As some of you will remember, Ding went walkabout a few months ago,
although I never determined if he actually got outside for over a week,
was hiding in the basement, or had teleported to the Mothership. In any
case, he was clearly traumatized by whatever happened. He's always been
a shy cat, but, for the last several months, he has almost always stayed
in the kitchen, frequently hiding in a pot.

Since I rearranged the living room, he would come out and even be a lap
cat for a bit, but was still skittish.

Last night, I was lying on the bed, face-down, and felt a cat on my
back. Assuming it was Rhonda (Mr. Clark's 17 pounds are unmistakable), I
reached back, finding, to my surprise no bushy tail but a thin one.

"Ding?"

"eep?"

"Ding!"

"eeeeep!" and he came around and started to snuggle. He's now remembered
he's passionate about crunchy treats, and stayed in bed all night, and
seemed happy to play this morning.