I picked up our set of bookshelves today. Compared to the kitchen cart, this was a piece of cake. It was only a three-story walkup and a eleven block stroll with the shelves on a hand truck. Every man I passed offered to help me. The shelves weren’t heavy, but they were very awkward. I was tempted to say, “Yes, if you will just push it a block to give me a breather,” but I knew I was going to need to save my karma for when I got back to our building.

There are three short steps up into the building. At the apartment where I picked up the shelves, they helped me get it down. Here, I was going to be on my own. I passed one of my neighbors as she was on her way to church. She turned around and followed me back to the building so she could hold the doors for me. Another neighbor, Manny, arrived at right that moment and helped me get it all the way up into the apartment.

Whew. Now. Note the gap between the shelf and the doorframe. Remember when I said that our floors sloped and that it was hard to make pictures look straight? This is why. I did level the shelf after taking the photo, but it took a one-inch block of wood under the left side to do it. Crazy.

All the books fit. I am happy.

Last evening Jenny and her fiance, Chris, came for dinner. Well, really, they came to drop off Zoe, their cat, as a trial run for when we take her during their honeymoon. Dinner was just taking advantage of them being here.

I was, to be honest, anticipating some fireworks. When I got Marlowe as a kitten, Maggie hated him so much that if I petted Marlowe and then tried to touch her without washing my hands, she would hiss at me. I’m not making that up. She tolerates him now, more so after the cross-country drive than before.

And Marlowe has never seen another cat, except ones outside the window. His only other experience with other animals have been with dogs that we’ve dogsat. (Boy, that word looks wrong.) Oh, and the mice. Anyway, I had no idea how he would react.

Zoe came right out of her carrier and went up to Marlowe to sniff his nose. He was totally freaked. He had no idea what to do. He only knows this one other cat who beat him up as a kitten–in fact, it’s only in the last year or two that he’s realized that he’s bigger than she is and that she’s old. So, despite the fact that he looks like a giant hulk next to Zoe (also a black cat) he was afraid of her.

Maggie stretched, walked up to Zoe. They sniffed. Then Maggie went to take a nap on the futon. She was so not interested. I think she was just pleased that I hadn’t brought home another dog.

We spent most of dinner watching the cats watch each other. The best moment came after dinner. I wanted to show Jenny and Chris the thing that Marlowe does with the basket. I didn’t think he’d do it, because there was so much strangeness. Man, he saw the basket and beelined across the room to sink his face into it. He immediately sank into his “I’m invisible” posture and seemed so much more at ease.

Zoe. Zoe clearly thought he was insane.

She crept out from under the bookcase where she had been hiding and stretched out to sniff the basket. Marlowe made one “meep” and she levitated backwards, kindof like, “My god! There really is a cat in that thing!”

After that everyone settled into a good routine of ignoring each other. I saw her this morning when I put her food down, but she’s hiding now. I think she’s in my closet, but I’m not going to fish her out. Jenny and Chris come back to pick her up tonight.