old fishmate back after a year or more

[gina]

hi fishmates!
After a year or more, and a few computers later, i've gotten my act together
and joined the newsgroup scene again! Did anyone miss me? (dang, that
resounding 'NO' is deafening!)

Well, my tank looks like crap! I started my 20 gallon a year or so ago,
with the advice of this group. How in love i was! IT was so nice! We
would smile alot, gaze into the tank with awe and respect...blow kisses to
eachother through the glass....(well, not that much...) Sniff....those
beginning days of being in love started with alot of new fishies and
sparkling clean water, and in all was well for 8 months or so. Until the
troubles started....

That was until the summer before last when a heat wave killed 80% of my
tank. Major destruction was had then; water went cloudy, floaters, temp
couldnt come down, even with ice in the tank for emergency relief.

Since then, i may as well be the poster child for lousy fishkeeping,
regardless of my 'ed-u-mi-cation' in the matter!

Being in the confessional mood, since the slaughter, i started over and over
again...clean tank, fresh water, new gravel, etc - the only surviving fish
in my tank are the 2 tiny little 12 cent feeder fish that have grown into
MONSTERS, one the size of a small puppy. i guess they ended up the longest
lasting 12 cent items i've ever purchased! And they are hogs, the hungry
pigs!

Enviromentally, my tank is overgrown with green waterplants which should be
planted, but are just floating, intwining their scrawny little roots
together(which the lone betta likes). There are a multitude of green algae
patches on the glass all over the place, which makes even seeing the
Monsters (and whether the water is cloudy or not) very difficult! i feel so
ashamed! (oh, there's a black eye in there peeping out at me through the
green patches! Hi there fishie!! Fine! More food? Greedy things....) ha

How i became such a fishkeeping loser is beyond me. Where is my enthusiasm?
Where is my sense of fishkeeping pride? Where are my fish? I think that
with every water level drop (due to evaporation and utter laziness), my
sense of sucess in this tank business has dropped as well. Is there any
hope for me? Can anyone offer some sort of group therapy for a hopeless
case like myself?

I of course, will be anxiously awaiting for any help at all, hiding behind
my ski mask of shame until my tank sparkles like the rest of you! Until
then, i shall retreat to corner algea patch as self-inflicted punishment for
my fishkeeping sins!

smiles! gina

ps. Hi there to netmax! I did-a miss ole you!

[C&P Devlin]

Hi Gina!
I have a few suggestions for ya but i wont guarantee it will help you.
The cloudiness could be due to overfeeding..I dont know your feeding
schedule but try cutting back a bit...few fish die of starvation but
many die from overfeeding and polution of the water.
The algae problem might be fixed with the addition of a small variety of
pleco or another algae eating fish.
As far as the plants you should be able to set them back into the gravel
and if your monsters keep dig them up you could try tieing a glass bead
to the crown of the plants to hold them down from floating with thread
or fishing line.
I hope this helps you! Keep us posted!
Take care Gina!
Craig
Ontario, Canada

