Would you prefer your slabs weatherized or caressed?

After years of struggling with a shiny black granite counter, I'm looking forward to the new granite which I intend never to clean. The slab we chose is leatherized which means they take off the shine; it's pretty well a matte finish. Spilled red wine might show on it, but most of our ordinary non alcoholic spills should be able to sit on the surface for years:) and not be detected.

It's probably a mistake to choose something which you like as a total piece - but hard to resist. The slab reminded us of the ancient cave paintings in Lascaux, France.  Once it's sliced into sections much of this effect will be lost but the colors and movement will remain. We chose a darker slab, also leatherized for the master bath. Some stone yards call the matte finish "caressed" - how's that for knowing your audience which is ultimately the "little woman" in the household.  Me, I prefer my slabs to be known by the studier designation, leatherized rather than the wimpy, caressed.

The young man in the stone yard had his own names for all the slabs -  his pet names were much better than the official names. One which he called "starry night" looked just like a Van Gogh. He told me about how he is amazed every day at the beauty of something we just dig out of the ground. Then he pointed out his favorites and why he liked them. He was quite philosophical and articulate and I wanted to ask him why he was riding around with a forklift, but in these economic times, I guess it isn't surprising. He probably has a phD in something.

I read in our local paper about a couple in Oceanside who lived on a dollar a day on a vegan diet as an experiment. Guess what? They lost a lot of weight and made a fair amount of money as they now have a book about their ordeal. These food gimmick blogs are popular - and there are a lot of them!! You really have to stretch to find something that hasn't been done and has some redeeming economic or social aspect to the theme.