I've always been a fan of the Old Fezziewig...

Teh Gooberz are looking HOTTT.

Hey buddy, it's Sammy. As long as it doesn't say Double IPA on the side it's good.



Other than Winter Lager, yur da piggy.


Yeah, but you like Double IPA too.

Sounds like I know what I'm having next!



Inorite? I think there are a few new polyps forming already! The Guardian has moved away for now, but I think he'll come back soon. I can't wait until it's big enough for fragging! It will be all grown up then.




Good point. I can't say that I've had Double IPA, but I've heard stories. I've actually had the Winter Lager before, I think. If I'm thinking of the right thing, it had a lot of spice and I enjoyed it!




Hm..... maybe I should reconsider the Old Fezziewig then....





Ok, here's the tally thus far. The Holiday Porter is a dark (black) beer, which I normally don't like. However, it was actually pretty good! I think it's more of a dinner beer, however, rather than a drinking beer.

On to the next one!

Nah, I just like to tease david about that IPA. Nasty, wicked brew. Like drinking your flowerbed.

That was the ONLY bottle of SA that, try as I may I did not see the bottom of. Well actually I did.
Poured it down the drain. Didn't want to risk burning a hole in my lawn. Sink drain seemed faster afterward though.

That's gotta be awful. I'm not a fan of flowers anyways, so it's even worse. I'm a fan of functional plants, like grapes. I'm thinking about acquiring the materials necessary to make my own wine. Now that would be fun!



The Winter Lager? It's one of the first Sammies I had! This one isn't as good as I remembered though, but perhaps that is because I've now had several before it! The Fezziwig was pretty good, although the best way of describing the flavor would be to compare it to that taste you get after biting your lip and drawing blood. I happen to like that flavor though, so it was a good beer!

Soooooooo.....

In reef related news, I've got a tiny bit of algae showing up, so it's a good thing that I ordered a CUC through John! It should be here either Wednesday or Thursday, and I'm looking forward to it! I'm really curious to find out what the 1 penny macro will be!

I've discovered that I'm not a big fan of Sammy Coastal Wheat. It's got waaaay too much lemon for my tank. Then again, what I ate with it probably didn't help.

My DT is finally micro-bubble free!

So do ya'll think that I should go with a dawn-dusk cycle, or should I still with an all or nothing approach to lighting?

YAY for no more micros!

secondly... WTH are you talkin about?!?!?

I've got a TEK fixture, so I have two power switches and two power cords going into my T5HO fixture. I can set it up so that a timer activates the actinic bulbs first on one switch, and then the whites, and when it's time to power down, it would turn off the whites first, leaving the actinic for last. It has a similar effect to the lower light environment at dawn and dusk by having only actinics.

Or, I could just have all 4 bulbs turn on and off at the same times.

OHHHH. go with the dawn dusk effect one. thats what i do with my tank. its awesome. i think its better for the livestock too.

oh yeah and...

HI TYLER!
BTW thats a totally awesome name.

I know of at least one judge who disagrees. I was in his court one day, and he asked my name. He then suggested I use my middle name instead.

I could only respond "I'll give that some thought."

wtf. i bet that judges name was bob.
anyways. i forgot your a lawyer!!! have i told you i wanna be one too?
(well either that or a marine biologist)
so how hard was it to become one?

Well, I'm not quite a lawyer yet. I should have my degree in January, but I won't have a license to practice law until at least May. Right now, I just have a limited license, where I can practice under the supervisor of certain attorneys. It's a good field to go into though! I was actually debating between law, economics, or astrophysics before I came to law school. Talk about a wide field of options!

If you've got a good undergrad GPA, it's not too bad. I had a 3.9, and I had an offer from one school for a full-ride to law school and another offered me a half-ride scholarship. The real trick, after getting in, is just getting used to the kind of work. A lot of people drop out after the first semester or the first year. After all of that, there is a bar exam, which in Ohio is essentially a three day long exam.

you've officially scared me.
but ill try it anywayz.

That's the spirit.

or is it?
LULZ.

See what I mean? It's all about the definition of is.


In other news.....



My ReefCleaners package arrived today! They have 5 more minutes of temperature acclimation and then in they go! You'll have to help me ID the 1 penny macro that came along with it!

Reefcleaners is teh bestest. John could probably id that for ya later tonite.
Pix of the new defenderz pleash.

Pics are coming! I didn't get defenderz.







I got a whole army of defenderz!



PITCHERS!!!

