Wednesday, March 9, 2011

It’s lonely…but clean

The tank is sad right now. So lonely are Buster and Nod. But hold on little friends. help is on the way. I have some corals coming any day now!

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Katharine Hepburn's last words: 'They're all dead - it's amazing'

So, all of the fish in my tank have died except two. No Butterfinger, no Scarlet, no Sally, no Winken or Blinken, and no bruiser.

Not sure what it was. Maybe new tank syndrome, maybe a bad fungus, maybe trying to use herbal remedies. Poor water quality is the biggest thing. So, I’ve upgraded it to a ProClear 150 with Prefilter.

Lets see what happens next!

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Heavy Metal

So, over the weekend Annie, our Sebae Anemone #2 died. Frustrated about it, I had my water tested. We have metal in water that is killing the anemones and may have been the cause of Copper's untimely demise.

To remedy the metal situation, the local fish store sells water that has passed through a reverse osmosis machine. This process renders the water free of everything! Its 63 cents a gallon and I have to bring my own buckets.

Needless to say, I will be doing my water change with their water this weekend. Sorry Annie and Minnie.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Sad Day

Forgive me if this turns into a pitty party but it's been a tough day.

I received an email from my cousin who I have recently reconnected with notifying me that my Aunt Vickie passed away last night around 8:45 p.m. Even though I haven't seen her or spoken to her since roughly 1993, this really saddened me. One of my earliest memories after being adopted was of her and my Uncle Bud. When ever I was in trouble, and man did I get into trouble, they always tried to talk to me and understand why I acted the way I did.

My Uncle Bud was a commercial fisherman in south Florida and he would smoke massive amounts of fish on any given weekend. We would sit around the smoker and play games and eat fish all day long. My Aunt Vickie was a very good artist. She was such a kind soul and hosted all of the neighborhood kids each summer in their home for art lessons. My brother Joe, Adam Noble, John and Adam Moran, maybe Heather Horne, Scott Syring I believe one year, would all attend. We worked with pastels, charcoal, and water based paints. The last year she hosted we worked with oils. It was a lot of fun. My favorite thing I ever painted was a large portrait of Emmett Kelly, the clown. She had three wonderful grandchildren that were very close in age to my brother, sister, and me. Tina and Jackie, Joe and Troy, and Me and Jenny. Jackie lives near me now in Woodbridge and has a great family.

So, why am I writing all of this, well Copper our Copperband Butterflyfish passed away today as well. I noticed he wasn't eating well this morning but just thought to myself to monitor him. I was expecting a new lighting system today and was thrilled about getting it hooked up. While I was at the fish store I also got Nicole's fish of choice, a Flame Dwarf Angelfish (Scarlett).

Scarlett the Flame Dwarf Angelfish

I was excited about the corals I will soon be adding. When I got home I started my feeding process. Flakes first, then thawing some Mysis Shrimp for Copper. I realized I hadn't seen him yet so I looked around the back of the rock formations and there he was. He was pointed straight down and non-responsive. I attempted to rouse him with my fingers and he leaped at my slightest touch. He drifted to the other side of the tank, ignoring all of the shrimp floating around, and landed on the other side of the tank. The Serpent Starfish touched him and he leaped again but all the while floating and swimming erratically.

He eventually stopped breathing and I removed him from the tank.

With that said, the Angelfish looks amazing and seems to be adapting well. The lighting looks amazing and really shows off the fish and anemone.

So, today has been a sad day, I lost the person responsible for some of my oldest memories and lost a new friend. Rest in piece both of you.

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Photos!

Yellow Tang "Butterfinger" is on the left, while "Copper" the Copperband Butterfly is on the right.

This is "Annie" the Sabae Anemone


Copper, our new addition

New Addition

No, not the band with Ronnie, Bobby, Ricky, Mike, and Johnnie! We introduced a Copperband Butterfly fish today. He is beautiful. He's a full 2 inches big right now. He seems to be adapting well but the Yellow Tang is harassing it as we speak.

Death In The Family

I am sad to report that Minnie, the smallest anemone, has perished. She will be missed.