I found "my" haircut around 30. I'm now 55. One time, I think it was 10-15 years ago, I lost my mind and decided to let it grow out into a longish bob. But that drove me crazy and I didn't get nearly as many compliments on it. Yes, my hair is the one thing I'm vain about (the only thing I have to be vain about!). Strangers stop me frequently to compliment me on it. And they didn't do that when I let it grow. And the longer length irritated me no end. So back i went to "my" cut and I have no intention of ever changing.

I don't do fancy or frou frou. I'm all about comfort and convenience. Hanes or Fruit of the Loom high cut briefs are inexpensive and comfy and hold up pretty well. And I don't have to do one single special thing to care for them.

I think Kristen means headlights that have become cloudy due to age. Not regular road grime. We have a 2001 Honda CRV. We tried all the home remedies and a couple of products that we purchased at an auto store. They did nothing to very little. The last time DH took the car into the Honda dealership for an oil change they said they could fix it. And they did. I don't recall what it cost, but it wasn't much at all. We were pretty much "Duh, why didn't we ask them to begin with?"

There are many health issues that can cause mouth sores in cats. I would not assume they're due to bacteria from a dental cleaning, especially since the first round of antibiotics didn't take care of the problem. I think that was a very sensible first treatment, but now your vet should be investigating other causes.

I'm so sorry. It's hard. So very hard.

You can have sero-negative RA. At least for awhile, when the disease process is just beginning. Often those patients will eventually show blood markers as the disease progresses. IMO it's incredibly foolish with an inflammatory arthritis to avoid medicine and rely on diet or supplements alone (not that I personally think either of those help anyway). Joint pain is only the tip of the iceberg, the most obvious symptom. Silent damage can be occurring to the heart, lungs, bones, blood vessels, eyes, etc. I saw how ugly that can be with a mother who hated going to the doctor and taking prescription medicines and thought that she could self treat her RA with glucosamine/chondroitin, fish oil and diet. I don't know for sure that the heart and lung issues she eventually developed were directly related, but I suspect there's a high likelihood the untreated RA was at least a significant factor, if not the sole cause. The orthopedic surgeon and pain management doctors she eventually had to see each independently told me they had no doubt that the untreated RA was the cause of her osteoporosis, stenosis and spinal fractures. Inflammatory/auto-immune arthritis is an entirely different ball game than osteo.

The leg/thigh squeeze would likely have been over the line for me. That's . . . pretty personal. Maybe I'm weird, but I think of that area being much more off limits than shoulders. But . . I've never had a nurse stay while I was chatting with a doctor. Ever. Only for the female exam bits. They exit the second that's done.

His primary care provider is probably the best place to start. A rheumatologist is the specialist for arthritis, but many require a referral from a primary care provider. There are many different types of arthritis (around a hundred, I think) and the treatment depends on the type. If it’s something like RA (which I have and which I assume is one of the “bad” kinds he’s referring to) or another type of inflammatory arthritis then it needs to be treated as quickly as possible.

I love my coffee but I'm not picky. I don't care for frou frou coffee drinks (no mocha-latta-whatevers that are often 90 percent sugar and 10 percent coffee and have 1000 calories per cup). Just plain old basic coffee and lots of it. I started in my early 20's but don't remember how or why. So take this for what it's worth -- Regarding make at home coffee -- I like milder coffees and I think that might be the best way to introduce yourself to it? The packaged McDonald's coffees are what I'm currently using. Their breakfast blend is mild. Experiment with making it stronger/weaker, adding in some sort of sweetener and a splash of half and half or whatever lightener you might prefer. If you don't want to invest in a coffee maker right away you might try the coffee at McDonald's or Dunkin Donuts (you can buy prepackaged Dunkin Donuts coffee in most stores, too).

Sell them, or maybe donate them to a high school golf team.

You are my people!

We all have dressers. And in this house it would be hard to make do w/o all that drawer space. It would have been easy to do w/o dressers in our last house, although we had the same ones and used them there, too.

From what I know it's better than it used to be but still very much a "do a lot of careful homework" before committing. Read all the fine print carefully. See how each plan handles pre-existing and hereditary/genetic conditions, check for caps on annual premium increases, etc. I've heard of a lot of people who got pet insurance for their puppies or kittens only to find that premium increases over the years made the policies unaffordable by the time the pet was middle aged. Be aware that a "pet wellness plan" is different from pet health insurance. I've always self insured for vet expenses, putting aside a set amount each month. I figure dealing with health insurance for the humans is nightmare enough. I don't want to do it with the pets. But I know people who wouldn't be w/o pet health insurance.

What a horribly ill informed rescue. There is so very much wrong there . . .

Single kittens going nuts and wreaking havoc due to boredom/lack of adequate physical or mental exercise, often attributed to lack of a playmate. It happens with lots of kittens, but not all by any stretch of the imagination. And sometimes with two you get double the havoc rather than them entertaining themselves in a relatively non-destructive manner. So two kittens climbing and shredding your curtains rather than one.

