Hm, I like a lot of them? I'll be boring and say black.
Favorite fish you own and favorite fish you don't own?
I just moved and decided to do a hard reset, so right now I own zero fish. I do have 6 tank builds going, though. 5 of them I'll use to keep and hopefully breed Parosphromenus (aka licorice
gourami) species TBD. I'll be ready to add those in a few weeks.
I most recently owned Apistogramma sp. Alto Tapiche, which is the fish in my current avatar.
Cichlids of all kinds were my first love, and I really enjoyed keeping apistos for about 3 years.
Scariest memory(if you are willing to share)?
Being in grad school, knowing I didn't want to continue, and not knowing what I was going to do to support my family. Everything worked out, but in the moment it felt like I didn't have many great options.
Happiest memory(if you are willing to share)?
Starting new things (writing, photography, baseball, fishkeeping) can feel a little like falling in love, where I just can't stop thinking about it sometimes, even when sleeping. Those times usually don't remain that intense, but they are very happy and exciting times.
Favourite hobby apart from fish keeping?
I tend to have a lot of hobbies and go pretty deep into them. Right now I really love coaching my son's baseball team.
I think 20 long is the most versatile. I've never had a 33 long or a 40 breeder, though. It really depends on what I'm keeping. Right now, everything needs a small tank.
Two cats. I also have inverts, but they are mostly food for the fish.
Why did you start keeping fish?
I heard somewhere that you live longer if you have pets. In retrospect, I think that advice is nonsense. But I did follow it, and lived in an apartment at the time and fish seemed most practical. I'm also a bit of a technical geek, so the chemistry and gear of it appealed to me. Also, I could tell I would get along with the enthusiast community.
What was your first fish? Do you regret it?
Aside from the
goldfish I brought home from the carnival in grade school (and promptly killed) my first was a 20-long community tank. I had a school of
black phantom tetras, a trio of
Corydoras paleatus, and a couple
otos. I loved that tank.
How long have you been keeping fish?
I took a long hiatus between careers, so I would say about 6 years total.
What is your favorite and least favorite fish and why?
I guess it's just a matter of taste! I tend to like wild-type fish that show distinctive territorial, breeding, and parenting behaviors, like cichlids and
killis. Right now I'm really into conservation fishkeeping, so keeping endangered species, particularly the labyrinth fish from Southeast Asia, as well as sympatric fishes to keep in a pseudo-biotope.
Last favorite? I don't want to hate on any, but the ones that don't interest me to own are line-bred decorative species like Apistogramma cacatuoides color strains, long-finned variants of fish, goldfish,
guppies, the fluorescent protein modified fishes... Some of them can be beautiful, but it's not my thing. I tend to want to recreate natural habitats, but these fish often don't have any (unless they're invasive).
What is your favorite food?
Fried chicken.
If you were to meet one fictional character who would it be and why?
Pickle Rick. Do I need a reason?
What is your favorite sport?
I'm not good at any of them, but in terms of watching and being around the game, definitely baseball.
How much wood could a wood chuck chuck if a wood chuck could chuck wood?
Actually, if you examine the gut contents of the woodchuck, it doesn't actually "chuck" the wood...
What is your current biggest tank?
20 long. Have owned as large as a 75.
What are your future tank plans?
My plans are to stop expanding at some point. I started with one and now I have 6. I think life will constrain it to some degree. But I'm allocating most of my tank space to create a stable population of 1 - 2 species of paros, in keeping with the Conservation Program:
The Core Conservation Programme CCP
Octopus.
Most you’ve ever paid for a fish?
$60 for the pair of Altos.
How many tanks do you have?
Six: 20-long, 15, 10, 5, 5, 2.5
I like a lot of different kinds, but my sweet spot is probably post punk from the early aughts, mixed with some shoegaze.
Favorite books (if you like books)?
I miss them! I've become hobby-heavy, which, when you have kids, doesn't leave a lot of time. The last great thing I read was "A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again," by DFW. I've heard great things about The Goldfinch, maybe I'll pick that one up.
