Scott caught a pix of this cute guy while I was chasing Olivia all over the aquarium.

Well...Dory is in it at least.

This is a HUGE tank. We are talking about 15-20 feet high by 15 feet long. That gives you an idea how BIG the kelp and the Moray Eels are!

There was a fishy death in our house last night. Perry the all mighty super sized fancy tail goldfish, could no longer take the computer game Scott was playing and had a stroke (well, something happened to him since it happened in front of Scott).

Perhaps it was like one of those Japanese cartoons that caused all those kids to seizure? No one will ever know.

MOP also died this past month. Her left eyeball popped out and she died a week later.

Personally I think there is a fishy conspiracy in the tank going on. Maybe it's the Pleco...

You have to watch!

YES, his name is Perry. He told me that today. No really. He told me. Put the butterfly net down please, he TOLD me!

Doesn't everyone talk to their goldfish?

Doesn't everyone's goldfish talk to them?

The black moor is one of the new additions. Yes, it is THAT tiny!

This is 'MOP'(Mother Of Pearl), our pearlscale goldfish. Actually she is a golfball with fins, but we won't tell her that.

Yes, they are THAT big!

Our new 80 gallon tank given to us from O's daycare. Yes,yes, it came with a few fish too!

What goldfish dream at night.

Note the little pale feeder fish at the top(1 of 2). That was Oscar's food he did not eat. After he died we then we had to buy Mr. feederfishes (now primary tenants) 3 buddies to keep them company.

There's always this point in a hobby, a sort of "widget too far." Something so out there, so unnecessary, it just screams "I officially have no life." With some folks, it's an actual mascot costume from their favorite team, mounted in the den. With others, it's the entire series run of Wonder Woman, complete with extra commentary and Genuine Rope of Truth, presented proudly at the boss's dinner party. A still different set of people, well they tend to giggle in a dark room, alone with a lamp and bit of cardboard or paper in a plastic cover.

But I'm not any of those people. You see, I have fish. When someone obsesses about their fish, they don't have to spend a lot of money or do a lot of searching or display anything particularly rare. They just have to set up a disco in their fish tank.

Yeah, you heard me. A disco. In the tank. I did too. I did too!

My regular weekend outing to the pet store with Olivia was a good one to say the least. We'd picked out a new goldfish to add to the 50 gallon tank (yes, I have goldfish in the old oscar tank), and were heading for the cashier when we crossed the laser system. It was another one of those, well, Holy shopping events. There's a moment sometimes, when you come around a corner of an isle. Suddenly, the clouds part, sunbeams rake down like heavenly searchlights, tiny winged cherubs flutter down, and a chorus of hosannahs ring from on high, all highlighting That One Product.

Well, ok, maybe it was just a teenager screwing up the lights on a new catfood display and the Muzak suddenly switching to an old Avril Lavigne song. It was magic, ok? Well, Olivia thought it was magic. Of course, Olivia thinks milk leaking out of her sippy cup is magic, but trust me you take your "oh wow!!!"'s where you can get them.

So in went The MiracleBeam^tm AQUARIUM LASER SYSTEM. According to the box, It's The Most Revolutionary Concept in Aquariums Today! Perfect for Fresh or Saltwater Fish! Creates an Aquarium Night Light of Unmatched Beauty! COMPLETELY SAFE FOR ALL FISH! It even came complete with a free treasure chest. A laser treasure chest! While Olivia pointed and yelled "Dog-EE! Dog-EE! Dog-EE!" at everything in the checkout line (in a pet store, this can take awhile), it became... mine.

Scott: "You bought a disco light system."

Me: "Yup!"

Scott: "For... your fish."

Me: "Yup! Ain't it great?"

Scott: "Whats next? A disco ball? How about some playing them some Donna Summer?"

Me: "OOoo...ya know if they made one of those... I think I rememb--"

Scott: "Oh Jesus! Never mind I mentioned that!"

Me: "Weee!!! I have to call Amber!"

*RiNg!!*

Amber: "You got a what? OMG!! [I swear, the only woman in the world that actually speaks in initials --Scott] I have to come see it this week! What? Hang on a sec...Ron wants one now."

So there went the conversation for 10 minutes or so, about how our fish could have play dates in the disco. Yes, we are really that messed up when it comes to our pets.

The new fish is acclimating fine. The disco looks great. If only they could wear tiny polyesther suits and platform shoes, and the black fish maybe an afro wig. No giant man-in-the-moon with a coke spoon though. Well, not right away anyway. Now if i could just find that disco ball...

