I only trap rabbits, kitty. I could not possibly trap all the squirrels. Plus, both rabbits and squirrels are considered "pests" here in California, and you're not allowed to trap and release them, or you'll be fined. I do release the rabbits, but just to my own front yard. The squirrels would be impossible - I would be trapping hundreds of them. I use poison bait stations with non-through kill bait, so I won't kill a hawk, owl, coyote, my own dog, or a weasel that might eat the poisoned squirrel or rat. The only downside of using non-through kill bait is there is NO antidote. So, you must make sure your dog or small children cannot get to the bait. Patty S.

They seem to like the Albomarginata and the Wheee! They didn't really like Fire Island's blooms, though. I thought they would because they were so bright purple. Maybe it was too close to the door and the cats for their comfort? They also liked Midwest Magic's blooms. But I am not surprised.... MM's coloring is very bright and attractive to them, not just the blooms. The only other one that's bloomed so far is Paul's Glory but they were not on him either. However, his just bloomed this morning so maybe they didn't see it yet?

Leslie, I don't have a house....that's just it. When we bought the land, there was no house. We built a building, 24 x 36 to hold my husband shrimping stuff and welding machine, tool, etc. Had plans drawn to build a house. Then had a very traumatic incident in our lives that ended up costing us $60,000 and at the same time, daughter getting ready to go to college and shrimping going downhill more every season. When the traumatic incident was resolved, I was so broke...in every sense of the word...that all I wanted to do was get away from everyone. My husband was working every day, trying to get back to even, and so when our daughter left to go to college, I moved here, and moved into the building. I had lights, but no water. I have lived the past 10 years with no kitchen, no decent bathroom, nothing. We framed up inside the building and made rooms and planned to make it into a house, but never had the money to do anything past that. For a year and a half, we lived in an old RV that someone gave us, but it started leaking so bad that sealing it, tarping it, and doing everything you can think of, did no good, so I moved back into the "shop". I'm not trying to illicit sympathy about my situation. We turned down a half a million dollars for this property. I could live in any kind of house I wanted...but if I had to live close to people, you might as well shoot me. And, I would live under a tree before I would leave this place...mainly because I have big time issues with privacy. I can tell you every detail of my life...that doesn't bother me, but if I walk outside and see another living soul, I am stressed. Sooo, my husband went to school to get his tow boat license, and now he has a good job, and we have money again. So, we have saved since he started it in May to go on a house.

What are the dimensions on the pantry wall? You are smart to recognize how you really live, and plan for backpack space. I think the tidiest look would be a low built-in, open at the top. Eventually you could put a hinged lid and window seat, but for now, keep it open. Top access keeps things from spilling into the walkway, and dividers inside separates each person's stuff. In my upcoming remodel, I'm building what I call a "pantry wall", but it will function as command center, desk, and pantry. It will be 5' wide, floor to ceiling, 12" deep on one side and 20" deep on the other. On the 12" side, I plan to keep cookbooks, canned goods, small appliances. No pullouts. I'm adding 2 outlets inside one of the cabinets, for chargers. I would not use glass fronts, as you have shown, if it will be storage space. You said "I don't know how much I would store there". I suggest you go through your existing cabinets, and make a list of what you have. Then go through the new layout, one cabinet/drawer at a time, and figure out what is going to go in each space. Measure stuff. Decide what will work in your space next to the fridge; where the dishes will go; where to put things that need to be handy for cooking. That will help you determine what's left to go in the pantry shelves. One thing I asked my cabinet maker to do is add extra shelves to many of the upper cabinets. If the shelf will house cans of soup or coffee mugs, it doesn't need to be 12" high. I'll have more shelves, spaced closer together. Boxes of cereal need more space. I can see this being useful in your pantry cabinet.