Mom mentioned a friend who once had two dogs, and when one died both she and the surviving dog took it hard; so now she keeps three dogs of staggered ages.

My cats are brothers, now six years old. I have long had in mind that in 2021 I’ll look to add one about 5yo – rather than get a kitten now, because older animals are harder to place.

But today at the shelter I saw many kittens whose data sheet said “would prefer to go home with a sibling,” and thought of saying, “Next time a batch of kittens is down to an odd one, call me and I’ll take it, if it’s not solid black (like Rocky and Bramble).” A sad proviso, but one must be practical.

In The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, there are two yes-men: Tony, who likes to say “Great!”, and David, who likes to say “Super!”.

If I were writing it, their distinctive tics would instead be “in terms of ——” and “from a —— standpoint”. (They can share “on a —— basis”.)