• Folks, if you've recently upgraded or renewed your annual club membership but it's still not active, please reach out to the BOD or a moderator. The PayPal system has a slight bug which it doesn't allow it to activate the account on it's own.

Tank birthday and I'm a Geezer

Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
I just decided (possibly stupidly) to feed my corals yeast. I feed it to my worms and they are always smiling but now my tank is all cloudy from yeast. So either the tank will crash or It will make one heck of a salty loaf of bread.
When I get bored, I sometimes do stupid things. :oo:
 
Last edited:
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
I also feed my white worms and blackworms yeast. The tank is now crystal clear so I guess it is fine. Of course tomorrow I will up the dosage. :eek:
 
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
Today I tried to move stuff around in my tank to fit the gorgonians in better and of course I broke some stuff and had to re glue it. I am working with one arm (due to shoulder operation) and I have to put on two gloves to prevent the male fireclown from biting my hand off. The two gloves is the secret and he doesn't hurt much through those gloves. If I put my bare hand in there near his stomping grounds I would have to tie a tourniquet around my elbow so I don't bleed to death.

He thinks he is a barracuda.



I moved some stuff from the right side to the left side and vise versa, but I am having trouble with some SPS that I can't get where I want so I will have to wait until I can put both arms in the tank.



I am totally embarrassed this year because I am a big Christmas guy (my birthday is on Christmas day and I have been playing Santa for over 40 years)

We bought a small "fake" Christmas tree. I "hate" artificial trees, I mean, I really hate them. But this year I can't carry a real tree or put it up so we got this thing really cheap so we can throw it out next year.

I also noticed it was made in China so I am having a hard time looking at it and I can't wait until the Holiday is over so I can throw it out.

This is the first time in my life I put something like this up and I would never buy something from China.

Our Grand Kids are coming over and I really needed a tree. I just hope they forget this is a fake tree and next year I will go overboard with decorating.



Even outside my house I couldn't put out my home made, really cool, very big train, plane and Jack in the Box that I always display.

This is very embarrassing and I have to go and hide my head in mud.



 
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
I just looked under my tank and see that I have to add two more leg supports as two legs are badly rusted. It will have to wait a while because of the shoulder surgery.



This material I used to construct this stand about 40 years ago is called "Kindorf". It is a structural support we use for virtually everything in construction indoors and out. It can also be used to support street signs so it is very corrosion resistant and galvanized. For anyone using regular iron or painted steel, get ready for the rust as steel has no sense of humor around salt water. It started rusting after about 15 years.



 
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
Now I am cured enough that I think I can clean my algae scrubber. I can just about raise my left arm high enough to dis connect the thing and take it off.. It is really clogged and needs attention because if I don't do it soon,it will start to squirt water on the walls.
I just want to make sure I can put the thing back together because that is what feeds my Reverse UG filter.
It's a busy part of the year now for me and every one else with all the parties and such, but some things we need to do eventually. I don't test, change much water or have controllers or dosers to deal with so I will find the time.
I have not changed any water for quite a while but that will have to wait until after New Years day.
I am also feeding the corals yeast. I don't know if it will do anything but maybe they will rise.
 
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
I got another one of these yesterday from my favorite LFS in Westbury. But for some reason they only get one at a time so I have to go back all the time to get more

(Andy get me more. I want more)

I want about ten or fifteen of them because they are just so cool and I want them to spawn, not that I think I can raise them. They are mostly filter feeders but they will munch on a tiny piece of clam when they can get it so I squirt them some every meal. Their claws are lousy at holding anything so it takes some time for them to actually grab something.

 
Mark_C

Mark_C

Staff member
Officer Emeritus
NJRC Member
Moderator
Ha! Love em. Whenever I drop some coral food into the tank I always stop for a few minutes to watch mine feed, its fascinating.
 
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
A couple of weeks ago I went to the VA to see if I have PTSD. I found out today, that I do. OK, no big deal, I got out of Nam fifty years ago and now they tell me this.

They interviewed me for 3 hours and it came from this battle I was in that I forgot most of thankfully.

