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Tank birthday and I'm a Geezer
- Thread starter Paul B
- Start date
Paul B
NJRC Member
It rained last night so I figured I would go worm hunting on my morning walk.
I walked and walked and found 3 worms. Just 3. Not a very accomplished hunt.
I walked 5,000 steps, sucked up $14.00 worth of oxygen and burned up 400 calories and have almost nothing to show for it.
I did find a place with a bunch of dead, wet leaves which I kicked over.
When I did that a multitude of Night Crawlers ran away. No, they literally RAN.
They were much to big for me to feed to my fish as I thought they would eat the fish so I didn't collect them.
I walked and walked and found 3 worms. Just 3. Not a very accomplished hunt.
I walked 5,000 steps, sucked up $14.00 worth of oxygen and burned up 400 calories and have almost nothing to show for it.
I did find a place with a bunch of dead, wet leaves which I kicked over.
When I did that a multitude of Night Crawlers ran away. No, they literally RAN.
They were much to big for me to feed to my fish as I thought they would eat the fish so I didn't collect them.
Paul B
NJRC Member
We are having company this week. Friends that we have had over 50 years and their Daughter and mine grew up together from Kindergarten through college. Anyway. They were born in Italy and are fantastic cooks. He even owned a restaurant for a number of years so I can't just throw something together for dinner.
I am making a nice meal along with home made rosemary/olive oil bread. Unfortunately my oven broke this week and I ordered the part to repair it.
It's the Gas safety valve that keeps the gas on after the oven lights. It is easy to replace (if you know what you are doing) but my left hand is swollen and I have an appointment with a doctor who will give me a cortisone shot to fix it.
My problem is that I can't get that shot for a few days and I need to bake bread tomorrow and I can't really use my left hand so installing this valve will be tricky as I need to use two hands to grip the wrenches to remove the gas line and part.
Hopefully, one of my friends will be around to help with the wrenches until I get my hand repaired. It's fun getting old.
I am making a nice meal along with home made rosemary/olive oil bread. Unfortunately my oven broke this week and I ordered the part to repair it.
It's the Gas safety valve that keeps the gas on after the oven lights. It is easy to replace (if you know what you are doing) but my left hand is swollen and I have an appointment with a doctor who will give me a cortisone shot to fix it.
My problem is that I can't get that shot for a few days and I need to bake bread tomorrow and I can't really use my left hand so installing this valve will be tricky as I need to use two hands to grip the wrenches to remove the gas line and part.
Hopefully, one of my friends will be around to help with the wrenches until I get my hand repaired. It's fun getting old.
1st mistake is they bought a boat...lol
Paul B
NJRC Member
Today I got a little bored so I wanted to do a little tank maintenance. For some reason my rock migrates closer to the front of the tank and being I built most of my rock, it is in big pieces so to move one, I have to remove a lot of smaller rocks.
I needed to move the entire reef structure on one side back so I could clean the front glass. I have been noticing that this yellow sponge is growing everywhere. But only in the dark. It's visible here because that piece used to be turned over.
I don't think this stuff can take over the tank like that sponge from Hell that I got rid of a year ago and it is soft so I can remove it if I want and it is not photosynthetic, so it won't grow on the corals where the light is.
It looks kind of nice. The tank is cloudy here because when I was moving the rocks around, I had the diatom filter running and I stirred up everything.
This filter I built I don't normally use diatom powder in because it has a 5 micron cartridge which is small enough for general maintenance which is what I am doing now.
I needed to move the entire reef structure on one side back so I could clean the front glass. I have been noticing that this yellow sponge is growing everywhere. But only in the dark. It's visible here because that piece used to be turned over.
I don't think this stuff can take over the tank like that sponge from Hell that I got rid of a year ago and it is soft so I can remove it if I want and it is not photosynthetic, so it won't grow on the corals where the light is.
It looks kind of nice. The tank is cloudy here because when I was moving the rocks around, I had the diatom filter running and I stirred up everything.
This filter I built I don't normally use diatom powder in because it has a 5 micron cartridge which is small enough for general maintenance which is what I am doing now.
Paul B
NJRC Member
This Watchman got a little to big for my liking. About 5", and I think he ate a bunch of small fish, namely all my yellow clown gobies.
There is no way to catch anything in my tank with a trap or net, so I made a tiny hook out of a needle. Baited it with a clam and went fishing.
I tried to film it so I set up my phone and put it on video, but the fish wouldn't come out of the back of the tank. He was back there all by himself so I figured I would try to get him there. There is only one place where I could get a hook down there due to the rocks and corals so I lured him to that spot with some clams that I shot with one of these.
When he got there I lowered the baited hook near him and he took the bait. I quickly lifted him over a bucket of water and he jumped right in.
In a few minutes I will drive him back to the LFS I bought him from a few years ago. He is not hurt as there was no barb on the hook and I have caught fish in the past like this with no problems.
There is no way to catch anything in my tank with a trap or net, so I made a tiny hook out of a needle. Baited it with a clam and went fishing.
I tried to film it so I set up my phone and put it on video, but the fish wouldn't come out of the back of the tank. He was back there all by himself so I figured I would try to get him there. There is only one place where I could get a hook down there due to the rocks and corals so I lured him to that spot with some clams that I shot with one of these.
When he got there I lowered the baited hook near him and he took the bait. I quickly lifted him over a bucket of water and he jumped right in.
