Well, the Korean Students are here and I got to see them all on Thursday. They're a great group of people. I got to catch up with almost everyone from the Asia trip too. We all agree that we need to see each other more often. Dinner was a cookout held at the Vartanian's house. The food consisted of some great southern classics, casserole, mac and cheese, chicken, and then then classics of cookouts, hot dogs and hamburgers.

I particularly loved listening to them gush over the Vartaninian's wedding book. It reminded me of some great things that happened in asia, since that's exactly what I did when telling everyone how awesome it was over there.

It really made me miss all my friends in asia. Now, we just have to wait for James to come. I want to go with Bo to pick everyone up! Hopefully, that can be arranged. This fall should be awesome!

Okay, so as I said yesterday, I would give you all the fish update today. It started out with a comment from my roommate, Kelly, about saltwater tanks. Her comment reminded me of an old interest I've had in saltwater. The problem has always been the minimum 30 gallon requirement. But guess what? Over the last few years, nano (under 20 gallons) and pico (under 10 gallons) have become the new frontier for saltwater. Now in pico tanks, you don't really keep fish. Some people do, but it's usually only a temporary housing until their big tank is finished or it's a really small, solitary fish that doesn't swim around much. But for nano tanks, people have been able to successfully keep a variety of smaller fish. Gobies are the most popular and just so happen to be my favorite type of saltwater fish. Fear not though clownfish fans, people do keep clowns in nanos, but it's usually recommended to keep a pair of clowns in a 20 gallon and no more fish.

Now for my 10 gallon tank, I'm able to keep three gobies and some invertebrates, but I must go very slow or risk serious damage to my tank. This is why nanos are still not recommended for the beginner hobbyist. Current data shows that it will take me at least 6 months to finish this tank. Why so long? I shall explain in the next paragraph about the "bio-load." That is all technicalities with fish in both fresh and saltwater, but if you have no interest or already understand it, then feel free to skip it.

The bio-load is another term for capacity of the tank. This is calculated by a variety of factors included, filtration, oxygenation, plants, organisms, etc. The most important factor in the bio-load is bacteria. Specifically Nitrifying Bacteria. Fish produce ammonia (NH3) as their waste. This is highly toxic to fish. It's not a problem in the wild due to currents and the amount of gas exchange happening daily around the world. There is simply enough water to balance out the ammonia and the fish. Now in an aquarium, we have a closed system. We control everything that happens with that tank. So the amount of Nitrifying Bacteria must be greater. What is this bacteria? It is the organism that breaks down ammonia into nitrite and then oxidizes it into nitrate which can be removed through gas exchange and water changes. This is why open top aquariums are less maintenance, there is more gas exchange. Nitrates will build up over time and in large quantities can kill your fish, but there is almost always small amounts in every tank. Oxygen levels also play a role on the amount of fish you can keep since fish need to breathe too. Plants have the effect of using up oxygen and producing carbon dioxide at night when the lights are off. In saltwater tanks this can be managed by having the lights in the sump alternate with the tank lights.

This is the rough outline of  why it's taking so much time to get it set up.

Okay, my lame level is rising by not updating this. I have a good excuse though! I decided to start a saltwater fish tank. So I've been a bit busy with the fish...sort of. I don't have fish in there yet. I've been preparing for them, but no fish yet. First I have to let the tank cycle with the live rock then we will work on adding fish. I've built a refugium and a protein skimmer, bought a new light and a variety of other things. I should be able to add my first fish next week though. :)

In other news, Petco is now in Greenwood and the Korean Summer Study is underway. I get to see them all on Thursday for a cookout at the Vartanian's house. It will be fun! Outside of that, I've been working. I mean I have actually been busy, but I feel I would bore the average person with all the details of the fish related tasks I have been busy with. Just kidding! Don't worry, I have more to tell. :)

I did go to Gatlinburg, TN last weekend with my parents. It was a lot of fun! We went to a show called Country Tonight and they were awesome! We also went to a murder mystery dinner show and visited a lot of local artisan's stores. It's always impressive to see the local pottery, woodworking, leather work, etc. We stayed at Creekstone and the room was very nice with a view of the creek. Gatlinburg is not a sleepy little country town though. It's a tourist stop, so if you ever go, plan on being reminded of Orlando, FL. 

This weekend has been spent with friends and fish. I spent Friday adding sand to my tank. Friday night was spent with Grace, we watched The Artist and Sherlock Holmes 2. They were good. The Artist is based on all the classics of old black and white movies so if you enjoy a good black and white movie, I recommend it. If you're not into old movies, you probably won't like it and if you've never seen a black and white movie, watch one then refer to my prior two points. Sherlock Holmes is always good. Nothing bad to ever say there. We had pancakes Saturday morning. :) Then we headed back to my apartment to hang out for awhile. Grace eventually had to leave and I went out to see Star.

Today has been fun too. The morning was spent laying around and watching movies. Then my roommate and I headed to Petco. We are a pair and soon will live in a zoo. We left after she bought two mice. Then we had to high-tail it up to Greenville so I could drop her off for band practice and meet up with a lady from the S.C. Aquaria Association to buy an aquarium ornament for my catfish. They will love this thing! It's over a foot long and has a variety of crevices for them to hide in. I just have to wash it tonight and it can go in tomorrow. :) Then I can take updated pictures of the tank and the catfish. At which point I will be at work and I can give you all the updates on the fish. Right now, I'm at Starbucks and I always recommend iced Chai Lattes. They are awesome.

What else is going on? Well, my birthday is in one week! What am I doing for it? Not much. My parents are taking me to a show the night prior and then on Sunday I'm planning to treat myself to finalizing my tank plans and will hopefully get my first fish in on Wednesday. It's nice to finally be rested up, now if I could just remember to update this more often and take my camera around with me, then this would be a much more interesting blog.