But anyway:



Last week my Daughter says to me, Hey dad, what is that mark on your eye lid? I had no idea, probably magic marker, so my wife looked at it and said. OMG, you always had a small spot there, but now it is half the size of your eyelid. She asked me if I noticed it. I said, you can only see it when my eye is closed and I don't see much with my eyes closed, so, No, I never saw it.
So of course she tells me I have to go to the dermatologist. I agreed (the Dermatologist is almost a Supermodel and I like her)
I go to the skin Doc and am waiting in the waiting room when this girl comes in and she keeps looking at her watch. She asks me if I parked on the street, I said yes, Why? She says, do you know it's only an hour parking? I said yes, but you just got here two minutes ago. She tells me, I know but I am paranoid of getting a ticket so should I move my car? Like I care right!
So she leaves to move her car, I guess she moves it every two minutes so she doesn't get a ticket. I think she has PTSD

They call my name and I get to see the Doc and her nurse. She looks at my eyelid and says she is going to take a biopsy. I said, a What! I know what a biopsy is but of all my body parts, my eye lid is way down on the bottom of the list of places where I want someone taking a biopsy of.
I asked her what she thought it was? She said it looks like a benign "Quisymoto Flounder". At least it sounded like that. I figured that must be like a fluke and wanted to ask if she could just give my head a fresh water dip or rub some Prizapro on it.
Before I could ask, she takes this needle and says, I am going to give you this needle to numb the pain for the biopsy. I said, what are you going to give me to numb the pain of the needle in my eye?
With that, she is sticking this needle in my eyelid and telling me not to open my eye. Like, you even had to tell me that! She said, this may be a "little" uncomfortable. I imagine she pulled it off my eye a little to do this.

Then she tells the nurse to get her a sharp scissors. I said, wait a minute, I thought you took the biopsy with the needle, what's with the scissors? She has to cut a little piece out of my eye lid. Oh great, I am really looking forward to this!
The nurse tells the Doc, we don't have any sharp scissors. OK, I am out of here. She tells me to calm down, it's not a big deal. I told her, it would not be a big deal if she wanted to use a scissors on her own eye lid. I told her that yesterday it wasn't a big deal, but today I have PTSD so I have an excuse.
They find this scissors and tell me "Don't Move". At that point I thought of doing sit ups or leg presses but I figured it wouldn't be prudent at that time.

She holds my head and snips a piece off my eye lid. Like "Ouch", Now tell me that doesn't sound uncomfortable. It feels like it sounds. I asked her if instead of Novocain she put coffee in that needle to numb the pain.

So now I am home looking at my fish with one eye because the other one feels like an urchin is doing the Macarana in it
 
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
Yesterday it snowed here in New York a little and I decided to buy a new pair of snow boots. I have my good snow boots that I used to work in but I just wanted to replace my pair that I wear to shovel snow or throw out the garbage. Something easy to slip on and off with no laces.

My wife ordered me new boots from LL Bean. I didn't even see them yet because she knows I go nuts if I can't buy something made in USA and I would start yelling at the computer (maybe it is my PTSD)

So last night we go to dinner at an Italian place and I wore my old snow boots. I wanted to replace them because they had some cracks on the top and were no longer water proof.

On the way out from the restaurant I felt like I was dragging a Pizza box. I looked at my foot and didn't see anything. I took a few more steps and could hardly walk so I looked at my foot again. Nothing!!

This is weird, so I lift my foot, and the bottom of the boot falls off.



At my friends house he gave me duct tape to fix the boot so I could at least get into my car without walking barefoot in the snow. I got the boots home and looked at where they were made even though I knew what to expect. China, of course.

I myself would never purposely buy something from China and this is one reason.

Have you ever seen the bottom fall off an American Boot? No, you haven't.

Of course there are no more American boots so it is hard to compare.

It drives me nuts that in such a big, beautiful country like the US we can't buy a simple boot. Or much of anything else.

I don't even care what it cost, just build me something in the US that does not fall apart. If I had time, I would make my own boots.

We only have this garbage for sale because so many people bought it to save money. That's great but we should also make something here, just charge more, I am willing to pay for quality.

