What's on My Desk?

Writing is not, as some claim, a solitary occupation. I usually have company when I fire up my eMac to write my column or blog or surf the net.

In the evenings Maggie, the very long and tall border collie, takes up all the space under my desk and provides a footrest for me. Or a foot warmer, if I can stand her weight on my feet.

Both during the day or in the evenings, my desk is invariably occupied by at least one—and sometimes up to four—cats. While I have six cats total, the desk and computer can only hold so many.

If Buford the deaf cat is in, he’s usually asleep on my desk. (He’s the sleeping tabby in the foreground.) Buford has a strong sense of preservation and always sleeps on top of something so that he can’t be easily grabbed by a wandering predator. Surprise him, and he’ll leap up hissing and clawing. Consequently, I’ve learned to gently wake him. Buford likes a lot of space to sleep, so he sometimes clears all the stuff off my desk with a single paw-swipe.

Yelling at a deaf cat is an exercise in futility. But, he’s good company and the only cat I can actually vacuum.