At my brother-in-law’s birthday party. There were no other kids close to Ingrid’s and Adrian’s age, but Ingrid made friends with one of their cats.

She says she wishes we could have a cat. I am not entirely against it, I like cats (and dogs even more) – but no matter how much Ingrid assures me that she would take care of a pet, the ultimate responsibility would rest on me. I feel I’m just about coping with all my duties now, and adding another would probably be too much.