I was looking for a similar color and ended up painting my entire downstairs in SW Empire Gold. I usually love it, though sometimes I get worried that it's a bit too yellow. It truly IS a tannish gold. But then, there are certain times of day when it looks just so lovely, saturated and warm, yet neutral enough to not overpower the space, and then I remind myself that I really am very happy with the results. Color is so hard!!! I wish I could post pictures for you. Empire Gold reminds me of a golden chamois cloth. I'm finding that it goes especially well with medium to dark woods, blacks, browns, reds and burgandy. When looking for this color, the problem that I had was that all of the golds seemed just too mustardy and bright, and all of the khaki/tans seemed too "builder beige" to me, which was what I had before. I wanted something that said that it was MY color, and not what was so neutral that it had been chosen by the builder or previous owner worried about resale value. I think that this color did accomplish this goal, for better or worse, maybe, but I like it. (Most of the time, anyway! I think that I will always occasionally second guess myself when it comes to paint color!)

Get a second opinion from a feline vet. Even the best vets will on occasion miss things. Be honest with both vets saying, "I just want to make sure nothing was accidentally missed." If it would be easier - blame it on me, say "a friend really thinks I should do this." I am a medical professional and volunteer with a feline rescue/shelter. You would be amazed at how often things are found on "second opinion," both human and feline. Did your vet check the cats vision? find a feline specialty vet http://www.catvets.com/cat-owners/find-vets-and-practices feline vision http://www.eyevet.ie/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/vision_cat.pdf

When you say you're draining into the sewer, I sure hope you don't mean into your septic system. That would be bad. The "thunk" is probably the reverse valve dropping back when the pump stops. We have that in our rental house too. I'm not messing with ours (because: rental, and we're only here a few more months), but I'd look at cobbling together some sort of anti-hammer. Plus maybe look at how the pipes are touching the house structure and padding that. I did find a useful article on what you describe that may help: https://homes.winnipegfreepress.com/winnipeg-real-estate-articles/renovation-design/ASK-THE-INSPECTOR-How-to-quiet-sump-pump-drain-pipe-racket/id-3295

We ended up pulling the trigger on painting our golden oak cabinets white. Went with Sherwin Williams Greek Villa and Unusual Gray for the island. Don’t regret it a bit!