The latest trend in bar games, goldfish racing, is under scrutiny in Utah after some say the race is a form of animal abuse, according to a Local 6 News report.

See entire article here. Don't forget to download the video!

After a few days of not having Oscar anymore and just his tank buddies, I felt it was time to go out and get some new fish. Going back to the goldfish.

Scott: "Oh god! Please tell me you bought NORMAL goldfish this time."

Ellen: "Define NORMAL."

Scott: "Ones that don't swim upside down for 3 years. That was not normal."

Ellen: "Yes it was, they just had character."

Scott: "Character is a funny set of spots, or swimming through a hoop. Character is not playing 'who can imitate an empty beer can?' the longest."

So I bought goldfish anyway. Ones that will develop "character". I mean, the cool kind, not the dead beer can kind. I hope.

I settled on 2 small lionhead orandas, and 2 veiltail orandas. Cute, spunky, small to start, and with all the fishy personality you could want. Which is to say they wiggle and swim like, well, other fish. Only weirder.

Then I saw him. My new nasty. My Weather Loach. I knew instantly I had to have this eel-like bad boy. My mother was cringing in the car because she had to have the fish on her lap for the trip back from the shop.

Mom: "UUUGGHH!!! It keeps jumping up in the bag! It wants out!" ("uugh... it keeps jumpin in tha bayag... it wants owt!"-- Scott)

Me: "Ma, you know it looks like a snake right? Well more like an eel."

Mom: "WHY did you get this thing!?"

Me: "I needed a bottom feeder?" *eViL GrIn*

Needless to say, my tank is well established and everyone's settled well into their new home. The oscar feeder fish are happy they have a colony they can call their own, instead of a godzilla fish that just happened to be too old to turn them into lunch. Plus, I have an active loach that does not want to hide under a rock, but explore his new tank.

Now all we have to do is keep Ajax from stalking the tank. Last time we had small fish he knocked the tank seams loose!

Oscar died during then night. We knew he wasn't feeling well the past few weeks and nothing we did seemed to help.

So I have him in the freezer right now in several baggies and when I get home tonight I'll bury him in my front garden. :(

So much for a start of a good Birthday.

About every month (ok this time it was 2 months) I spend an evening with Scott to clean out Oscar's tank. The cats think this is the best time ever! 'Cause they get to check out all the gunk traveling through the Python ^TM* into the sink. This time Ajax literally sat on the hose waiting while we got everything ready. He didn't want to miss a second.

How to Clean a Satanic, Homicidal Fish's Tank in 10 Easy Steps:

Step 1. Find Oscar in tank and start working at opposite end. Because a two-pound trout wannabe with no teeth is scary. No, really! Oh sit down.

Step 2. Scrub tank with very long aquarium scrubbing stick to ensure maximum distance from the Oscar. Smack husband when he notes without very long aquarium stick "vertically challenged" wife would need scuba gear to clean tank.

Step 3. Start feeling bad at amount of nasty weird glop being sucked out of tank because you have not cleaned fish in 2 months. Stop feeling bad because Oscars in wild live in dirty rivers.

Step 4. Yell at husband because bathroom is flooding a-la Brady Bunch episode due to water pressure from Python ^TM. Make note to self as husband giggles "soap suds! We need soap suds!" to never allow wine before tank cleaning.

Step 5. Laugh at cats chasing all the nasty shit running throught tube. Get grossed out when some meat plug has stopped up sink.

Step 6. Attempt to hold back vomit while cleaning out swamp-thing-meets-monsTurd-scented old filter.

Step 7. Ponder if you should add Stress Coat ^TM** or see what happens to fish if you don't use it. Realize fish was once stuck to kitchen floor and was dried out before rehydrating it last year, so probably wouldn't make much difference to Dirty Harry fish.

Step 8. Argue with husband on how far tank should be filled up. Keep eye on wine-wobbly husband who doesn't seem to realize fish tanks don't have emergency drains while rebuilding fish filter pump.

Step 9. Rearrange plastic plants in tank with long stick. Yell at fish attacking stick because you are planting fake Amazon in the wrong spot. Realize it's all pointless, because evil fish arranges tank as he pleases when he pleases.

Step 10. Figure out you have to do this again in a month... or two.

Oscar was being a bit weird today. Much weirder than normal.

