Qwill's Apple Barn, as envisioned by Sharon LePage

	Qwill is happy to be coming home to the converted apple barn that he shares with his two cats. The window sills are conveniently cat-high. The doors are surrounded by a wall of glass that fill the space of what used to be the huge barn doors. The old foundation of the barn is made up of craggy stones and is two feet thick. The siding is weathered gray shingles.
	Outside, Qwill spies a red cardinal near the gazebo that he had built for the cats a few yards from the barn. They enjoy watching the birds and the birds enjoy the bird garden planned by Kevin Doone, complete with plants, trees, birdfeeders and baths, all with avian appeal.
	Entering the foyer, guests usually gasp at their first sight of the barn, taking in the space, the fireplace cube, the ramps, the overhead beams and the tapestries. Arch Riker wants Qwill to leave him the tavern table in his will. Fran Brodie has picked pale colors and modern furniture to contrast with the inside of the old barn.
	Qwill moves closer to the central cube that divides the barn into four main areas. Across the living area, he spots the Pennsylvania (or was it Austrian?) shrank, given to him by Iris Cobb. Sometimes, Koko sits up there. He also checks the loft ladders which the designer incorporated into the barn renovation. Where are Koko and Yum Yum?
	Qwill is near the spiral stairs, a shortcut from his suite on the first balcony. He glances at his new bar stools to see if the cats might be curled up on one of the cushions. Then he peers into the kitchen towards the refrigerator to see if the cats are there. Their blue cushion is there, but no cats.
	Bookshelves line the fourth wall of the fireplace cube. Qwill is in the library area, near his favorite lounge chair (with the ottoman) in which he likes to read to the cats. He briefly thinks of his special friend, Polly Duncan, whose literary interests match his own. He notices that the cats have removed many of the pieces from the printer's typecase hanging over the library desk.
	In the living area, Qwill remembers his mother, Anne Mackintosh Qwilleran, when his roving glance moves over the Mackintosh coat of arms over the fireplace. The cats are not curled up on the oversized oatmeal colored furniture or the coffee table cube.
	Although Qwill hardly ever uses his dining area he is a hospitable host, preferring to take his guests out to dinner. The cats are not under the dining table on the white rug. Nor are they standing near one of the window walls, looking out at the birds.
	Qwill starts up the ramp to the first level and gazes out over the dining and library areas. The cats are not on the central fireplace cube, one of their favorite perches.
	Outside his own suite on the first balcony level, Qwill peers down at the bookshelves in the library area and across the barn toward the other two floating balconies on the second and third levels. No cats.
	On the second balcony near the guest room, Qwill examines the honey colored beams and the catwalks. He even tries to peek behind the giant apple tree tapestry, a reminder of the apple barn in its original incarnation.
	Qwill strides up the ramp to the cats' balcony on the third level. Their room has cushions, perches, baskets, a scratching post and their turkey roaster commode. There is even a TV set. Koko has his own bookshelf so he can push his own books on the floor (although he ignores it).
	Koko and Yum Yum have just been wrestling on the overhead beams of the barn and racing around the catwalks. They are now outside their room on the third level, gazing innocently across the barn to see if Qwill is in his suite on the first floor since it's time for their meal. When they see Qwill, they race back down the ramp to the kitchen.
	Back on the main level, Qwill rounds the corner of the L-shaped bar to make some coffee and thaw something for the cats in the microwave (the extent of his cooking skills). Behind a partition in the kitchen are the washer and dryer. The cats like to sleep on the dryer but are enervated by the heat, scaring Qwill into calling Lori Bamba the first time it happened, because he thought they were sick.
	After feeding the cats and watching them appreciate their lobster tail, Qwill checks outside the back door to see if Celia Robinson has left him anything in the old sea chest that is used for deliveries when he is not at home.
	After all the excitement, Qwill goes back upstairs to his study to write another column for the Qwill Pen.
Back to the shabby surroundings of Ronald the rest of Frobnitz and Family. The Cat Who... series (The Cat Who Could Read Backwards and its sequels) and all its characters, places, and what-have-yous therein are the copyrighted property of Lilian Jackson Braun. Ronald Frobnitz and Family is an unofficial Cat Who... fan site and is not endorsed by or affiliated with Lilian Jackson Braun, G. P. Putnam's Sons, or anyone else involved with the production and publication of the Cat Who... series. Sharon LePage is also to thank for the beautiful page design (this obviously isn't a product of my cough talent).