still alive...and thriving

One of the best things about not being currently employed is that I can put most of my effort into housework- that has been sadly neglected for the last two years. There are so many projects that have been started, but never finished. Here is my chance to jump on it.

One of my tasks this week was to clean out the fish tank. I promise you the gunk hasn't been building for two years (we only got it for Christmas, after all), but it was pretty bad! Bad enough that one of the fish actually died because the water was so dirty....yea, I know that's gross...and one was on his last legs....um, fins. (All of these fish are male, I just know it.)

So, scooped those guys...four in total, and left them in a pitcher on the kitchen counter. One, the one that was hanging on by his last fin, died almost immediately from the shock. Kept the two dead guys together- in a container headed for the "big flush". So, there are 3 fish in the pitcher. One was definitely moving slower. It was the white one who has a big orange spot on his head. I figured that one wouldn't be able to handle the shock of clean water, but I was going to wait and see- no need to flush him prematurely.

Then I had a mental/moral battle. I didn't want to clean this fish tank. I can't begin to tell you the amount of algae and nastiness that.....okay, I just can't. It was nasty- trust me. I wanted to chunk the whole thing in the trash bin; they would pick it up on Thursday and viola- OUT OF MY LIFE.

I was the "best mom ever" this Christmas when I bought the fish tank for Rand; but I am the only one that feels responsible for upkeep. Which can be a yucky job, especially when you don't keep up with it.

So, I have been waiting for these fish to die. Goldies aren't suppose to last too long. Well, I was staring at a pitcher with 2 and 1/2 lives ones (remember, SPOT wasn't looking so well)...and thinking, whether or not I wanted to engage in the upkeep of their habitat, they were apart of my family and I felt responsible for them. So, no continuous pitcher life for them, no flush-of-death. I buckled down and started scrubbing........and the phone rang.

I went upstairs and talked to a friend.
Not even thinking about the chaos happening below.
Completely oblivious to the fiendish plans of fish.

I was on the phone for a while-
Decided it was time to get back to my awful job- enough procrastination.
Go to check on the fish first, especially on SPOT since he was a little sluggish last I saw him.

And what do I find?
SPOT IS ON THE COUNTER IN A POOL OF WATER- COMPLETELY STILL!
I was furious with him!

Couldn't he have done it earlier so that I could have flushed him with the two others? How did Mr. Sluggish jump out of the pitcher? How long had he been on the counter? Eww, now I have to pick him up?!

So, I decided to wedge him between a knife (NOT the sharp end) and the fish net; and believe it or not, SPOT started thrashing around! Like I called out "CLEAR!" Well, instead of heading to the toilet, I dumped him back into the pitcher with his last two friends. And kept an eye on him all morning. The water seemed to revive him.

I figured that being reinstated into the fish tank, which was now very much cleaner, was going to be too much of a shock. That if he didn't die instantly, he was going to be dead the next morning......no such luck.

This is one stubborn fish with a wild streak and an intense will to live.

I could learn a thing or two from him.