Tank birthday, 47+ years

[Paul B]

For some reason now and again I stop getting alerts when somebody posts on your thread here Paul

I didn't even know there was such a thing that alerted you.

I agree about soap. As a mechanic we washed our hands in gasoline, or as you Brits call it, Petrol. Then of course you had to use real soap to get the gas smell off which you never did.

But us tough "Men" had tough hands. Not Girly Sissy, Mary, hands that people get from tapping on silly computer keys or their Very heavy I Phone 63 or lap top.

Most (but not all) people today, especially men are so soft. Very few people do anything that I normally would call "work". I realize people get paid to sit at a desk and maybe push a paper around or E Mail a client, but I am glad I always had physical jobs that kept me in shape. (and dirty) ;Woot

So far, and I am 72 years old I have "almost" never let anyone work on my house, cars or boat. I did break my rule last week and let a Jiboni, I mean, mechanic, install a starter in my boat, which didn't work because he figured all he had to do was install the thing and magically it would tighten up it's own wires like a smart TV.

Unfortunately I just can't get this old body under those engines.

I know I put this on here a few years ago but once about 15 years ago I was working on some building and was the foreman and working around the clock. Our bluestone porch and stairs collapsed and my wife had to have it fixed NOW.

She made me hire these Jibones to re build the thing and install a new sidewalk around the house and we were on a corner.

The "craftsman" came with three tools. A stick with a string on it for a ruler. A shovel with a hole in it and a sledge hammer with the handle duct taped on.

They demolished the porch and I build a large plywood box. I wanted him to put the box in the porch up side down and pour concrete around, not in it. Here in NY it freezes and if you have any dirt, it gets wet and freezes and the stones break out and the thing collapses. I old him if he builds it like I said, it will last longer than the pyrimids.

I came home to find my box in the porch filled with dirt.
I made him shovel out the dirt. He said, you need some dirt. I said you need to listen to me or I am going to fill you with dirt.

The steps on my porch were brick. I came home and he made the steps out of cinder blocks with the holes facing up.

I went nuts. He said that is how we do it in Tijuana. I said, look around, does this look like Tijuana.

The next day I came home and he built the steps out of bricks. The first step was about 4", the next one was like 14" and the last one was maybe 9".

AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHhhhhaaaaaaaaaa

I made him break that up and told him this is not the Aztec pyramids, this is my house and my legs are the same length just as I want my steps to be.

OK, He is done. I came home from work and look at it and it isn't to bad. I go to open my front door and the porch is higher than my door so I can't get in.

He says, "I will grind down the top of the concrete porch".

I said, you have a shovel with a hole in it, a stick with a piece of string on it and a sledge hammer that is more duct tape than hammer and you are going to grind down the cement?

I said take your three "tools" and get out of here.

He said, "I don't think you want to pay me".

I said AY you, I'm going to KILL you.

I threw them out and had to hire a kid to help me destroy the entire porch and steps and I re did it all myself like I should have done in the first place.

You can hardly see the porch, but it is at the front door.

 

[atoll]

When I had 5 very young children growing up 3 in nappies and me working 5 days plus a week I designed my own kitchen layout and against my better judgement hired a kitchen fitter to fit it. Not such a good idea. He fitted the units OK but the edges of the worktop were poor. I told my wife to tell him I was not happy with the edging. I came home the following days, wife says she told but he said it's the best he dan do so that evening I re did them. When he returned the following day he noticed the edgings had been redone and asked my wife who did them. Needless to say I told him to leave certain jobs that needed doing to a better standard than he was capable of. I re did other peoples work on more than one occasion. Seems if you want a job doing right you have to do it yourself

 

[Jekyl]

I do not miss the days as a mechanic. Winter was the worst. I have an allergy to most latex style gloves so always bare handed it. By the end of winter my knuckles would be so chapped from the salt and soap they would bleed. I kept chap stick around just for my hands.

 

[schuby]

For some reason now and again I stop getting alerts when somebody posts on your thread here PauI

I think that if you don't click on an alert, then it won't send you more for the same thread. Seems ridiculous to me. If I want to stop getting alerts, then I'll click the "Unwatch" button.

 

[Jekyl]

I think that if you don't click on an alert, then it won't send you more for the same thread. Seems ridiculous to me. If I want to stop getting alerts, then I'll click the "Unwatch" button.

If you leave an alert unread it no longer pops up either.

 

[Paul B]

I don't know about any of that. I normally go on here and look at my threads. If I get bored, which I do after 30 seconds I will read new threads for maybe a page. Then I go to one of my other hobbies.

Going to my boat now.

 

[cancun]

I had the same alert issue! I haven't been on here in a while. Besides your tank Paul....how's your wife doing?

 

[Paul B]

Cancun, thank you for asking. As you know MS is a disease that doesn't get better but is a slow progression of disability. She still walks and gets around but can't walk with just a cane any more. She has a 3 wheel "walker" thing that she can use and I got her an electric scooter for longer trips.

She can't get off our boat because she can't get back up on the ladder and the feeling in her hands is leaving her as she drops everything.

I cook, clean, and do almost everything that requires walking or lifting anything.
All our dishes and cups have chips from falling.

She also falls quite often. So in short, she isn't doing as well as I had hoped she would be.
But her spirits are usually good or semi good.

I think it hurts me almost as much as her. She was an athlete who taught high impact aerobics.
We played tennis, walked and SCUBA dove all over the place.

I don't know what to say.

 

[Paul B]

Yesterday a guy came here from the neighborhood and said to me, His neighbor has a salt tank and one fish, a "Yellow Tail Tang" got to big and wants to give it to me. He said it was about 5".

