This week is a massive financial bust, and it’s only Wednesday.

On Monday, I paid the geeks for our new desktop computer, which will be a Mac with an extra-large screen. Still numb from that transaction, which (from the dollar amount) should have provided me with something new to drive away in, I took a phone call from the vet who was relieving Cat 2, the redoubtable Isobel, of a rotten tooth. “A” rotten tooth? Why, no. Three rotten teeth. And, by the way, her liver enzymes were askew. So think of a number — not a small one — and triple it.

There are no flies on Isobel, so any vet visit presents a major challenge. Combine that with medication, and brace for an athletic couple of hours. At 0615 we had to dose her with a pre-operative sedative, and I guess she sussed my intentions from the moment my feet hit the floor because the chase was on. Himself finally ran her to earth in the Harry Potter cupboard under the cellar stairs, after we had pursued her through every room in the house and out from under or behind every piece of furniture. Not a great way to start the day. On the bright side, she did not piss on either of us.

The vet prescribed three post-op doses of an oral antibiotic-analgesic drug, saying cheerfully, “Just mix it into her food.” No way that would work; each dose is a full-dress hunt-and-snatch job. But today she is much better, and has forgiven me to the extent that she’s snoozing in my lap even as I type. Only one more dose to go.

As for the computer, the new one will take two weeks to arrive as it’s a custom job that has to come all the way from China. With luck, it will arrive maybe two days before the new book job lands.