Goodbye T-Rex...

Disclaimer: I could have included this into the previous blog, but I really think that this deserves a blog of its own.

Saturday afternoon was the last day of the Knapp Aquarium as we know it. For four years, Ryan and I have lovingly and more recently grudgingly taken care of a 30 gallon freshwater tropical fish tank. We started out with one little sprig of java fern (a low light, natural plant) and ended up with a java fern that is covering half of the tank. We've had danios, tetras, gobies, barbs, platys, an upside down catfish, and a lovely, sweet, perfect algae eater named T-Rex.

Back when we were first married and in our apartment, we thought it would be fun to have a fish tank, and it was! We didn't even mind scrubbing the obscene amounts of algae that coated the sides of the tank relentlessly. But, then we got Molly, and let's just say a cat is a lot more fun than fish. We didn't neglect the fish, but they just became an afterthought. Then, we bought a house, and by the time we were ready to move we were so over being fish owners.

Not wanting to be unnecessarily cruel, we decided to try and move the fish, water, & tank to the new house. It was only across town after all. Secretly, I knew that the chances of the fish surviving the move or surviving for very long after the move were slim to none. I did an inner evil laugh (Muwahaha!) thinking that it wouldn't be long until we were fish free! We decided that we wouldn't buy any more fish, but instead just let the tank run its course. Well, apparently Ryan and I have blue thumbs because flash forward two and a half years and here we are with a THRIVING fish community.

There was only one fish that I really loved, T-Rex. He had grown from a mere 1 inch back in our apartment to a good 3 1/2 inches. He was awesome. Always moving around working hard to keep our tank clean. He was the perfect fish. We didn't even bother naming the other fish because we just didn't care about them....until one tetra got an air bubble in his stomach & swam vertically (we called him Verti). T-Rex was definitely the Danny Zuko of our tank - very cool! Well, T had rocking health and wasn't going anywhere. And saying this out loud (or in writing) seems very harsh. But, Ryan and I were just spent. Now, I know that in life, you can't just give back your children or even your cats and dogs just because you are sick of them. But it was a bunch of fish. So we did the right thing and called our local fish store (which is really amazing)! They said that they would take back the fish. YAY! So we fished them out, said our goodbyes to T, and headed to the store. I will admit that I was a little sad, maybe even a little guilty, but I was so freaking happy to be getting rid of the eye sore of a fish tank in our living room! Ryan took in the fish, and the guy working there was even like, "Cool fish! We need fish to put in with our live plants. We won't sell them, but leave them in the tank to help the plants grow." So, Ryan and I breathed a sigh of relief knowing that T would be living out the rest of his life in a posh fish retirement - surrounded by tons of live plants and being taken care of by people that love fish. That makes me happy, and I hope it makes T happy too!

So, goodbye T, you were one heck of a fish! MWAH!