Did you ever go to Home Depot and buy hardware like screws, nuts and bolts?

You can't use that stuff on something important that must stay together because the steel in that stuff is garbage. I am not sure what they mix their steel with, probably I Phone 4s or 8 Track tape players but it is trash. When I build something I want it to be strong and last so I have to go to a good hardware store, not Home Depot. If you understand hardware you will see that there is a big difference. If you just want to hang a picture on a wall, it's fine, but if you had to hang out of a plane on that bolt, I wouldn't buy it in home depot.



 
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
I just bought a garden eel because I don't remember ever having one. I vaguely remember having one many many years ago but It could have been a garter snake a piece of rope or a dream.
The thing is about a foot long and a quarter inch wide. I am not sure if I should go by that 2" of fish for every five gallons of water which means I would have to throw out all the rest of my fish or just tie it in a couple of knots and measure it that way to make it shorter.
I was bringing it up my driveway I had thoughts of just saving time and throwing it on the ground there or waiting for it to climb out of my tank where I won't be able to find it until it finds it's way to my wife's underwear drawer, which would not end up well with me.
So I acclimated it while I was having dinner and picked him up with my hand and placed him in the center of tank. He immediately found a place in the far corner under a powerhead. I am quite sure that is the last time I will see that fish.
Make believe there is a picture of it here --------------------------->
 
S

Steve Jakubiec

Paul B said:
I just bought a garden eel because I don't remember ever having one. I vaguely remember having one many many years ago but It could have been a garter snake a piece of rope or a dream.
The thing is about a foot long and a quarter inch wide. I am not sure if I should go by that 2" of fish for every five gallons of water which means I would have to throw out all the rest of my fish or just tie it in a couple of knots and measure it that way to make it shorter.
I was bringing it up my driveway I had thoughts of just saving time and throwing it on the ground there or waiting for it to climb out of my tank where I won't be able to find it until it finds it's way to my wife's underwear drawer, which would not end up well with me.
So I acclimated it while I was having dinner and picked him up with my hand and placed him in the center of tank. He immediately found a place in the far corner under a powerhead. I am quite sure that is the last time I will see that fish.
Make believe there is a picture of it here --------------------------->
Click to expand...
I thought you said he found a place in a powerhead...yikes
 
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
I doubt I will ever see that fish again. I had a cusk eel for 18 years and saw it maybe 5 times. This thing found a home where the UG filter tubes go under the gravel in back of the tank and I think he is happy there. I will shoot food there and hope he finds it because I don't think he will ever find the front of the tank
 
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
OMG I accidently came down and glanced at the tank. My garden eel came to the front of the tank and started to dig down into the gravel. He assumed the gravel was a foot deep but boy was he disappointed. He just discovered what an Under Gravel filter plate is and I don't think he is happy. His head and tail are under the gravel but about 11" of him is waving in the current. I am sorry for him that I don't have a bigger tank but he will have to get over it because fish are not allowed to die in my tank. I hope he just figures out how to deal with this situation.



Tonight we have a house guest. She is actually a Supermodel. Her Mother and my Wife's Mother were best friends from when they were babies so my wife knows her all her life. We made linguini and crabs (I caught the crabs) which she loved because, like us, she is Italian and will eat anything from the sea. (I also made Tapioca, not the instant garbage either)

She is sleeping here and I have her room decorated in Steam Punk, but she loves it and is one of the few people that knows even what it is.
 
Paul B

Paul B

NJRC Member
For a couple of days I could only find two of my four porcelain crabs. Yesterday, right at the front of the tank, I see my big hermit crab munching on my smallest porcelain crab. He was pulling off the arms, sucking on the legs and cleaning his teeth with the antenna. I know what people will say, it is his cast off shell.

Well in that position in the jaws of a large hermit, it is very hard to tell.

So early this morning, before the lights came on, I counted them. One, Two, Three and yes, four. It is lucky for the hermit crab that he was just munching on an empty shell or I would have had to put him in time out.

The little crab now has a nice new, and larger shell so he can go and try to impress his three older cousins. I love those things.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top