I don't have any BTDT advice about that. I've only needed to provide a safe space for cats to get away from dogs, and that's much easier than figuring out how to keep cats away from cats long term (short term confinement is different). Some things I'd consider -- If cranky cat is okay with a crate, then that's a possibility--Fix up a cozy, snuggly crate in a quiet spot and when (if) cranky cat retreats to it shut the door to keep new cat out. If it's a big enough crate you can put in a litter box. If not then of course you don't want to keep the door shut too long! Ditto if cranky cat has a favorite bedroom or closet to hang out in--easy enough to put a litter box in that room or closet, along with a food and water bowl, and shut the door for awhile when you notice cranky cat retreating to it.

When we've had multiple cats I've generally just left one carrier out. Our last two cats--one was a big boy and one was a smallish female, so I left out the male's carrier since it was slightly larger. They'd both hang out in it at different times, and occasionally they'd snug in together. He's a Shih Tzu and I think most of them tend to like cats or at least not mind them. They're pretty much a gets-along-with-everyone-and-everything breed. Beyond normal playfulness (especially when puppies) they don't have much of a chasing instinct and no hunting instincts other than hunting human laps. The lack of those things helps when it comes to living with cats.

In addition to checking for a UTI I'd also want electrolytes and blood calcium checked. My father's calcium level was out of whack one time and made him do/say all sorts of unusual things. Once it was fixed he was totally back to normal.

At times yes, of course. But it seems to me that many on this board think it's an *always* thing that two kittens are happier together. And my experience doesn't support that. It also bugs me when people post that because I'm afraid it discourages people who may want only one kitten or cat from adopting. And there are so many out there who would love to be onlies.

I don't think there is any one right answer here. There are lots of potential problems with any choice. I'd pick the one that I felt most capable of dealing with. For me that would be option #1, but in years of working in rescue I've never seen anything that supports the oft-repeated-on-here notion that kittens or cats always do better in pairs. I have, however, worked with many cats and kittens who made it abundantly clear that they preferred to be "onlies" (no other cats in the home). Whatever you do you need to provide a safe, secluded spot for existing elderly cat. In general with cats matching temperament/personality/energy levels matters much more than what sex(es) they are.

Please, please be careful! Dog theft is a much bigger issue than many people realize. And the smaller/cuter/fluffier the dog the more likely it seems they are to be stolen. Small fluffy dogs can be "rehomed" on Craigslist for several hundred dollars. We live in a very safe area and there is no way on earth I'd ever leave my dog outside alone. He doesn't even go outside in our fenced back yard for a quick potty break by himself. He's too precious to me, and cute enough that he would bring a high "rehoming" fee. Also, IMO young puppies should never be left outside alone. Well, maybe it your back yard is totally privacy fenced, concreted and has no trees or shrubs. If there are sticks, mulch, anything a teething, mouthy puppy could ingest-nope. Not safe.

#1 thing -- Keep the carrier/crate out and accessible! Too many people put them away and only bring them out when the cat needs to go to the vet. Talk about a negative association! Plus cats like familiarity. Most cats naturally like dark, cozy sleeping and hiding places. Make the carrier/crate one of them. Put it in a quiet spot with the door propped open, put a cozy blanket/old towel/bed in it, sprinkle some catnip in it occasionally. If you do those simple things many cats will make their carrier/crate a favored sleeping spot. And from there just start closing the door occasionally for short periods of time. Most cats who are snoozing won't care at all. Just don't forget to open it eventually!

Sometimes there are washers or other components that can be replaced. I'd think for a drippy faucet to affect your water bill it would have to be really, really drippy. But it may depend on the cost of water in your area?

Unfortunately, IME many dogs with SA also seem to have some sort of claustrophobia/barrier frustration. The dogs who need to find security in a crate seem the least likely to be able to do so easily. That's certainly not always the case, though, and hopefully won't be for yours. With crate training an older puppy I'd start with baby steps as much as possible. Get a really good, high value treat (steak or chicken or a Milk Bone--whatever high value means to him), toss one or two in and when he goes in after them shut the crate door. As soon as he eats the treats open the door and let him right back out. Do it many times during the day, slowly extending the length of time he's in the crate. As he gets more comfortable with it you can even pretend to leave--grab your purse and keys, step out, raise the garage door, etc. Feed him his meals in the crate. Get a Kong or other stuffable toy and fill it with something yummy (cheese, peanut butter, cream cheese, etc.). Give it to him every single time you crate him when you go out. Or if he's more toy motivated you can get a special toy he only gets when crated--anything you can do to make the crate a special, positive place for him. Really, the ideal thing is to build on positive association with the crate slowly. Unfortunately we all live in real life and most of us can't set aside two weeks or two months where we never have to leave home and can work on crate training until the dog is totally comfortable. So do the best you can.

You have two totally different issues here. One is should you crate train (yes). The other is how you should use the crate (totally up to you and the dog). I feel very strongly that ALL dogs should be crate trained (cats, too--it's not hard at all to teach a cat to not hate a crate/carrier). If they ever need to be boarded, need to stay at the vet's due to surgery or illness, or need to have their activity limited due to injury, surgery recovery, etc. -- being crate trained is absolutely invaluable. A hard sided crate strapped down is the safest way for a pet to travel in a car. Crate training is a part of the basic education that all well loved pet dogs or cats should have, IMO. But just because you crate train doesn't mean the dog has to sleep in it, or will need to be crated when you're gone, or will need to spend any significant time in it on a regular basis. Crate training is the right thing to do. Absolutely. How you use it is up to you, and will vary depending on the dog and the family. There's no right or wrong on that.