Romeo has just finished off half a jar of beef baby food, his second mini-meal of the morning, and now he’s across the room, sitting in front of one of the chairs, crying loudly and waiting for one of us to lift him into place. His gimpy back end hurts, and jumping up, even just to a living room chair, its literally a pain. So he cries, and we respond. And much of the time, Kali and Kinikini also respond, coming over to give aid and comfort. It’s nice to see, even as Romeo’s condition ever so slowly gets worse.

Next week Kali goes for her annual exam with our favorite vet, Ann Sakamoto at Hawaii Kai Veterinary Clinic. And I’m trying to get Kini in at the same time, just to trim his ultra-sharp claws that so far are off-limits to me. The vet techs have that air of authority that seems to demand submission. Or maybe they’re just a lot more experienced at handling uncooperative cats.

Anyway, here come the cats!