updates! omg!

Wot's this? An update?!

Yes, dear readers, I am actually updating the blog. It's loooong overdue, and I have many excuses ready. This semester has been a bear, and while it is not over yet, I have only now reached the ultimate nirvana of procrastination that could lead me to update my long-neglected blog.* And so much has happened with the fishes! And by "so much," I mean, "THEY GOT BIGGER."

"Bigger? Pshhh. How much bigger?"

I submit for your consideration:

The fishes, as we last saw them in December 2009:

Wee little turds, they are! LADDIES AND LASSES!

And the fishies about a week ago, in their small tank, feeding like the sassy gluttons they were born to be:

If you listen closely, you can actually hear them going, "glump, glump, glump. . ." That is a fishy chewing noise, detectible only to the trained fishy-rearing ear.**

But that is not all that has shaken the fishies world, oh no! After reviewing the literature on my ever-steadfast arsenal of crazy fish people discussion boards (where one can actually get flamed for dissing guppies or goldfish, I shit you not), I discovered that I had a minor problem. You see, conventional wisdom is that you need a certain amount of free space in your water to allow your fishes to thrive. In particular, you should have about a gallon of water per inch of fishy, a metric also known as the "poo is not food OMG DO NOT EAT THAT FISHIES!" rule. In recent weeks,*** the Von Trapp Family Swimmers had reached critical mass on this count. There are about 12 or 13 of them, and at 1/2 to an inch apiece, they were a bit too much for my wee six gallon tank.

So I did what any intrepid fishy mommy would do. I gathered my ale and vittles, saddled up, and clicked my way over to Amazon. And behold! The fruits of my labors: The Marineland Eclipse Total Filtration System 12. The flagship tank of the Marineland Eclipse line, and the Swimmers' new home! Do I smell another comparison coming on? INDEED I DO.

The original tank, in all its teeny glory:

Serviceable, compact. And home to far too many fishies for its size.

And the new tank, its hulking presense totally redefining my living room:

I haven't gotten rid of the old tank, mind. It has been relocated to my bedroom, where it houses a fish I'm about 85% sure is pregnant and a companion fish to keep her from going insane. I call them Preggers and The Kid.

The rest of the fish are hanging out in the main tank, and hopefully once Preggers pops, I'll be able to put her and The Kid in the big tank and use the little one for the wee incestuous babies. Fingers crossed, people.

That's all for now. I sense finals season is heating up, though, so we should be back in business on the updating front. Wohoo for spring!

Stephanie

*Why, yes, finals ARE just a week away. How did you know?

** Slash, ridiculous fish owner.

*** Months. Whatever. I've been busy.