First, we head off to my favourite place to buy good healthy fish. Monkey Fountain Nursery, in Linden, where 1st Avenue meets Bram Fischer Drive. (WAIT! Their actual address is 2 Bram Fischer Drive, Pine Park). Their pet shop is amazing. We're not buying fish yet, but I like supporting them so they'll stay in business and continue to supply me with healthy fish. We get a tank stand, a light, a lid, and then head off to my second favourite pet shop just down the road on 1st Avenue for the actual tank, and some plants. Their water plants are on steroids. Then we're off to their home to rearrange the lounge furniture and set up the tank. Granny is there. Granny worries the tank stand is rusty. She also worries we didn't get a discount. She is concerned that the gravel I bring is dirty (from an old tank, very important for happy bacterial balance), and gasps out loud - I swear I saw her flinch - when I dump a tupperware full of dirty water from my tank's filter into the new tank.
Don't worry granny, all will be well.
It's a fabulous shortcut to creating a happy bacterial balance so fish can thrive. The biggest mistake one can make with a fish tank is keeping it too clean. Fish need bacteria to thrive, they need a bit of muck, and plants need nitrogen to find their happy place.
The kids were thrilled. The little girl - 2-ish - drew me about 500 original artworks to take home with me. Including a picture of 7 eyes. Amazing. The little boy drew me some pictures, but I wasn't allowed to keep them. Weird kid. He pulled out the underwater camera to take some photos of the fish house I gave them. He also showed me a photo of the puddle of wee his sister had left on the carpet. Charming. Kids. Can't wait.
The end result is a small starter tank which has brightened up the lounge; and when the fish are in, will provide hours of entertainment for two little kids who are completely animal-obsessed.
Later that afternoon, when the water filter had done its job and everything had settled down, mom sent me this picture:
