RIP

I meant to write 'God of the Underworld', but there was not enough room!

I'm glad to report that Hades has finally left the freezer and has been buried successfully (that enough snow has melted...). And I'm glad I didn't put it off, for it's snowing hard again today!

What a Trickster!

Twice now Socrates has tricked me into thinking he was dead. The first time, I came home only to see a shell floating around in the water. Being my first snail, I didn't know what a dead yellow apple snail looked like, so I began researching what a dead one looks like. I picked him up out of the water and tried moving him back on to the glass, but he never responded. I learned that a dead snail stinks terribly, as I looked up at my tank, I saw him blissfully cruising up the glass as if nothing had ever happened. As you can imagine, I was overjoyed to see this and glad I didn't bury him alive, but also upset that he would play such a cruel joke. The next instance, I noticed that he had not moved at all since that morning. I kept an eye on him, and he still failed to move around. I had to go to a family event, and hoped to see him active when I returned. And what do ya know... when I got back a few hours later,  he was cruising along as usual! I don't know what it is with snails, they just love playing possum!

Dreadful news.... Again

It seems all I can give you these days is bad news :(. Yet another fish has passed--- our dear Hades. I hope he goes to heaven... Contrary to what his name suggests. He was a great fish and a great buddy to Athena. And now the worst news: the weather is so excessively snowy that the fish cemetery is buried under snow. So I have wrapped him up in tissues and am storing him in the freezer until spring. ( I know, I know, this is very gruesome indeed.) I just hope nobody opens that bag mistakenly while going through the freezer. I've decided to hold off on getting any fish until after New Years to give my tank time to stabilize. Rest in peace, Hades.

Hades

His "Coffin" (Sorry, I know it's upside-down)

The buried graveyard

Moving Day!

Yesterday was certainly a big day! I had to let the water cycle for 24 hours, which, I must say, it was very hard to be patient. I followed the steps from this website: http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/qa/f/faq0018.htm, and it was very helpful. Everything went as planned, I got to use some of the decorations that my uncle gave me, which included some very tall plants. I also got a very magical gravel vacuum that hooks right up to the sink. (Is it only magical to me? I mean, it seems like everybody has had one before except me...) I decided to bag the fish so I could acclimate them to the water temp. & pH. They were really unhappy about it until I let them go free in the new tank. They are gleefully frolicking around the new spacious tank. The hard part was moving Zeus. He definitely fought back. I tried, but he would jump, splashing water all over the place. Defeated, I asked my dad for help. He marched in, thinking it would be easy. Little did he know the size of Zeus. Finally, I asked my mom for help. She did it in the blink of an eye! Way to go mom! Once he was in the 20 gallon, he realized why he should of cooperated in the first place. I gave him and the other bottom feeders two algae wafers and a quarter of a cucumber to celebrate. Every time I pass by the new big tank, I stop and stare at it in awe. It's so big! You can hardly see the grandness of it in a picture. My old 10 gallon sits dark, dirty, sad, and dead in my room. :( Well, with all the new space, I figure you'll be hearing about new fish very soon.

Mission accomplished!

The two tanks

Socrates feasting on a cucumber

The whole crew acclimating

Preparing to move Zeus

To see a video of Tiberious in the bubble curtain follow this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5VIgttRnhY&feature=plcp (Sorry about the bad video quality)

BIG NEWS! Tank Upgrade! New Snail!

Big news!! My birthday is tomorrow, and as a gift, my parents bought me a new 20 gallon tank! It came with a baby pleco and a yellow apple snail. I decided to donate the pleco to Petco, but willingly kept the snail. His name is Socrates, and he is very fun and interesting! As for the tank, my new 20 gal will replace my 10 gal, and I will be giving my 10 gal to my cousin. I also got a fancy pH tester!

This is the baby Pleco that I donated to Petco

New tank!

Socrates

Socrates

Fancy pH testing kit

Both tanks next to eachother

Clean tank!

I always feel so great when I see a bright, healthy, clean tank! I keep forgetting what pleasure a clean tank gives me because I always put cleaning it off. I finally got around to it today. Report: All the fish are doing well, as usual, but the pores on my air stone are getting clogged, therefore only half of it blows bubbles :(