gina wrote:
> hi fishmates!
> After a year or more, and a few computers later, i've gotten my act together
> and joined the newsgroup scene again! Did anyone miss me? (dang, that
> resounding 'NO' is deafening!)
>
> Well, my tank looks like crap! I started my 20 gallon a year or so ago,
> with the advice of this group. How in love i was! IT was so nice! We
> would smile alot, gaze into the tank with awe and respect...blow kisses to
> eachother through the glass....(well, not that much...) Sniff....those
> beginning days of being in love started with alot of new fishies and
> sparkling clean water, and in all was well for 8 months or so. Until the
> troubles started....
>
> That was until the summer before last when a heat wave killed 80% of my
> tank. Major destruction was had then; water went cloudy, floaters, temp
> couldnt come down, even with ice in the tank for emergency relief.
>
> Since then, i may as well be the poster child for lousy fishkeeping,
> regardless of my 'ed-u-mi-cation' in the matter!
>
> Being in the confessional mood, since the slaughter, i started over and over
> again...clean tank, fresh water, new gravel, etc - the only surviving fish
> in my tank are the 2 tiny little 12 cent feeder fish that have grown into
> MONSTERS, one the size of a small puppy. i guess they ended up the longest
> lasting 12 cent items i've ever purchased! And they are hogs, the hungry
> pigs!
>
> Enviromentally, my tank is overgrown with green waterplants which should be
> planted, but are just floating, intwining their scrawny little roots
> together(which the lone betta likes). There are a multitude of green algae
> patches on the glass all over the place, which makes even seeing the
> Monsters (and whether the water is cloudy or not) very difficult! i feel so
> ashamed! (oh, there's a black eye in there peeping out at me through the
> green patches! Hi there fishie!! Fine! More food? Greedy things....) ha
>
> How i became such a fishkeeping loser is beyond me. Where is my enthusiasm?
> Where is my sense of fishkeeping pride? Where are my fish? I think that
> with every water level drop (due to evaporation and utter laziness), my
> sense of sucess in this tank business has dropped as well. Is there any
> hope for me? Can anyone offer some sort of group therapy for a hopeless
> case like myself?
>
> I of course, will be anxiously awaiting for any help at all, hiding behind
> my ski mask of shame until my tank sparkles like the rest of you! Until
> then, i shall retreat to corner algea patch as self-inflicted punishment for
> my fishkeeping sins!
>
> smiles! gina
>
> ps. Hi there to netmax! I did-a miss ole you!
>
>
>
>
>
>

[NetMax]

"gina" > wrote in message
.net...
> hi fishmates!
> After a year or more, and a few computers later, i've gotten my act
together
> and joined the newsgroup scene again! Did anyone miss me? (dang, that
> resounding 'NO' is deafening!)

Hi Gina! We missed your enthusiastic story-telling. Have you become
OOoo-fish-ally interested again? ;~)

> Well, my tank looks like crap! I started my 20 gallon a year or so
ago,
> with the advice of this group. How in love i was! IT was so nice! We
> would smile alot, gaze into the tank with awe and respect...blow kisses
to
> eachother through the glass....(well, not that much...) Sniff....those
> beginning days of being in love started with alot of new fishies and
> sparkling clean water, and in all was well for 8 months or so. Until
the
> troubles started....
>
> That was until the summer before last when a heat wave killed 80% of my
> tank. Major destruction was had then; water went cloudy, floaters,
temp
> couldnt come down, even with ice in the tank for emergency relief.
>
> Since then, i may as well be the poster child for lousy fishkeeping,
> regardless of my 'ed-u-mi-cation' in the matter!
>
> Being in the confessional mood, since the slaughter, i started over and
over
> again...clean tank, fresh water, new gravel, etc - the only surviving
fish
> in my tank are the 2 tiny little 12 cent feeder fish that have grown
into
> MONSTERS, one the size of a small puppy. i guess they ended up the
longest
> lasting 12 cent items i've ever purchased! And they are hogs, the
hungry
> pigs!
>
> Enviromentally, my tank is overgrown with green waterplants which
should be
> planted, but are just floating, intwining their scrawny little roots
> together(which the lone betta likes). There are a multitude of green
algae
> patches on the glass all over the place, which makes even seeing the
> Monsters (and whether the water is cloudy or not) very difficult! i
feel so
> ashamed! (oh, there's a black eye in there peeping out at me through
the
> green patches! Hi there fishie!! Fine! More food? Greedy
things....) ha
>
> How i became such a fishkeeping loser is beyond me. Where is my
enthusiasm?
> Where is my sense of fishkeeping pride? Where are my fish? I think
that
> with every water level drop (due to evaporation and utter laziness), my
> sense of sucess in this tank business has dropped as well. Is there
any
> hope for me? Can anyone offer some sort of group therapy for a
hopeless
> case like myself?

LOL, but life's obligations take us away from our hobbies sometimes, and
this is a hobby which doesn't take well to being too ignored for too
long. An overgrown tank is not neccesarily a bad place for fish though.
If the fish-load has balanced to the plant-load, sometimes the fish will
appear quite content with the situation, especially with lower fish-loads
of smaller herbivores. I've probably picked up the hobby (and put it
down for various reasons) about 6 times now. Sometimes it fits well with
the phase we are in, and other times, you live vicariously through
visiting pet shops.

