Cerberus died. I haven't replaced him yet, since I've put a ban on my fish-spending through December. I tried banning my spending in November, but wasn't quite strong-willed enough. This time, I'm going with a different strategy. Every time I think of something that would make my fish better or my tanks more beautiful, I write it down on a shopping list. This way, I'll be able to remember it all, so it can still happen eventually, even if not right now, and I will also be able to prioritize goals when January comes.
In the meantime, I practice sitting still, counting and identifying and enjoying my fish, while an audiobook plays in the background. This way, I know what's going on with them, I'm more likely to pick up on something going wrong, and I'm less anxious. Observation is a great way to calm anxiety.
Confession time: I picked up on that tactic from Star Trek. You know the one where Data goes nuts because he realizes Starfleet is planning to relocate that one population on the world of eternal youth?
"Help me find the strength to keep you in this moment."
Yup. There's some good stuff in sci-fi!
Anyway, I have three fish who ought to have names, but don't just yet. Two female bettas, an adult and a juvenile, and a rainbow shark. The rainbow I didn't name because I was worried he might die on me. There were two primary possible causes for Durango and Stormcloud's unfortunate deaths. One was the temperature and the other was the Opaline gourami, who has been getting more aggressive as he grows. My money's on the Opaline, so the new shark went in the danio tank instead. Danios are less... specific... in their nipping and chasing games.
Given that the shark still lives, I think my guess was right.
Anyway, in keeping with the weather theme, I believe I'll name this one Cirrus. Readers of Wings of Fire might appreciate the irony of naming a fish after a surly, secret-keeping ice dragon bad boy, while those of you who haven't read Wings of Fire might appreciate me explaining the joke.
Going along with that theme, the younger betta is Glory, for her multicolored beauty. The older, blue betta is Tsunami. I already had a Tsunami once, but it's been a long while, so I think the name is fair game again.
In another one of my forbidden purchases, I picked up a bulb of Madagascar Lace. It truly is a glorious plant. I'm hoping it thrives well enough to divide and give me more. For a plant, it is expensive. Probably the most valuable item in my collection, aside from the ornaments.
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