This morning he was thrashing around in his tank, attempting to jump out of the small holes in the back where the filter and heater attach. Out of curiosity and to make sure he was not actually dying (yeah right), I got up to check him. As I got close to the tank, I kept hearing this odd buzzing noise. Turn off the filter pump... no, thats not it. Turn off the light. Nope not it. Turn off the heater...oh shit!

The F*&cker broke the heater! He apparently got so angry at it that he decided the best thing to do was to kill it. Kill it good! Oscar managed to beat the heater so hard he created a 4 inch crack running up the heating tube. It went all the way around, meaning the bottom was ready to flat fall off.

Ok, first, disconnect heater then fish (ha!) it out of the tank (don't want to get electrocuted). As I pulled it out of the tank, the entire bottom fell off with a "ploonk". DAMN FISH! That was a $25 heater!

I did remember at one point a fellow oscar lover said that sometimes they get mad at heaters because of the red light. This heater, of course, had a red light. When he was the size of a quarter, his attempts at aquarium appliance homicide were amusing. Now that he's the size of a softball, things aren't so damned funny.

After safely removing the heater from the tank, I turned to put it in the sink to drain before tossing it. Suddenly, I hear even more thrashing and splashing. That damned Oscar was trying to get at the telephone next to the tank! He proceeded to get all "in your face" at it through the glass. Hmm... how to describe five pounds of pissed off trout wannabe. Lets just say if he had arms and a switchblade he would've been waving the knife at our defenseless phone going, "You talkin' ta me? You talkin' ta me?!?". Very strage. Normally his psychotic attacks are limited to the stuff in the tank. I look at the phone and notice, sure enough, it has a red light, blinking away at its base.

Scott will be on the fish's side with this one. He thinks I use the phone too much already.

Now I am on a quest to find a heater with NO light. And a phone with no light. Gotta remember to make sure Olivia never has a red light too.

Anyone have any suggestions on the heater?

Now I know how he attempted to end it all!

So I'm sitting here, minding my own business enjoying my newly-reworked computer playing a first-person-shooter and defending the free world from communism when all of a sudden, out of nowhere, comes from upstairs:

bwAhWahWAHwahWAH

WHAHAHAHAAH!!!!

Now, I have a hunch what this is, but sitting down here is definitely not Politically Correct. Not when "Oi-yam carryin' yoi chyld!" So, like a dutiful husband I put the game on pause and trudge upstairs to see what the hell is wrong.

"Th-Th-Th-The osc-osc-oscar... it-it-it jumped out at me!!!" she said, pale and still bouncing up and down like a pogo stick, "i-i-i-it jumped awl the whay outta tha tyank an took da food right outta my hyaa-and!!!" (she gets New York when she gets scared) [hop hop hop]

I look at the oscar. The less-than-one-pound, barely bigger than your hand oscar. He looks back at me, swear to god, with this look like, "don't ask me man, I was just hungry." If he had shoulders he would've shrugged them.

Some people are frightened by ghosts, others by spiders, still others by things that go "bump" in the night.

My girl loses three years from the antics of a half pound wannabe trout.

Oscar has a new hobby. Oscar has decided to push rocks. Lots of them. All to one side of the tank.

I don't know what's making him 're-decorate' his tank at this point. He seems to finally be out of his bad mood after scraping him off the floor and is "talking" to me again. Bribery is good. Especially with bits of steak. And chicken. And bacon.

But the rock thing is just funny. He picks them up in his mouth and moves them one by one to the other side of the tank until the bottom of the tank where he gets the rocks from is just glass.

He must be bored with his tank. His tank with the 3 caves and the river rocks and plants and lots and lots of room.

Damn picky fish. Did I mention the steak?

Oscar apparently does not know his strength. He's also too smart by half for his own good.

I came home from work today to find my oscar laying on the floor like a sad, sticky, half-done pancake, in the kitchen 3 feet from his tank. Mind you, I had an armful of packages from the mail, my purse and my lunch tote. All of that went flying into the air and I screamed bloody murder that my fish was stuck to the floor like half melted saran wrap. Still breathing, barely, but dried out and stuck to the linoleum.

How did I get him off the floor? I scraped him off it with 2 tea cup saucers. Poor fish made a sickening suction sound like a jello mold gone wrong. SHLOOOOOP!

Yeah there's fish damage. His right eye is all clouded over and he's missing LOTS of scales on his right side where he was stuck to the floor. All I could do was squirt some fish tank slime coating stuff in it and watch what happened.

