Lack of animal contact. Human contact would even be better, but I could be content with a big labrador sleeping with its head on my knees. Too bad that the human body is wired in such a way that putting your hand on your own stomach doesn’t feel the same as on another living being. Just like tickling, it doesn’t work on yourself, except that I prefer touch over tickle. Just that: putting my hand on something warm and alive. The cat’s heat cycle is over, so I can’t abuse it anymore and spend ten minutes stroking its belly anymore, that’s over, and it only lasts for a few days every six months. And as for contact with human beings… sure, I’ve had lots of contact this summer, but none of it was quiet, relaxed, sitting or laying in a corner with each one’s hands lying on the other’s skin.

Still the same problem. Chicken and egg. Love and work earning a living.