Snail Defenderz Army:


Mystery Macro:


FTS:

nice smiley.
DAYUM THATHS A BUNCHA DEFENDERZ!
i betcha they could fight off a
as for the macro, it might be a flame macro?
and lastly.
YOUR TANK IS LOOKING FCUKIN AWESOME.

ps; if your wondering why im on at 11:06 PST im sick. i got meds yesterday.

I love pulling out my fun smileys!

John certainly sent me an entire army! I ordered a division, but John sent the reinforcements as well. I don't think anything can beat these super soldiers!

I took a look on John's site, and I think you're right about the flame algae. It's awesome!!!

And lastly, thanks!

PS: I was starting to wonder! At least you've got drugs.

that's just plain disrespectful. totally inappropriate for a judge to make that kind of remark. that's worth reporting to the Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission (or whatever your state's equivalent is). On the other hand, I guess the feasibility of reporting directly depends on how often you'll be in front of that particular judge.

I think it's just that judge's way of joking around. It was said off the record and while at sidebar. One thing I've learned is that Muni Court judges have an interesting sense of humor, and they don't realize that it doesn't always come across. I think he was attempting a joke at the fact that my first and last names have a bit of a rhyme if said too quickly or only caught off-hand.

oh. well, that's much better than saying it down his nose to you while he's sitting on the bench while court is in session, which is the way I was picturing it.

SMILEYS ARE AWESOME.
i think that john needs to send you some close air support.
YAY FOR FLAME ALGAE!
you welcome.

YEH I GOT DRUGS...BUT IT DONT EVEN GOT CODEINE IN IT!!!

Well, I've got some close air support planned. The A10 Warthogs of the tank will be the Chalk Bass (I hope to get these in a couple of weeks) and the Helo support will be the Starry Blenny (if I can get it in a couple of months, once the tank is more established with microalgae).



Wow.... what a bummer! What was the doc thinking?

Good thinking!


IDK man...IDK...HAHAH

hey MJ, you have botryocladia there, went into the one penny tank though because of some rogue herbivores that ate the bubbles on it. They come back, you might seem some starting to form already. Glue it down, tie it down, wedge it in the rocks...it doesn't matter with that species, it is real easy to keep. If I were you though I would try wedging it in the rock crevice almost at the top of the "mountain" on the left and have it face towards you. I certainly have no eye for aquascaping, but I have always liked that 3d effect, so it is with a shot to see if you like it. Growing a coral to do the same thing takes a lot of time, so it is something in the mean time.

Looks great TYLER!

Haha I try!



A few bubbles have already started to form! I think I just might do as you suggested, shoving it into the crevasse on the left side. You have a great point that it would be an excellent 3D filler for that area!


Thanks! Oh, and I love that image! I can't wait until I can begin Phase 3 of this Operation. In case anyone is confused, Phase 1 was the construction, and Phase 2 was the cycle and intro of CUC.



Sorry, I just realized that I missed this post. I've been working with a non-profit attorney long enough to learn that this sort of action is the least of concerns when it comes to my area of practice. We have a lot of judges not completely understand our argument or cause of action because of the nature of our work. To me, I don't care if a judge likes me or displays respect for me; all I care about is that the argument prevails and that rights are protected.

Oh, and in other law related news.......


I won my trial tonight! That puts my trial record at 1 win, 0 losses and 1 pending decision.

wash yur feets please. Kthanks

Nah, that was the Double IPA. I like the WL actually. Suppose I'll have to pick up one of these packs so I can play along.



CUC looks cool. sweet penny macro too!

Congrats! And the tank is looking good.



Not Lal Seal of Approval good yet, but good.

Thanks! I'm definitely enjoying the progress on this aquarium.





I'll have to continue working until I can earn that Seal! I think I need fishies and mooore coralz!



You mean you don't want hillbilly wine? The good stuff is fermented with foot fungus!

My grapes should produce enough of a crop next year for a batch of wine, so I'm really looking forward to it!



Yes you do! I still have to drink the Cherry yet, but I have one of each left for another round of fun! Hurry hurry hurry!



The CUC was fun to watch it take off. There are still a few that I think are still lying dormant, but John certainly sent enough to cover any that don't make it!

Uh, no.

Not touching this, although my tongue is bleeding. Oh, the possibilities.

That he does for certain. I'm pretty sure whatever you order, he adds a zero.
Oh yeah- don't give up on those lazy ones just yet.

Oh now, you know this is an anything-goes Barrel! No biting of the tongue allowed!



