the non-reefer Diatribe

[Texreefer]

nothing frustrates me more about this hobby than people that are not in the hobby! it is impossible to explain to them, and have them understand, the level of commitment, education, patience, and care that goes into keeping these animals. no matter what you say to them, it is still just a fish tank to them, I want to punch them in the nose when they come in and see the reef and say " oh what a pretty fish tank" and then proceed to point out the coolest animal in the tank and it is the hermit crabs!!!! who cares about the hundreds of dollars worth of corals that you have to practically be a chemist to keep alive. and who cares about the specialized eating habits of the expensive fish and inverts that we keep, not them!! not when the favorite thing in the tank is the big pink snail thingy and how can the survive under water?.. Its not enough that we slave over these tanks for hours a day but we get no true appreciation from people that are non reefers.. with that being said let me also say that if not a single person other than me ever saw my tank i would be perfectly happy because that is, after all, the only reason i built it. that and because i could. anyway thanks for listening and good night

[5.0Stang]

AMEN!!!!!!

[alteredego]

Mine is just a really big hole in the wall to my family........

[brewercm]

What most people tend to find the most amazing in the system is when I tell them that everything (except the coral that's now a skeleton and hasn't been removed yet) in there is actually a leaving creature, not just decoration.

But I see where you are coming from on the other part also. I get the occasional comment about the pretty flowing anemones. Yep, those are the ones.

[alton]

I always get "Hey you have the neatest plants", and I have to tell them "there corals not plants". I guess it is our job to teach the world.

[LoneStar]

Yup....

I'm sure at one point everyone feels like this (if they go the distance in the hobby). Its gotten to be where people ask what I'm up to and its "I'm working on a project at home" rather than "I'm working on this reef tank." If I say the later, you get all sorts of responses that can range from a short answer of "Yup" or "Well you see....."

I'm glad my roomates haven't been feed up with my 'project' in the garage yet. Its nice the girls are oblivious to it and walk right past it. :lol But my other roomate Jon is really interested in it....till I start pointing out stuff I still need before we haul it in the living room and start adding water. ;)

[erikharrison]

You cant forget about the people that love "the clapping stuff"... xenia. Alot of people yearn for movement in an aquarium, and that is where the line is drawn. People are predatory in nature. Our eyes are attracted to movement because it is either prey or a threat. So when people sit and look at an aquarium, without any preconceived notion as to what they need to look at, they assume that they are to be looking at what is moving. Usually, I just tell them everything is living, even the rock. After that, they point out the hermit crabs and talk about how cool they are. The only cool hermit we have is one eyed Willy.

[txstateunivreefer]

yea i had a guy come over and he looked thru my tank and said those are really pretty plants they must do alot to oxygenate the water and then preceded to point at the fox face and tell me how he cought one in lake LBJ and all i could say is how cool because i wanted to yell at him for his ignorance HENCE THE CLOWNFISH EVER SEEN NEMO?!?!?!?!

[erikharrison]

HENCE THE CLOWNFISH EVER SEEN NEMO?!?!?!?!

lol you're forgetting the "you know you're a reefer when" post. He may have noticed that on Nemo it was a f/w setup :D

[Texreefer]

i got,,,, "hey whats all that pink stuff in there".... "thats algae".... algae is not pink!" :wacko ...ok what is it then Einstein!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[erikharrison]

yeah most people think that the coral is just decorative stuff that you have bought, not thinking that you can have real corals in a "fish tank"

[taldrich13]

I once had a f/w "expert" tell me I could get rid of my snail "problem" if I threw a clown loach in there.

[5.0Stang]

I once had a f/w "expert" tell me I could get rid of my snail "problem" if I threw a clown loach in there.
thats too funny :lol

[blueboy]

one old freind of mine thought the coolest thing was my magfloat! he used to love to clean the glass.

[cpreefguy]

mag floats are a big crowd pleaser among non-reefers for sure :lol

[jroescher]

"Will they fight if you hold a mirror up to it?"

[jc]

What is it with mag floats? Everyone is amazed by a magnetic algae cleaner and they all want to try it out. When someone does and stops I usually tell them "don't be a tease, finish the whole tank!"

[RayAllen]

Thats untill the idiot get sand trapped under the mag float and continues cleaning your tank. No one touches my tanks, no one. Especially the type of people that this conversation is about. I dont even let my wife feed my fish, that way if there is ever a problem i have know one else to blame, lol.

[emac]

I dont even let my wife feed my fish

thats so funny i really cant stop laughing

[RayAllen]

It is funny, but hey better to be on the safe side. She has no interest at all in aquariums nor to understand how they work.

[Headless_donkey]

God bless those friends because the glass always needs cleaning!

[Euclid]

My percula/bubble tip get the most attention by far...

[Janus]

yeah I would have to agree here.

We have all kinds of vibrantly colored zoas, massive ricordeas, a beautiful mandarin, and a really nicely colored GBTA. But the thing that most people seem to notice is our calerpa prolifera or the "cool seaweed in the back there." Well that and the obligatory "wow that little crab is soooooooooooo cool, where did you get him?" To which I have to point out that there is a small army of them and they are really just there as garbage men. That usually makes them ask a few more questions about whats in the tank.

Though my best friend and his girlfriend have been learning alot about our tank whenever they are here. Heck most of the time they notice new pieces in the tank as soon as they walk in the door, and sometimes even know what it is right off the bat. What can I say, I have done my best to educate the masses. Well ok not the masses but its a start
:D