I assume it is a yellow tang. I am not real fond of tangs and a yellow tang is my least favorite. If it is really 5" I don't want it as that is a little to big a fish for me especially a fish I don't really like, so I didn't take it.
If I see him again I want to see if she wants to get rid of any other, smaller, more interesting fish.

 

[Jekyl]

Sounds like regardless of the situation both of you are very lucky to have each other. Good times or bad we should all be so fortunate as you and yours. Thoughts and prayers.

 

[Brew12]

I think that if you don't click on an alert, then it won't send you more for the same thread. Seems ridiculous to me. If I want to stop getting alerts, then I'll click the "Unwatch" button.

Every so often I use the Mark Forums Read command under the forums menu. When the threads are "read" it resets all your alerts.

 

[ClownSchool]

In a couple of weeks my reef will will have reached 40 years old.
Unfortunately I don't remember when I was 40 but I remember when I set it up. I was a skinny 22 year old just back from Viet Nam.
It is still running very well, still using the same reverse UG filter, same dolomite substrait but none of the fish are original. The oldest one, a fireclown is just over 16, all of the older fish died in an accident that was due to my carelessness.
The tank is mostly LPS, gorgonians, giant mushrooms and a few leathers.
There are only three SPS corals, two of which have been with me for a few years and are growing nicely.
I am not sure is any of the original NSW from the Long Island Sound is still in there or any of the original amphipods but maybe much later generations.
I still can't take a decent picture and the tank is not as blue as these pictures but it is what it is.

Rock on! This is so inspiring. Thank you

 

[schuby]

Yesterday a guy came here from the neighborhood and said to me, His neighbor has a salt tank and one fish, a "Yellow Tail Tang" got to big and wants to give it to me. He said it was about 5".

I assume it is a yellow tang. I am not real fond of tangs and a yellow tang is my least favorite. If it is really 5" I don't want it as that is a little to big a fish for me especially a fish I don't really like, so I didn't take it.
If I see him again I want to see if she wants to get rid of any other, smaller, more interesting fish.

Maybe it is a purple tang. They have yellow tails.

 

[Paul B]

I don't know what it is but at 5" I don't want it.

 

[cancun]

Cancun, thank you for asking. As you know MS is a disease that doesn't get better but is a slow progression of disability. She still walks and gets around but can't walk with just a cane any more. She has a 3 wheel "walker" thing that she can use and I got her an electric scooter for longer trips.

She can't get off our boat because she can't get back up on the ladder and the feeling in her hands is leaving her as she drops everything.

I cook, clean, and do almost everything that requires walking or lifting anything.
All our dishes and cups have chips from falling.

She also falls quite often. So in short, she isn't doing as well as I had hoped she would be.
But her spirits are usually good or semi good.

I think it hurts me almost as much as her. She was an athlete who taught high impact aerobics.
We played tennis, walked and SCUBA dove all over the place.

I don't know what to say.

I will be praying for her Paul. I know that it's tough for sure! My momma just passed last week of liver failure, she was 71...was a shock, she never drank or smoked. She was very healthy. Lives in the mountains in Colorado, hiked and everything.

So happy to have my fish tank to sit and stare at. I should say my fish tank I sort of model after yours. I just installed a huge UV sterilizer and loving that so far. Prayers all around!

 

[atoll]

Cancun, thank you for asking. As you know MS is a disease that doesn't get better but is a slow progression of disability. She still walks and gets around but can't walk with just a cane any more. She has a 3 wheel "walker" thing that she can use and I got her an electric scooter for longer trips.

She can't get off our boat because she can't get back up on the ladder and the feeling in her hands is leaving her as she drops everything.

I cook, clean, and do almost everything that requires walking or lifting anything.
All our dishes and cups have chips from falling.

She also falls quite often. So in short, she isn't doing as well as I had hoped she would be.
But her spirits are usually good or semi good.

I think it hurts me almost as much as her. She was an athlete who taught high impact aerobics.
We played tennis, walked and SCUBA dove all over the place.

I don't know what to say.

I feel for you both Paul, some swear by a certain illegal substance (here in the UK) I am sure are aware of it. Must be hard for you both.

 

[atoll]

I have a YT and like you Paul I didn't want it although a good friend pestered me to have it FOC. He tried to introduce it with an established one but the established one rejected it. I eventually I gave in and took it just weeks before they were banned. In the UK LFSs are charging £350 about $400 I guess for them when people bring them in and trade. There was one in my LFS yesterday about 2.5" for that price, mine is twice the size and in better condition and colour. Like you I am not a big tang fan. But I do haveva small mimic tang. If I do trade it I will split whatever I get for it with my friend. I also have a genuine pair of yellow wrasse again about 5" that I might also move on as they are getting to big and would free up space for some smaller fish.

 

[Paul B]

Thanks Guys. Cancun, sorry about your Mom. She was only a year younger than I am.

 

[Paul B]

Atoll, nice looking tang. I just would rather have a bunch of rarer, smaller fish that a large fish which is almost the most common fish in the hobby. I know many people love them, but they used to be in almost every tank. Not very interesting.

I lost my LFS connection where I could order anything I wanted and now have to go like everyone else and hope they have something interesting. But they rarely do.

I would much rather something like these. Sunburst anthius.













These fish are not extremely rare, but you don't see them in everybody's tank like yellow tangs.

 

[atoll]

Atoll, nice looking tang. I just would rather have a bunch of rarer, smaller fish that a large fish which is almost the most common fish in the hobby. I know many people love them, but they used to be in almost every tank. Not very interesting.

I lost my LFS connection where I could order anything I wanted and now have to go like everyone else and hope they have something interesting. But they rarely do.

I would much rather something like these. Sunburst anthius.













These fish are not extremely rare, but you don't see them in everybody's tank like yellow tangs.

Agreed Paul, small fish are much more interesting as we agree and as you say