In a few minutes I will drive him back to the LFS I bought him from a few years ago. He is not hurt as there was no barb on the hook and I have caught fish in the past like this with no problems.
Paul B
NJRC Member
I brought that Watchman back to the store and picked up 2 fish. A 6 Line and some kind of sand sifter that I have not seen before. I took the pictures through the back of the tank so they are not clear.
The LFS tanks had a lot of ich in them so I may see a couple of spots in a few days.
The LFS tanks had a lot of ich in them so I may see a couple of spots in a few days.
Paul B
NJRC Member
It rained last night so on my morning walk I took my worm collection stuff. I guess it didn't rain hard enough because I only got 2 worms.
The streets were drying up so the worms made it back to the dirt before I got there but there were dozens of huge nightcrawlers all over the street.
I didn't take any of them because they were like 9" or a foot long and I don't keep any moray eels or whale sharks. If you cut up one of those giant worms in 1/4" pieces, all the guts fall out and you are left with tubes of worm skin and the parts of the worms I want are the guts.
I like worms about 3" long and skinny, that way I can cut them up into bitesize pieces and the guts stay inside so they can get inside my fish where I want them
The streets were drying up so the worms made it back to the dirt before I got there but there were dozens of huge nightcrawlers all over the street.
I didn't take any of them because they were like 9" or a foot long and I don't keep any moray eels or whale sharks. If you cut up one of those giant worms in 1/4" pieces, all the guts fall out and you are left with tubes of worm skin and the parts of the worms I want are the guts.
I like worms about 3" long and skinny, that way I can cut them up into bitesize pieces and the guts stay inside so they can get inside my fish where I want them
Paul B
NJRC Member
When I went into my Man cave to put the worms away it was dark and my tank light wasn't on yet. I noticed one of my Pigmy Waspfish on top of a rock looking bored but I know he was hunting as they are nocturnal and want to eat at night, sort of like one of my old girlfriends who may have been a Vampire.
It is very hard to feed those fish because I rarely see them so I quickly cut up a fresh worm and by the time I was ready to shoot it into the tank, he was gone. I couldn't find either one of them so I just shoot some worm pieces among the rocks in the hopes that he will get some before the hordes of hermit crabs and bristle worms.
It is very hard to feed those fish because I rarely see them so I quickly cut up a fresh worm and by the time I was ready to shoot it into the tank, he was gone. I couldn't find either one of them so I just shoot some worm pieces among the rocks in the hopes that he will get some before the hordes of hermit crabs and bristle worms.
Paul B
NJRC Member
I noticed that this guy has a few spots on it's tail. I find that to be a good thing as it means I still have some living parasites swimming around in there keeping my fish immune.
I added two fish yesterday but I can't find this guy. He ate right away but must be realizing he is in a new, really nice tank now so maybe he is taking a nap. I often can't find fish, sometimes for weeks because my tank is a maze of passageways.
I added two fish yesterday but I can't find this guy. He ate right away but must be realizing he is in a new, really nice tank now so maybe he is taking a nap. I often can't find fish, sometimes for weeks because my tank is a maze of passageways.
Paul B
NJRC Member
It took a couple of years but I got to say, my tank doesn't look too bad now. It went through a couple of years of everything being covered with invasive sponge which killed all my gorgonians and lots of corals. Then a year or two of Dino's, which killed more corals, then very long hair algae, which, again, did a number on my corals, so now I just have to wait until my corals grow back to their former height.
But I still have over 40 fish which are all happy and healthy with a few spawning.
But I still have over 40 fish which are all happy and healthy with a few spawning.
Paul B
NJRC Member
I love my morning walks, especially low tide when I find most of the interesting things. Today was high tide but I still find things that got blown or washed all the way up on the beach.
Live concrete
Live piece of a dock, probably from Connecticut.
Live asphalt. I actually have a few of these in my tank
Bounce and Splash, most likely from the Titanic
40' Tree
Dead Horseshoe Crab
I have no Idea
Half eaten shark. Most likely from the movie "Jaws".
Dead fish
Sting Ray
Paul B
NJRC Member
As I was on here this morning, I heard my wife scream. She fell in the bedroom so of course I ran to her but couldn't get her back on to the bed.
The days where I would lift her up and put her on my shoulder are long over and she is not overweight by any stretch of the imagination.
But supposedly we lose 3% of muscle every year after about 40 so I figure I lost 99% of my muscles and only my eyelids are still strong.
Even though I am now the same weight I was when I got married in 1973, and I walk a couple of miles and exercise every day while eating only the "right" foods that are supposed to allow me to live forever, it doesn't keep your muscles as strong as when you are 40.
She is now sleeping on the bedroom floor. I covered her and put a pillow under her head. No, not over it.
Unfortunately, this is now a weekly occurrence as you don't get over MS.
The days where I would lift her up and put her on my shoulder are long over and she is not overweight by any stretch of the imagination.
But supposedly we lose 3% of muscle every year after about 40 so I figure I lost 99% of my muscles and only my eyelids are still strong.
Even though I am now the same weight I was when I got married in 1973, and I walk a couple of miles and exercise every day while eating only the "right" foods that are supposed to allow me to live forever, it doesn't keep your muscles as strong as when you are 40.
She is now sleeping on the bedroom floor. I covered her and put a pillow under her head. No, not over it.
Unfortunately, this is now a weekly occurrence as you don't get over MS.
