The new hobby

So Nancy said I should put up some pictures, so you all would know what I've been up to and where all that yarn money is going...

Aquarium gardening. Google "Nature Aquarium" if you're curious.

Here's an example:

Now you see why I like it, right? It's so absorbing. It engages me on many levels - intellectual, aesthetic, emotional... However, since I'm not independently wealthy, I'm having to be creative in order to finance this. Hence the yarn and fiber sales. I managed to pick up a tank on the cheap ($10 for 29 gallons), and a used pine cabinet stand for $45. I paid retail for a glass lid, then went on Ebay and found a high-output light fixture for $50 (retail about $175), a Fluval 204 cannister filter for $20 (retail $125), extra long tweezers and scissors for planting and pruning, about $150 worth for a total of $25, A carbon dioxide injection system with accessories for $35 (at least $75 worth), and I'm bidding on a high-end digital heater and thermometer. *phew*

I still need filter media (the stuff that goes into the canister and actually does the filtering), as well as substrate (gravel, soil, clay, some combination thereof), hardscape - rocks and driftwood, and *then* I can actually get some plants.

All in all, I think I'm doing really well at bargain hunting, and I'm enjoying the hell out of it. I've added live plants to the other tanks I already have, and am learning a lot and experimenting on a small scale, which I think will be useful when I finally get the new tank going. Nancy gave me a cute little five gallon all-in-one tank, which she'd retro-fitted with a 13 watt power compact bulb, making it perfect for plants. Think that's too small to do anything with? Check this out:

That's a one-gallon cube. ONE gallon. (No, it's not mine. I wish!) Pretty incredible, huh? Here's Nancy's little five gallon today (sorry for the crappy photo) :

I'm still developing this aquascape - it's not finished yet, but I think it's a good start, and I'm really enjyoing it. That betta (fish) is Fabio the Fabulous, btw. You can't tell with the light behind him, but his body and part of his fins are violet, while the rest is deep red.

I was going to take a picture of my six-gallon, but the batteries on the camera died. I'll post 'em later.

Anyway, that gives you a taste of what I've been so absorbed in. Now I'm off to read up in my new book: Ecology of the Planted Aquarium: A Practical Manual and Scientific Treatise for the Home Aquarist ***does happy geek dance***