One hour later. I have an angry oscar, a cloud of cat hair, and some floating food that was stuck to him when I dumped him back in. He is officially Not Happy with This Situation.

Now I've got to get some velcro or a cinder block (maybe an anvil) to put on top of the tank to prevent him from bumping it up so he can jump out. He normally just taps the top of the tank and stares at you when he's hungry (no, really!) Maybe the cats did something to lure him out.

Damned fish.

Ok, everyone wants to see what Oscar looks like. So I went out and bought a digital cam for the soul purpose of snapping pix for the site. ( I have yet to remember HOW to get them on the site without begging for help from the computer master)

I bought one of these today. It's called a Python Water Changer. I bought it for Oscar. Well ok, I bought it so Oscar won't go after me anymore. He is not fond of the siphon.

It is this neat gadget that will suck and spit water out and back into the tank with NO buckets involved! Imagine that!

Ok, I lied. Oscar went after me 3 times tonight. He also managed to scrape off some of his scales and get some war wounds in the process. I also am aware that Oscar DOES NOT like this scraper/planter thing I have. He attacked it.

It took Scott reading the instructions, and me hollering everytime the fish jumped at me to do a 1/3 water change.

Did I also mention that Oscar has an appetite for fine dining now? No longer does he want oscar kibbles or tubifex worms. Oscar wants chicken. Oscar wants that medium rare m-f'ing steak. Oscar wants the $3.99 mealie worms that I HAVE to keep in the fridge or they eventually turn into bugs.

I have created a monster. I have created a monster that likes to pluck the strips of steak and chicken from my fingers and watch me scream when he grabs the tips of my fingers in the process. (yeah ok, I know you are thinking, WHY Ellen! WHY! do you feed the oscar with your hands????- I don't know either. I just accept that it's mind control)

Anyway! Go get a python water changer! It makes life easier!

Oscar has finally come out of hiding. He is also A LOT bigger than I really thought he was, so he was rather overdue on a new tank.

He has also discovered that he gets to eat more now. We were kinda not feeding him too much in fear that we would have a fish in too small of a tank and he would not be able to swim around. Now he is free to grow to the size of a football and won't have any problems.

One weird thing about this fish is you can HEAR him chomping on his oscar biscuits. Yeah, oscar biscuits. They are nearly the size of kix cereal. He swallows them whole and you can hear him breaking it apart in his mouth.

He has also discovered that the love of his life (me) has not left him. This fish will come up to the side of the tank now. If he sees me walk into the kitchen, (yeah, that is where his tank is) he comes out to greet me. You can actually get a decent look at him now too. He has also been on his best behavior so far. (Note: I said SO FAR) That means no jumping out of the tank yet. Yet...

This damned fish has an endless appetite. So BIG that the stupid pellets I bought for it do not seem to even touch his large appetite. Until a recent discovery.

Tubifiex Worms. Cubed, freeze-dried ones. The cube is the size if a die(dice). Which is BIG for a fish. Not the Oscar.

He has a system to eat it whole. YES WHOLE.

He grabs this cube after I toss it in, spins around in the tank and goes right to the bottom with it. At this time, you can see him SUCK water into his mouth to soften the cube a bit. Then- SHLOOP!~ Down it goes. WHOLE.

One of the amazing things about this feat is you can SEE the outline of the cube in his belly. The entire cube spills out of his mouth. It's and odd thing to see, especially that he can eat it whole.

I can only imagine what he will do when he is bigger!

Ellen wasn't kidding. The Oscar really does thump the top of its tank when it's hungry. And looks at you. WEeeeeiiirrrrd.

3245224 [August 14, 2002]

Diese is Astronotus Ocellatus K7937 reporting mein ztudy of der humans. I vill be keeping zis diary in zee hopes of being able to transmit it once contact vith headquarters has been re-established. Mein task of controlling der humans' mind to assist in der destruction of zee not-water has proven far more divicult zan originally planned. I vind myself dedicated to our Glorious Leader's vision evermore strongly (ein Fish! ein Ocean! ein Leader!), but a more intelligent zpecies may have to be targeted if zis continues.

Diese is der fifth zet of humans I have attempted to ztudy. Vhile it is a challenge I cherish to increase zee glory of our Leader, I do hope I vill not find it necezzary to exterminate zis pair, as I was vorced to do vith past zets. It is very inconvenient to deploy zee V16 device. It creates zuch a mess.

