I was home yesterday, so I didn't do a journal entry. Eventually, I'm supposed to get my desktop at work replaced with a nice laptop and docking station, and then I'll have just one computer, instead of a desktop for four days and a laptop for one, and then I might remember to do journal entries on my telecommuting days.

But if you were just dying to see Penny's second Hallowe'en outfit, I posted it here, in my blog.

Today's Hallowe'en outfit isn't as involved as the others - it's just a little cheapie onsie that I bought for her before I knew how many other people were going to be giving her holiday clothes.

And for those of you who didn't catch it in the blog, Diamond died yesterday. He was still breathing when I put him in the carrier to take him to the vet, but had passed on when the vet came to look at him. It was a relief, in a way - he's been so terribly weak and sick, and I didn't want to have to make the decision to have him put to sleep.

(The vet said he'd have recommended it, if Diamond had still been alive. The other option was going to be something hideously expensive, like a kidney transplant or dialysis - and as old as Diamond was, even that would only hold him together until something else failed.)

It'll take some time to adjust, of course. I keep looking as I come down the stairs to make sure I don't step on the cat. And I nearly called back the ritual, "Be good, Diamond. Guard the house," as I left the house this morning.

We've decided to not get another cat for a while - a few years, at least.

For one thing, Matt and I are both allergic to animal fur, which means it's pretty much a sure bet that Penny will be, too. I don't want to put her (and us) through that misery until she's old enough to undergo treatment.

For another, Penny eats up so much of our time that we don't think we could give a new pet the attention it needs - especially if we got a kitten.

And I don't think it would really be fair to inflict a toddler on a young animal, either.

So unless I get some fish, we'll be petless for a few years.

In happier news, I've started writing again.

Not much - I don't have time for very much - but a little. I finally figured out the "voice" for one of the characters in the new novel, so I started writing one of her bits, and I've gotten out about two thousand words in the past couple of days.

It feels pretty good. I don't know if I'm ready to start setting a weekly word-count goal for myself yet, but after spending two whole weeks trying to force out a three-thousand word story, it was nice to know that I could still get into "the groove," even if I have to go a little slower than I used to.

--Liz