> I of course, will be anxiously awaiting for any help at all, hiding
behind
> my ski mask of shame until my tank sparkles like the rest of you!
Until
> then, i shall retreat to corner algea patch as self-inflicted
punishment for
> my fishkeeping sins!
>
> smiles! gina
>
> ps. Hi there to netmax! I did-a miss ole you!

:o) NetMax

[gina]

hello there dearest fishmate!
oh its so nice to see you're still posting! Your screenname is like a
beacon in the darkness! (oh barf)

Yes, you are correct in that situations in life do take our attention from
our hobbies, and that is what happened here. Work, the biz we run, health
issues, all took my attention away from my darling little fishies! However,
the biggest culprit of all was the addition of puppies!

I already have three adult males. Max, the 95 lb yellow lab is close to 5
now; Frankie, the border collie/black lab mix (65 ish lbs) almost 4. The
neighbor next door to our llittle tv shop kept having litters, and in August
of 02, i got involved in rescuing two of them. First was totally white
'Puppy' who i ran to the vet when he showed signs of Parvo. He died the
next day, sadly.

The second one was the funkiest looking red haired pup who i called Rudolph
the Red Haired Reindeer. He didnt have the virus and has grown into being
the size of Max. All was well with my three boys for a while....

Then, in july03, the other neighbor got busted for trying to make some fast
money by attempting to smuggle 5 lbs of pot into the country from Canada.
She and her boyfriend were arrested at the border in NY leaving her 50lb pit
terrier home with the geeky roommate!

The geeky roommate, God bless him, kept the dog and the apartment as long as
he could, and came to me the weekend before the 4th of July to tell me that
he moved out totally over the weekend and didnt have a place to put the dog!
GEE! THANKS FOR THE ADVANCE WARNING! So, I didnt want to leave the dog in
an empty building and the humane society here has a policy to put down all
pit terriers because they are overstocked already. So, i just took the dog
home knowing that my husband would kill me.

Needless to say, im still alive and the dog is still here. Dont touch my
babies! Well, this last rescue (Princess) decided to go into heat RIGHT
AFTER i rescued her and my three males went nuts! All that sniffin',
barkin' and utter bad manners led to some frazzled nerves; me putting her in
Pampers pull up pants, smeared wiyh Vics Vapo-Rub on her butt and the
diaper; a door chewed off the hinges, dog fights, my arm and hand being
bitten cause i stupidly thought my intervening in the knarling would stop
the fighting, carpet being torn apart between the bedroom and the
hallway....no sleep for the whining through the door....all this and i still
ended up with a litter of pups!

On sept 18th, we had 7 pups - the cutest little creatures i ever saw! since
then, i've done more laundry; cleaned the vinyl floors; vacumned, and
picking up puppy poop more than i ever want to in a lifetime! We have found
homes for the 4 males, but i still have my three girls. so, entotal, i've
got 3 adult male dogs - one adult female, and three little girl puppies.
AAAHHHHHHHHH! Fish who?

(ps, we are trying to have her fixed so this doesnt happen again!)

Now that things are settling down, i hope to find some energy to scrub that
tank again, And i am thankful for the reminders that Plecos are good algae
scrub assistants! Do they work cheap?

Right now though, i am watching "godzilla vs mechagodzilla" on the scifi
channel. Its a good dose of reality television! ha!

BTW, is Godzilla considered a sea creature?

OOOOOfish-ally smiling! gina

[NetMax]

"gina" > wrote in message
nk.net...
> hello there dearest fishmate!
> oh its so nice to see you're still posting! Your screenname is like a
> beacon in the darkness! (oh barf)
>
> Yes, you are correct in that situations in life do take our attention
from
> our hobbies, and that is what happened here. Work, the biz we run,
health
> issues, all took my attention away from my darling little fishies!
However,
> the biggest culprit of all was the addition of puppies!