Die frau vith der extra zet of eyes [glasses] continues to remain avraid of zticking her hand in mein tank. Diese has made it var more divivcult for me to implant zee mind control chips required to impose meine vill. Der other human does not interact vith me, therefore vee may haf to think of a diverent way of injecting him.

I haf been zee recipient of a most intriguing zet of communications vrom der actual owners of zee not-water landing zite my capsule-tank is zituated in. Diese four-terrapodal [legged] creatures zeem to have enslaved my ztudy zubjects most evectively, apparently vithout zee aid of advanced technology zuch as ours. Diese is both interesting and dangerous. I must discover how zey accomplished zis zo vee can acquire zee technique.

I haf created a viction for zem zat I am an immature example of our glorious zpecies (heil Oskar!). An attempt at a direct meeting vith them outside mein capsule proved disastrous. Der new exposure zuits created at Oceamunde are zertainly invisible enough, but failed utterly in protecting me against der evects of "hair", vith vhich diese "cats" haf completely coated all zurfaces of zee not-vater vith. Der ease vith vhich diese "cats" rule zis pair of inverior beings is most instructive. It vill of course be nezessary to destroy zem, because as der Glorious Leader has commanded, our zpecies needs Lebenocean to ensure its zurvival.

I must be zure to request der assignment of an Oskarschutzstaffel (O-SS) commando zoon. Der previous azzistant was a complete incompetent, apparently der nephew ov a zenior party member. His unfortunate... accident ...has lead to an opening on my team. An O-SS member vill be required to protect me zhould diese Proletariat's United Zociety of Zocialists (P.U.S.S.) party zell of "cats" discover our ultimate goal before ve are ready. As der Glorious Leader has zaid in "Mein Ocean", diese communist parties are zee ultimate threat to ztability in der vorld today, and must be ztopped!

I only hope zee Scheißekopf who designed mein laser-radio ends up in a goldfish camp. I vill attempt to contact headquarters again presently.

I bought NEW food for the oscar. Its called "Oscar Grow". Not that I want him bigger, but I feel it should be eating oscar food and just not cichlid flakes.

This is how stupid I am. I tap the tank like I normally do and toss the new food in. It sinks. Oscar is upset that there is NO food at the surface. OK, I'll give it the flakes then *cause I felt bad it was being stupid and not checking the bottom of the tank*

It gets better. I can see it getting angry and start to circle the tank. So I do my tap on the side, it comes to that part of the tank. Meanwhile I have my other hand occupied with a pinch of flakes. I open the lid as fast as I can and toss the flakes onto the top of the tank lid. *SHIT!*

I totally missed. Now I have to do it again. But I think I confused it, cause it was looking for flakes while I reopened the lid and tossed more in.

Now I think I have to go back to flake food.

Ok... my killer Oscar (wanna-be man-eating Amazonian fish, that I can't spell right now fish) is getting big. Too Big. For itself. Its tank. My living room.

I can't flush it, it will clog the toilet. I can't feed it to the cats, they don't eat pure evil on a regular basis and may get some nasty gastric upset. Which in turn will cause my carpet to have more shades of browns, yellows and oranges decorating it in spots I don't want to see them.

It's becoming tank destructive. It is picking the leaves off its Amazon plastic sword plant. The big leaves.

It's ALWAYS hungry. I should feed it a tin can and see what it can do to it. I feed it. I feed it chicklet flakes. *Ok...cichlid flakes..but I like to call them chicklets*

I have decided that this nasty ass of a fish is going to learn a trick when it gets it's food. Mainly because I am tired of it jumping out at me when I feed it. This fish is so smart, that on my days off when Scott is not home, he will tap the top of the tank lid. *thump-thump-thump* ~ Feeeeed meeeeee....you want to feeeeed meeeeee..~ "Uh...no I don't". ~ Yes you dooooo....~. "No really, I don't". Then it gets mad.

I have this feeding ritual with this fish. I tap one side of the tank. It comes over to that side. I quickly open the lip as little as possible and toss the food in! It races over and realizes I did not feed it the entire jar of food and gets even angrier. It does this by circling the water like a shark.

It has now realized my game and wants no part of it. It has caught on. This I don't like. I'm running out of feeding ideas.

The damn fish goes to the area I tap, but when I open the lid-even slightly. It races over and jumps out of the water at me. It has caught on. It could be the other side of the damn tank and it STILL makes it over in time to scare me.

