I lived in central Florida for 23 years, worked for Game & Fish part time when I was a student - dealt with a LOT of wild hogs. If the pig is untagged and unmarked (tattoo), it's entirely possible the pig your friend found was feral. The piglets of feral pigs are indistinguishable from those of domestic pigs (in fact, they are the same animal - Florida feral hogs are the descendants of farm stock). Often the sow is killed by traffic or hunters, leaving the offspring to fend for themselves. Pigs can make intelligent, affectionate pets...they just get so darned BIG (this can be mitigated somewhat by restricting their diet). Good luck on finding a home.

I don't think that anyone without a chemistry degree is going to be able to say for sure. Rusts are ferric hydroxide : Fe2O3.H2O or similar. The technical paper below lists ten different forms of ferric hydroxide. Goethite is the most common rust on rusty steel parts, according to the article below. Compounds don't necessarily stay in one state after the chemical change. They can, if conditions permit undergo further chemical changes. The Wisconsin extension office article states that if microbial activity is sufficient to decrease the oxygen supply in acid soils, some ferric iron oxides and hydroxides will be transformed to more soluble ferrous forms. I think that it is more accurate to say that none of us really possess the knowledge to state conclusively. I will ADMIT that I do not know the answer conclusively. You are going to have to study some of the technical papers and decide for yourself. Here is a link that might be useful: Iron Oxides and Rust

Sinistre? Well, en francais, we are gauche!! Indeed. In school I had no troubles, but I do remember in Sunday School, I apparently had someone try to change me over. No one did that to Madge's daughter, and they were quickly put 'right'. Speaking of which, we are the only ones in our 'right' minds, don't you know. I have left handed scissors which I love. I mouse right-handed, because I had such bad carpal tunnel in my left hand; even after it was fixed I still mouse right-handed, I guess till I get the right hand fixed. And don't start me on manual can-openers. I would starve if left to them. I had to leave my beloved B&D spacesaver in the move, and could not find another right away, so purchased a 'Gizmo'....Holy Cow. Just don't go there, OK. It will be in my first yard sale at a greatly reduced price, barely used. Thanks for letting me rant! Nancy.

Jellyben, returning to your original question, I'd like to offer my two-cents. It's true that Lorton has no cachet among the residents in NOVA. Unless, you are close-in, any commute into the District is nasty. My BIL lives in West Springfield. He carpools to the Library of Congress up 395 and his commute is better than most...30 minutes door-to-door if it's not raining. It's a great area with nice family neighborhoods. My concerns are a bit different. You are very interested in new construction. I'd caution you to approach new construction throughout Northern Virginia with a gimlet eye. New developments and homes were constructed lightning fast during the boom here. Lorton is an example. I have real reservations about the quality of the production building circa 2003-2005. We are renting a house in Oak Hill (bleeding edge Reston and Herndon) that was built in 2004. Technically, the houses are detached but are really squashed together on teeny strips of land. In 2002, huge swaths of this area were still farmland. By 2005, townhouse farms and SFH Vinyl Villages had taken over, like weeds. The owners bought the place for $576,000 and the value zoomed to $740,000 in 18 months. You'd think that a half million bucks would land you good solid construction with nice finishes. Nope. This house was built on the cheap. It has all the requisite bells and whistles so it looks nice superficially. But...that lovely granite island is plywood covered with very thin laminate veneers. The shiny hardwood floors scratch and dent with alarming ease. The vinyl siding is beginning to separate from the house. Nails pops are everywhere. When we sit in the family room, our hair blows from the drafts coming in through the back door and windows. We joke that the truck drove past this house on insulation day. Heating/Cooling runs us about $350-$400/month. Crikey, even the toilets require 3 flushes. I could go on and on...I'm just blown away by the low level of quality combined with a high price. For a two-year old home, this house is showing unbelievable wear and tear. The construction 7-10 years ago is far superior. We moved back here last summer (after a one year job transfer to Ohio) and decided to rent for many reasons. One of them was to take a good hard look at what you can get for 500-700K in newer SFH's. I'm not impressed. The townhomes at those price levels may be of higher quality...I don't really know. I'm not suggesting that you write off new construction. I'm just saying you may want to approach it with a very careful and skeptical eye. Upon close examination, the look and feel can be very deceptive. In the long run, that brand new construction might cost you more than tweaking a somewhat older home in an older neighborhood that has a nice lot for your kids. I've read your prior posts and think that the Burke/Springfield area might suit your commute and lifestyle desires. By the way, homes identical to our rental were selling at $740,000 in 2005. They are now sitting for months at $700K. Most recent sale was $650K. A trend? Beats me but we'll see what the spring brings. I am one of those fully loaded buyers sitting on the sidelines...not because I'm looking for a bargain or a give away. I'm looking for the right combination of price and value. Between 2004-2005, those wacky price jumps of $200-$300K in all types of housing were completely disconnected from value IMHO. And that includes the house I sold in Falls Church in the summer of 2005. If I'm going to spend over a million bucks on a house, it better be pretty close to perfect. So far, no cigar.