Fish tales

Tuesday, Jul. 04, 2006 @ 11:10 a.m.

Happy 4th of July!! I've really enjoyed this 4-day weekend, but it's a shame that it's almost over. Bah.

In any case, I haven't been updating because I've been busy with two things: I'm taking prep classes for the MCAT (ugh), and more recently, I started a new hobby - aquarism. Which is just an overly-fancy name for "I'm keeping fish".

French Fitch thinks that it's really dumb, but I really enjoy it. I've always wanted to have an aquarium, but never got around to thinking about it seriously. Then last week, as I was in the pet store getting catnip for Smelly Cat, I was mesmerized by the display of colorful fish (saltwater and freshwater) that they had in their tanks. After two days of deliberation and internet research, I bought the tank and other necessary equipment... and my newest hobby was born.

The bad thing is that I'm a really impatient person, and you can't really simply fill the tank up with water and dump fish in there. Well, you can, but the fish will die almost overnight and all your money would have gone down the toilet (literally). First of all, you've got to fill the tank and leave it overnight to get rid of all the chlorine from tap water. Then, you've gotta establish the nitrogen cycle in there, i.e., you gotta grow the symbiotic bacteria that neutralize ammonia and nitrites before you can keep fish. This process can take WEEKS. Did I mention that I'm not a very patient person? Grrrr.

So, I have no choice but to wait it out. But I got to get some fish right away, so that's at least something. That's what the people at the pet store called 'starter fish' - cheap and hardy fish that can tolerate harsh conditions. You've gotta put some in there so that they can eat and crap and feed the bacteria so that the bacteria can multiply. I got a few serpae tetras - while they're kinda pretty, they weren't exactly what I would go for... but whatever, I've gotta start somewhere. So far they've been doing really well, so I guess my tank is on the right track. Yesterday, I went out to get a few ghost shrimp to put in there as well - they're these tiny little shrimp that are almost completely transparent. Very cute.

What I really want are clown loaches and glass catfish. I'd like to get some freshwater crabs as well, but I think they'd eat my ghost shrimp, so that's not good. I'm gonna have to figure out what to do with my serpae tetra after my tank has been established and I don't need them anymore. If they're still alive, I can't bear to flush them down the toilet alive. And they're no good for sushi either.

Okay, end of boring entry. Have a great 4th, everyone! Remember, too much barbecued food means carcinogen-hell!! And if you wanna play with fireworks, play in your most-hated neighbor (or ex-boyfriend/girlfried's) backyard. In case your fireworks go awry, it won't be a complete loss if their house burns to the ground. This has been a public service announcement.

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