YEH!!! you got a new shelter dog!!! I live on 20 acres and have 16 dogs (all fixed). I keep them basically in three groups. I have lots of fencing and cross-fencing. My husband has electrified the bottom of the fence in some of the areas. I do have several that would kill each other if they got together but I've got it managed well. So I laugh when people think a third dog is "crazy." I don't work and that's helpful, of course. Late last year I did give my pug to rescue. There's a strong pug rescue group in my state so I knew she'd probably find a better place than here. I didn't think I could keep her from becoming obese. So I recently replaced her with a new shelter dog. He's so cute. He's gentle and quiet so far - an important thing when you have so much canine energy in one place. So many, many great dogs in the shelters - I could find one any day in there that I would just LOVE!!. vicky

Thought some more about this overnight. My dad was a dentist. Also built his own dental office. Corian everywhere. I have health issues, including a couple of surgeries. When you go to the doctor, or the hospital, Corian everywhere. Until I read this thread, I never really thought about why. I worked in a hospital 40 years ago, if I recall correctly, stainless steel was the thing then. It's all about keeping things clean. We have hard water, as do most people in the USA. Did not realize that hard water affects stone. I have never cut directly on a countertop, it will ruin your knives. I have never put a hot pot on a countertop and have no desire to do so. We do put hot pots in the sink, pour boiling water in the sink, so I am going to need a steel or enamel sink. Want a farmhouse sink anyway. This has been a very thought provoking discussion. Learned a lot.

I'm using Redbox and my li-bary for movies. I have "Stronger" on hold for when it goes to DVD. I watched another two today. I can work on projects on Photoshop in the winter months when I'm not in a garden. I multitask and then have to watch a second or third time if the movie turn out to be good. First was "Beguiled". Civil War ongoing; it's set in the south in a boarding school with only a few pupils remaining plus one woman from the town, apparently needing a safe place. It's all women and they're surprisingly unprotected and unafraid. A Union soldier is found wounded in the woods; the women bring him in to nurse him back to health. One of the women falls in love with the soldier and this causes a deep rift in the house. Nicole often plays intense characters. I like the Amazon series "Big Little Lies" with her and Reese Witherspoon. She's intense in "Beguiled". The setting is very beautiful, shot wonderfully. Second is "The Lovers" - this will need a second viewing. I want to savor the dance scenes. HT is a pile-on imo. The scales have tipped from a trickle of the far right to a deluge. I took a look back a few years and I think we're all refighting the same battles. I will miss the smarts, good humour of the lefties. :))

In my experience with feral cats, If you crate a feral, (or even a domestic cat) they do much better if you cover the crate with a large towel or blanket. especially when transporting. I suppose I am fortunate to have a vet that has no problem neutering feral cats. (There is hope for Bob, Maryl) I have several formerly feral cats that are now inside cats...more notably Bella, Gus, and Bosky. Bosky sneaked out once after we brought him inside (he was injured by older dominate males and badly needed treatment). He then sneaked back inside that same day and has never attempted to leave again. We had him neutered while he was being treated for the leg wound, of course. I couldn't stand for the very feral but beautiful Bella to live as a feral cat and Bella has been an indoor cat for several years now. As it turns out, she would probably be dead otherwise since she had a tumor in her ear that was infected last year and she would have died without surgery.. The previously feral cats are very loving and seem to be happy as house cats. Of course then there is Gus. He was attacked by a pack of dogs and we took him to the vet where he was shaved and treated for his many wounds. DH said he wasn't going back outside after the rather expensive surgery, and Gus has never tried to escape the house. One other thing, after neutering, we put the feral cats in a large dog crate for recovery (put a little mulch or dirt on top of a small litter box and they will use it). We have water in the crate, of course, and feed them in it a couple times a day. After recovery, we free them and they have always stayed around as if nothing had happened. We kept Spatter in the crate until she weaned her kittens, then had her neutered, she had time to heal then was released. She stays around here still and eats here almost 2 years later. I must admit that I earn the Crazy Cat Lady title. kay