I was just getting around to thinking about the agenda for the group meeting, and whether mouse canapes would be appropriate, when -- well, how can I describe this? Remember the film Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind (no cats, but not a bad film in its way, though if they were going to depict higher life forms, they could at least have given the creatures 4 legs, but anyway)? Well, if not, there is this scene where the scientists have created a landing space for the space ship, and they are tinkering away, and suddenly all these flying saucers appear, and they nod their heads, and say, cool, flying saucers, when are they going to land, is there any beer tucked behind that radar unit, etc., and then they look up and they see the Mother Ship, which is not a flying saucer, but more like an entire dinner setting, complete with chandelier, and the scientists look at each other and all they can say is, boy are we in trouble.

That is a bit of what it was like way speeded up when this animal arrived. There are animals, and there are ANIMALS. Big grizzly bear, on all fours, bad yes, scary yes, big round face, full of teeth ---AND THEN IT STOOD UP AND GROWLED!!!

The first thing that happened was Ralph, Roister, and Doister leapt about 5 feet into the air, and in mid air, crashed and balled into each other like those parachute trick divers people you see, and spun wildly around before hitting the ground in one big screaming guinea pig ball, and splitting up and scattering. Parrot flew wildly around sqwaking about Boarders, Man Overboard, and other nonsense!! Bear SAW A BEAR, and decided that he would have to have a conversation with the owners when he got back to civilization, which could not happen too soon for his blood, and he hightailed it out of there. Dog backed up a step, took in the scene coolly for a moment, trying to figure out an escape route, but his calm was shattered (I shamefully admit) by the fact that I attempted to emulate the Tumbling Tombolo Brothers who used to appear on Ed Sullivan, and hurled myself in panic onto Dog's back, and dug my claws hard into him, upon which he bucked forwards in pain like a loco horse towards the grizzly bear, who, upon seeing a howling Dog hurtling towards it with a panicked Cat on its back, took three steps backward, at which point it stepped on Griffon, who had for some reason zigged when he should have zagged, who shrieked underfoot, and the bear took another step backward and tripped over Monty the Python, who rose up vertically in pain like a distended fire hose, and that was enough excitement for one afternoon, and the bear lumbered off.

There was a brief pause. Then the turtle, who had been watching all this from the top of his box drawled: "I shore would pay a lot to see you do that again."