Tank birthday, 47+ years

[TangerineSpeedo]

I live here and still have 5 (now) tanks...

 

[Paul B]

Unfortunately, the beach behind my house is not mine and the gigantic pool near my house is also not mine. I live in a condo that we bought 6 years ago because my wife couldn't navigate my house any more because it had 2 floors with steps. This place has no steps and I was able to put in a small handicapped elevatror.

This place is perfect for us now.

If you get old enough, big houses are not something you want and you also don't need as much money as you once did. Less is more now.

 

[Paul B]

As we, or me anyway, get older, there are so many things that are not that important, interesting or needed anymore. For most of our lives we wanted or needed more money. Now I don't need more money and have enough. (much of my time now is spent taking care of my wife)

If you plan your life correctly from when you're young, you will be able to care for yourself and your spouse for as long as needed. (And No, I didn't inherit anything, I worked for every nickel I have)

For instance, I have little need to travel. We have been everywhere we wanted to go and now it is just too hard to travel to distant places so that money is not needed. We still take motor trips and sometimes Florida, But we are probably not going to Australia, or the Amalfi Coast of Italy right now.

We have two cars, Jeeps, that get us everywhere we want to go. I have no need to get a BMW, Massarotti or Jaguar. I am not the type of person to buy something to impress anyone and besides that, those cars are not American so I wouldn't have one even if someone gave one to me. I wouldn't take one anyway because I don't believe in something for nothing, so I don't play the lottery.

I also don't have a reef tank to impress anyone. Right now I could open up a produce stand for all the algae growing. I don't care, my fish don't care and Taylor Swift don't care.
The algae will leave like it always does. If you keep a natural tank and sometimes use NSW, everything in that NSW that you collect, will grow in your reef so if that bothers you, use ASW.

If you need a perfect tank, you have the wrong hobby. This is supposed to be fun so if you are fretting over these things or you allow your fish to keep getting sick, you may need a different hobby, just like if you keep running out of money, you need a different job besides a different hobby. There is money all over the place, you just need to be a little smarter, neater, nicer and energetic than the next person. I certainly don't believe in Welfare if you are young enough and healthy enough to work, welfare is to help people who "can't" take care of themselves.

In my job as a Commercial/ Industrial construction electrician foreman, when the industry was slow, my union made us take time off to allow everyone a chance to work. Sometimes it was a month and sometimes a year. I loved those times and usually doubled my income through side jobs. I would do anything including paint houses, pulling weeds, drive people to the airport etc.
No jobs were below me.

Life is easy and as we get older, it is health that is important, it's the only important thing.
I am also too old to argue and, on these forums, so many people want to argue with me about stupid things like why my fish don't get sick. I am tired of those arguments, especially from people with sick fish. If you feel that quarantining or medication is the way to go, do that.

We are supposed to be having fun, not arguing about the correct way to have fun. If treating fish is fun, do that.

Much of my money is spent on things to help my wife. I just bought a motorized chair and a couple of years ago I bought a motorized handicapped scooter for her. I am sure as time goes buy I will buy more of these types of things and it doesn't matter how much these things cost as long as they help my wife, even a little as my wife is my life which is why I married her over 50 years ago.

I try to keep myself healthy mainly so I can continue to care for my wife who has MS.
I get myself up at about 5:00 every morning, rain or shine so I can walk two miles. I don't particularly like doing that but if it helps me stay healthy, it's what I will do.

We also eat only healthy food, no fried or especially deep fried foods (except rarely, fried calamari because I just need that occasionally)

 

[Paul B]

Saturday is Flag Day so if you are a Patriot like I am, remember to fly your American Flag. I fly mine every day so it is easy for me and I just today ordered a new one. They get old and faded like I do so I bring the old ones to the American Legion, where they respectively recycle or destroy them.

 

[Fudsey]

Saturday is Flag Day so if you are a Patriot like I am, remember to fly your American Flag. I fly mine every day so it is easy for me and I just today ordered a new one. They get old and faded like I do so I bring the old ones to the American Legion, where they respectively recycle or destroy them.

Paul, I have always flown an American Flag and this company sells a beautifully made Flag. Best one I have ever bought. Stitched Stars and each stripe is stitched to the next. And MADE IN THE USA ! !
https://www.usflagfactory.com/

 

[Paul B]

Fudsey, I ordered one from them yesterday.

 

[MikeyZo]

I have to say, I enjoy reading your day to day Paul. And it makes me miss the beach. Over here in Melville, it’s not far but with 2 small kids it seems like states away. I just turned 49 last week and running around after a 6 and 3 year old has me exhausted. Thank god I retired 3 years ago from the NYPD else I’d probably be six feet under by now.

Do you just use your phone for your beach pictures? They come out beautiful. And I’m glad your wife is doing better and hoping she gets the treatment she needs. Oh, and kudos on the motorized scooter for her, she looks great on it!

 

[BeanAnimal]

I purchase from them as well as Annin. Not sure which is more durable.

 

[Paul B]

Mikey, Thank you. Bean never says anything nice about me.

I use my I Phone 13 to take all my pictures. I do have a real camera, but I never use it.
Melville is not that far from me. I am in Baiting Hollow near Riverhead at the end of the expressway. I think I retired about 18 or 19 years ago. Best day of my life and I had to stop by a plastic surgeons office on my way home to make my face bigger to fit my smile.

I go to that beach every morning in the summer for my walk. Thats my thinking and inventing time. I am going there right now.

 

[MikeyZo]

I have pictures from that iron pier out by you from Feb 2015…

And one of the beach stairs out there.

 

[Paul B]

Wow, that is cool. Here is that beach on a day that I collected water.

 

[MikeyZo]

Thank goodness it’s almost summer!