<snipped doggie episodes>

There is always something in your posts which makes me smile, and
appreciate the 'relative' serenity of my life :o)

Plecos work cheap, but add to the fish load (bad), while removing algae
which is now filtering excessive nutrients out of the water. If you go
with one, start small, maybe a nice male bushynose L-088 to wink at you
when he is taking a break from cleaning ;~)

NetMax

> On sept 18th, we had 7 pups - the cutest little creatures i ever saw!
since
> then, i've done more laundry; cleaned the vinyl floors; vacumned, and
> picking up puppy poop more than i ever want to in a lifetime! We have
found
> homes for the 4 males, but i still have my three girls. so, entotal,
i've
> got 3 adult male dogs - one adult female, and three little girl
puppies.
> AAAHHHHHHHHH! Fish who?
>
> (ps, we are trying to have her fixed so this doesnt happen again!)
>
> Now that things are settling down, i hope to find some energy to scrub
that
> tank again, And i am thankful for the reminders that Plecos are good
algae
> scrub assistants! Do they work cheap?
>
> Right now though, i am watching "godzilla vs mechagodzilla" on the
scifi
> channel. Its a good dose of reality television! ha!
>
> BTW, is Godzilla considered a sea creature?
>
> OOOOOfish-ally smiling! gina
>
>

[gina]

hm, relative serenity? what is that? i thought serenity was a brand name
for adult diapers!

in that disgusting tank, i have the two monsters and one betta. (not
counting the two or three snails i have left after those multitude were born
about two years ago...) If adding a pleco would upset the balance of this
tank, im gotta put a leash on the monsters and teach them how to breath
outside the tank! (Enough of that flapping around! Sit up straight!
Breath through your nose!)

I have an outside pond on the property with a ton of fish just like these
monsters, none being as big as the ones inside. I know that if i were to
put the monsters in the pond, they wouldnt live through the winter, having
the luxury life since babies!

i did fail to mention that i have a two gallon tank and recently bought a
new in tank filter for it! What a charm! Whereas i could only keep a betta
and a frog in the unfiltered tank, i have a betta, the frog, two of those
neon silver dollar types (originals from two years ago) and a catfish (also
an original 2 year old!!)... The water sparkles and its by the
bedside...very very comforting to see some success!

wanna puppy? ;-)

ps. Im still wondering about godzilla! now its 1992 and a baby
godzilla-saur is born from an egg! maybe we should consider him amphibian
or reptilian?

[gina]

hi there! i like the glass bead idea! that is very very smart! should i
color coordinate?

[Dick]

Perhaps genetics is more important than childhood experiences. Your
monsters may be hardier than you think. But then, you seem to have
fallen in love with the beasties. No one can advise you if you are
smitten.

On Sun, 11 Jan 2004 18:40:29 GMT, "gina" >
wrote:

>hm, relative serenity? what is that? i thought serenity was a brand name
>for adult diapers!
>
>in that disgusting tank, i have the two monsters and one betta. (not
>counting the two or three snails i have left after those multitude were born
>about two years ago...) If adding a pleco would upset the balance of this
>tank, im gotta put a leash on the monsters and teach them how to breath
>outside the tank! (Enough of that flapping around! Sit up straight!
>Breath through your nose!)
>
>I have an outside pond on the property with a ton of fish just like these
>monsters, none being as big as the ones inside. I know that if i were to
>put the monsters in the pond, they wouldnt live through the winter, having
>the luxury life since babies!
>
>i did fail to mention that i have a two gallon tank and recently bought a
>new in tank filter for it! What a charm! Whereas i could only keep a betta
>and a frog in the unfiltered tank, i have a betta, the frog, two of those
>neon silver dollar types (originals from two years ago) and a catfish (also
>an original 2 year old!!)... The water sparkles and its by the
>bedside...very very comforting to see some success!
>
>wanna puppy? ;-)
>
>ps. Im still wondering about godzilla! now its 1992 and a baby
>godzilla-saur is born from an egg! maybe we should consider him amphibian
>or reptilian?
>