Stilly River Sage,

Your mention of Katrina reminds me that there is always someone worse off than me - I really need to bear that in mind.
The job prospects are not looking too good at the moment - but something will probably turn up and thanks for asking.
Glad that you were able to adopt the dog - there's something about the innocence and trust of such creatures that gets to me every time. I 'rescued' a semi-feral cat a couple of years ago. She was quite timid, wouldn't come in the house any further than the kitchen and lived in a weatherproof 'kennel' (the wrong word but, I can't think of a better one) that I built her in the back garden. I fed her for about two years and she was just beginning to get a bit tamer when she got a kidney infection and had to be 'put-to-sleep' (as my Mum used to say) by a vet. By a curious coincidence it was at this point that I met someone who recognised the cat and knew her history (it would take too long to explain). Apparently the cat had been 'rescued' before and had then disappeared - only to turn up on my doorstep quite a few years later.
I'm not sure where this is heading but it did suddenly occur to me that there are some people who think that people are more important than animals and would only rescue the former and other people who believe the opposite. To me all sentient creatures are worthy of respect and are worth helping, if necessary - and no disrespect is meant to either.

All the Best,
DB