 

[Paul B]

Good Morning. I didn't go walking this morning, My wife had a very hard time last night and I am just too tired. I woke up at 3:17 which seems to be my normal wake up time lately and it's hard to function with so little sleep. At that time I took some melatonin which usually allows me to sleep for 2 hours but for some reason it didn't work.

So I was laying in bed pondering the universe, thinking about amphipods and Supermodels, minding my own business and I got a charlie horse in my leg. If you never had one of those, they are probably the worst pain you could get other than maybe being eaten by a huge aiptasia that grew that size from living near Chernobyl Russia.

Sleep eludes me and if I don't take something to sleep, or if no body hits me in the head with a hammer, I am wasting my time closing my eyes.

I hear that is an old thing and I am old. I don't feel old so I often look at my birth certificate just to make sure. Sometimes after I shave I miss a couple of spots so my wife tells me I shave like an old person, then, I take out my birth certificate to show her that I am old so I can shave any way I like or not shave at all.

Yesterday I worked on our handicapped elevator all day so I had to run up 3 flights of steps about 50 times. I built a new circuit board for the thing and was tweeking it to work.

By doing that, and from my morning walk I walked 11,000 steps (according to my phone) and went up and down 176 steps to the beach.

Now I would like to get 11,000 minutes of sleep, but I know that ain't gonna happen.

I really wanted to walk this morning because at this time, it is a full moon and a low moon tide. Perfect for amphipod hunting and I haven't found one this year. These full moon low tides at this time only happen a couple of times in the summer at this time and I am going to miss this one. Oh well, no amphipods for my tank.

 

[Paul B]

The steps top our beach look just like that. 176 steps. I go up and down them almost every morning.





And a video on a windy day.

 

[Paul B]

On my beach walk this morning, I came across this rock configuration that was obviously erected by a creative Neanderthal 20,000 years ago. I am not sure how it lasted so long, and I'm also surprised that I have never seen it before, because I walk that section of the beach at least once or twice a week.

I think it's a representative of an Ich parasite because I'm sure Neanderthals had problems with ich and it was hard to see their fish through the sides of their rock tanks.

 

[shakemandril]

As we, or me anyway, get older, there are so many things that are not that important, interesting or needed anymore. For most of our lives we wanted or needed more money. Now I don't need more money and have enough. (much of my time now is spent taking care of my wife)

If you plan your life correctly from when you're young, you will be able to care for yourself and your spouse for as long as needed. (And No, I didn't inherit anything, I worked for every nickel I have)

For instance, I have little need to travel. We have been everywhere we wanted to go and now it is just too hard to travel to distant places so that money is not needed. We still take motor trips and sometimes Florida, But we are probably not going to Australia, or the Amalfi Coast of Italy right now.

We have two cars, Jeeps, that get us everywhere we want to go. I have no need to get a BMW, Massarotti or Jaguar. I am not the type of person to buy something to impress anyone and besides that, those cars are not American so I wouldn't have one even if someone gave one to me. I wouldn't take one anyway because I don't believe in something for nothing, so I don't play the lottery.

I also don't have a reef tank to impress anyone. Right now I could open up a produce stand for all the algae growing. I don't care, my fish don't care and Taylor Swift don't care.
The algae will leave like it always does. If you keep a natural tank and sometimes use NSW, everything in that NSW that you collect, will grow in your reef so if that bothers you, use ASW.

If you need a perfect tank, you have the wrong hobby. This is supposed to be fun so if you are fretting over these things or you allow your fish to keep getting sick, you may need a different hobby, just like if you keep running out of money, you need a different job besides a different hobby. There is money all over the place, you just need to be a little smarter, neater, nicer and energetic than the next person. I certainly don't believe in Welfare if you are young enough and healthy enough to work, welfare is to help people who "can't" take care of themselves.

In my job as a Commercial/ Industrial construction electrician foreman, when the industry was slow, my union made us take time off to allow everyone a chance to work. Sometimes it was a month and sometimes a year. I loved those times and usually doubled my income through side jobs. I would do anything including paint houses, pulling weeds, drive people to the airport etc.
No jobs were below me.

Life is easy and as we get older, it is health that is important, it's the only important thing.
I am also too old to argue and, on these forums, so many people want to argue with me about stupid things like why my fish don't get sick. I am tired of those arguments, especially from people with sick fish. If you feel that quarantining or medication is the way to go, do that.

We are supposed to be having fun, not arguing about the correct way to have fun. If treating fish is fun, do that.

Much of my money is spent on things to help my wife. I just bought a motorized chair and a couple of years ago I bought a motorized handicapped scooter for her. I am sure as time goes buy I will buy more of these types of things and it doesn't matter how much these things cost as long as they help my wife, even a little as my wife is my life which is why I married her over 50 years ago.

I try to keep myself healthy mainly so I can continue to care for my wife who has MS.
I get myself up at about 5:00 every morning, rain or shine so I can walk two miles. I don't particularly like doing that but if it helps me stay healthy, it's what I will do.

We also eat only healthy food, no fried or especially deep fried foods (except rarely, fried calamari because I just need that occasionally)

Absolutely love hearing stories like this from the "working" generation. My parents and grandparents did things this way. There is something satisfying about doing things your way and making that work fit your lifestyle. I applaud you sir, and thank you for sharing your experiences.

 

[Paul B]

Shakemandril, I also admire hard-working people and absolutely abhor people who live on other people's work.

I feel that if you are able to work, but are too lazy or don't want to, you should starve. The US is a big country, and we can build a lot of cemeteries.

 

[MikeyZo]

Yeah, just take the golf courses and make them into cemeteries

 

[Paul B]

I agree. I live surrounded by a golf course, but I never played golf.

 

[Paul B]

Happy Father's Day. YYyyaaaaaaaa

I got my Grand Son here today.