True story! As I opened the package, I couldn't believe it. I mean, I had heard rumors that John couldn't count but I didn't expect what I got!

Same with the one penny macro. I was expecting a tiny little sample, but instead I got a big friggin macro! I love it!

tooooey! still spittin' blood.

John is awesome. A great asset to NR and our hobby IMO.

lol....he even asked me if he could use a quote of mine on his sight under customer comments.

Wonder if it's still there?

Gotta love the taste of blood! Since I've started dealing with cases and clients under my intern's license, I've gotten used to that taste.

Indeed he is! I can't imagine ordering a complete CUC from anyone else. Not to mention that he's probably the best deal anywhere on the net!

Perhaps I should leave some comments as well. John's a great guy, and blows away the customer service of any organization with which I've dealt!

It's a shame he doesn't deal in coral or fish!

So, here's an idea I had today, and I'd like input from ya'll!

My fish stocking plan was to have 2 chalk bass (added at the same time) and a starry blenny (added down the road, once the tank is more established). My new idea is to add one fish in before that: a Green Chromis. I like the look of the fish, and it's a good way to help the tank slowly increase the bioload rather than have it do so with a pair of new fish.

So, would a green chromis, a pair of chalk bass, and a starry blenny be a bit much for bioload or present a conflict with a LPS/SPS reef?

Ok, so I have an additional question, on top of the one about the chromis. The question is: If you were going to buy only one new test kit, in addition to alkalinity, which would it be: ( a ) Calcium, ( b ) pH, or ( c ) Nitrates?

Hey Monkey Boy Tyler!

Hmmm, which test kit. Are you dosing the tank with an A/B solution? If you are, then you need a calcium test. That said, I also think a nitrate test is a necessity.

I'm not sure about bioload, I'm not familiar enough with the fish you are interested in to know if they're heavy poopers or not.

Well, I've got API kits for just about everything right now, but I've learned that they are starting to go bad. I'm slowly replacing them with Salifert kits, because I couldn't afford to buy all new at one time. I bought an Alk kit already, and I'm debating about the second. I think you are right though, that Ca is probably the more important, considering that I do use two-part dosing. With the nitrates, I know that my kit is about 10 to 20 high, so at least I have a benchmark.



I've never kept any of these fish, so I'm clueless! However, my skimmer is "recommended for tanks up to 100 gallons" and I'm only running 35 or so gallons between the DT, sump and plumbing.

Chalk bass are beautiful, and blennies are always fun (though I think they're often iffy to get settled). I'm not a chromis lover, but lots of other people are. If I were looking for a green fish, I'd look at a green clown goby.

Yeah, it was a pretty easy decision about the chalk bass, and I really like the appearance of the starry blenny. I'm really just looking for an inexpensive first fish for the system (instead of adding a pair of chalk bass so soon) and something that has a nice and long life. I decided to stay away from the green clown goby because I've heard horror stories about the clown gobies nipping at SPS. Have you had any problems with that?

I haven't had any problems with clown gobies at all...
















because I've never had one. I like how they look, though. What about one of the smaller wrasses? Many of them can hold their own, and they're always interesting to watch.

They do look cool, but I just don't want to run the risk of a coral nipper! The only two wrasses I've seen at my LFS is a sixline and an eightline. I know the eightline gets a bit bigger than I'd like, and I'm not sure how well a sixline would do in a 29g AGA. I'm not sure if it's enough swimming space for such an active swimmer. It's also in the $25+ range, compared to a $9 chromis.

If a sixline would work well with the chalk bass and starry blenny without problems, I'd be in favor of it though. It would be one amazingly colorful fish to go along with the other colorful fish I'm planning!

The only bummer with the sixline is that it might wipe out the pod population this early.

Wrasses are evil. dont get one.
i think one green chromis would be good with your chalk basslets
my chalk basslet takes a good beating from my clown and wrasse so they're pretty hardy but kinda shy.
since your getting them in a group they'll probably acclimate better.


(im home early again cuz i got a major headache and a fever...AGAIN
FML. )

Sounds good to me!

That sucks about being sick again. The doc should have given you the good stuff last time!

Wrasses are for lovers.

I love my six line, even though I didn't think I would. He's a very entertaining fish to watch. I think they're reputed to be fine in smaller tanks, but then they're more likely to become aggressive. I was actually thinking of one of the small flashers or fairies for you, MJ.

Unfortunately, my LFS doesn't have much in the way of wrasses, let alone smaller ones.

I did end up getting something today though! Pictures to come after the drip acclimation is done.