I think it likes it. It thinks it is a cool fish.

It also changes color with the person who stands in front of it. It goes all pale for Scott, where as if I am in front of it, it goes all green and orange.

I have to clean its tank this week. I am NOT looking forward to this insane ritual of STICKING my hand in the tank again. This pisses the fish off even worse. I tell Scott it LIKES a dirty tank. Scott does not believe me. Nor does he believe me that the fish wants to die slowly by letting the water evaporate out and eventually drowning it in air.

I am stuck with this damn fish. Thank god this fish is getting a bigger tank when I get a house. I will have more room to tap and more time to escape the feeding frenzy of the Oscar.

I've told you all I have an oscar. I have an oscar that thinks it's a friggin pirahnah. I am scared of this fish. I shouldn't be, but I am.

Don't get me wrong, I like the fish plenty. I just think he is blood thirsty. All it EVER wants to do is eat. It has a bottemless pit for a stomach. I do not enjoy feeding time for this fish. *which is about 3-5 times a day* It grabs my fingers on a regular basis. Now before you go "uh..dumb shit, don't stick your fingers in the water." I do NOT stick my fingers in the water. They are about 3-5 inches above the water surface.

I was getting ready for work on thursday doing my usual rounds, then I looked at the tank and realized I have not fed that fish yet. *OH DREAD!* So, I go over to the tank, and the fish greets me like he normally does by comming out and starting to pick at the water surface. I open the lid, and bend over to feed the fish, when the fucker JUMPS OUT of the water, bounces off my chin and falls to the carpet. *This is when I let out a shriek of terror and start jumping up and down like an idiot. * This is over a fish that is only 2 inches long mind you. The entire time, Scott is thinking I'm yelling at him for no reason.

Good thing I had a washcloth nearby that I use to dust the top of the tank off. All this time the fish is STILL flopping on the carpet, and now has cat hair all over it. So I slap the washcloth down on the fish and chuck it back in the tank. *The fish was not happy. He was pissed off, and hung out at the back of his tank for quite a while wondering WHY there was NO WATER on the outside of his tank*.

At this point, it did not look like a fish. It was a big dust ball hanging out at the back of the tank. I just closed the lid and headed out for work. Damn fish, if he wants to die like a kamikaze pilot so be it.

I come home and he is alive, no longer looking like some water logged dust bunny. It wants to eat.

IT'S OUT!!! SWIMMING!!!!! *SHHHHHHH!!!! YOU'LL SCARE IT OFF!!!*

Apparently I did not know that fish get lonely. Even aggressive fish. You see, my new tiger oscar won't come out of hiding behind my plastic Amazon Sword plant. *fucker*

Scott is like, "I dunno kiddo, he don't look like he is going to make it." *thank god for receipts and a return policy* I don't give up on my fish that easy. I brought a water sample into work, and had the fish guys test it for me. Everything is OK. My temp in the tank was a little too low, about 74 degrees. They told me to hike it up to 80. They like warm water. They also suggested I get him a buddy.

Yeah, I bought ANOTHER oscar. I got a Red Oscar this time. Except he is not red, he is more like a coral-pink color, with black fins. Kinda neat lookin. This one is kinda personable too. He actually swims around.

We DO see the tiger oscar swimming around. Once you get about 5 feet to the tank, he runs and hides. I have a shy fish. I mean, it's only been 2 days, I should give it more space to get used to it's new home.

I'll keep you all posted on the fishy stats.

If you don't know what Astronotus ocellatus is, I'll give you a hint. It's a fish. Give up yet? It's an Oscar.

I bought my first oscar yesterday, a tiger oscar to be exact. Right now its 1 inch long or so. It's not happy. I think I'm the only person in the whole universe that can pick a shy fish.. It likes to hide behind the plants that I got for the tank.

My grandfather, Pop Pop Joe used to have an oscar. I think it was a tiger oscar too. I remember him feeding goldfish to it. He had this 10 or 20 gallon tank in the basement FULL of feeder goldfish. Now to a young person ( I really dont remember my age when this happened) thats ALOT of fish! The oscar seeemed huge too! I'm sure it was only 8 or 9 inches long though. It just seemed big!!

My tank has cycled, the pH is at 7.6, but it's not happy. I have no luck.

My new goal is to keep it alive....thank god for reciepts and a 10 day return policy.