to work at all. I enjoyed some reading and exercise.

        My sister from California and my mother went to a Reds game, but I did not want to go, and I didn't.

        My sister went back to California. She had a good stay. She enjoyed several Reds games.

        Shannon Neus called while I was in the LRC briefly today. She game me her sympathy about Halloween. She said she had been through something very similar with her dog Hank.

        Summer quarter began. So far, so good.

        Daniela (Carvalho) Thomas sent e-mail to say she was catching up on things, and read my news about Halloween. She gave me her sympathies and related it to a pet bird named Loro, who has also passed on. I appreciated the good thoughts, and I appreciate all the good thoughts of those who appreciate my grief. I am
adjusting, but I will never stop missing Halloween.

        Vickie Estes called. She is still adjusting to the loss of her mother, but she was mostly calling to see if I was ready to adopt a new cat. I said I still cannot commit to that.

        Michele Ferrara called. We had a meal together, and we caught up on things. She asked about my grief over Halloween. She asked about Sofia moving. She asked about Shannon Neus. She asked if we could have a Lab reunion of some kind sometime. I agreed to the reunion idea if we can somehow coordinate it. Also, I agreed to try to be more in touch in person.

        When I got home, I discovered that, as I had suspected, there are now 2 snails in my fish tank. One is about half the size of the other. I still don't know where the first one came from, let alone the second.

        K.F. returned to work in the LRC. She was very helpful.

        After work I helped a student worker with moving and re-assembling a used cabinet which was purchased through the Cincinnati Craig's List.

        The moving and assembly took lots longer than it should have, so I got home late (and Halloween wasn't around to complain or be worried about my lateness). In my mail I found a postcard from Dr. Donna Summers. She and Karl are traveling in Europe this summer. The postcard was from Annecy, France.

        I found out for certain that I had been handling the recordable DVDs at work incorrectly. Although the paper labels look nice, the glue eventually degrades and causes the DVD to fail. From now on I will either use felt tip pens or inkjet printable DVDs. [I have ordered a printer that prints on inkjet printable DVDs. Plus, of course, I have ordered inkjet printable blank DVDs of excellent quality. Despite anything I do, the DVDs may still become unplayable in 10 years or so. The DVD contents will have to be moved eventually to a hard drive or some other format that may appear. Fun for my successor!]

        K.F., Tracey and I went to a creamy whip ice cream stand for some refreshment. That was nice. Tracey had just returned from visiting a friend in  Texas.

        Was it a sign? Early this morning I was driving my car down the one way street where the Clifton Post Office is. I stopped in front of a mailbox to drop in an envelope in a drive by fashion. Right beside the mailboxes a young black cat lay peacefully resting. The cat looked directly at me, and remained peacefully resting. Happily, the cat did not run in front of my car as I drove off.

        Michael Providenti came to the LRC to catch up on things and leave a package for someone we both know. Michael has been working hard on two articles for library journals.

        Tracey and I went to the Panegyri Greek Festival. It was interesting for a little while. We took some baklava with us. That pastry was enjoyable. Later we watched Happy Feet at Tracey's place. The movie was pretty good up until the ending, which seemed a bit forced. The setup required some kind of ending, but it didn't quite flow evenly. Still, it was fun and very well animated.

        I took care of some chores, ran some errands, and I watched some anime and American cartoons.