Fifty-five gallon aquarium

I bought a large aquarium today. These things are a dime a dozen.

Or possibly around $100.00 each thereabout. Why so inexpensive? I think because the new thing is seamless one-piece plexiglass. These are five pieces of glass with silicone seams.

They're very nice aquariums. But now I must admit, a bit old fashion.

My original lasted a long time but was scratched all over, a mistake I made by not knowing the difference between industrial scrubbers and regular household scrubbers of the same scratchy material. One is a lot more scratchy than the other. So I lived with those self-inflicted scratches for years.

Ew, I hated those scratches I made.

Its replacement tank sprang a leak just a few feet away from my head. POP What was that? POP ... POP What is that sound? The next day the carpet was soaked and the water level lower than usual. I could tell the leaks were near the top where the water stopped draining.

The cabinet that holds the tank was soaked. Its veneer peeled off.

Then a few days ago POP and a new leak on the same seam but much lower. Now there is only 9 inches of water.

So, Craigslist again to find the same style tank with the same dimensions.

Apparently this was a popular size and style. There are quite a few available on Craigslist.

Try it. Open Craigslist and enter [55 gallons.] Do not say "aquarium" because some people say "tank." You'll get 55 gallon drums in your result. But you'll also see that quite a lot of people have this type of aquarium. And frankly, they're not that practical. People are always selling these things.

One for tank alone, just what I need for $60.00 in Longmont. That would be a nice drive.

Another for $100 with bottom cabinet and similar extravagant lid. The person did not respond to my inquiries.  I tried two ways of contact and no response. What a dope.

This one for $150.00 new in box on Lowell Blvd and 19th. I asked, "Will you accept $125.00?" The guy goes, "Sure."

I thought Lowell would be way out there west near to Simms. I recall seeing signs on 6th avenue beyond Wadsworth at Green Mountain reading "Simms and Lowell." I think. That's where I visualized the road.

But it's actually much closer than that. Just beyond Federal. It goes alphabetically F, G, H, I, J, K, L for Lowell Blvd. But the road doesn't go straight through. It's interrupted by a school.

Colfax is 15th, so 4 blocks north of Colfax. And G, H, I, J, K, L west of of Federal. Very close. The drive was no problem at all.

Now my story gets pathetic.

The sturdy wooden stand for the replacement tank is still in the back of the truck. It was never brought upstairs. I was considering fitting it with a cool marble top. I was thinking pink would be very nice. Black clunky base with pink marble top. Does that sound cool, or what?

I was visualizing slipping the boxed aquarium to the side of the black chunky wooden stand already in the truck.

But there isn't enough room. The stand is on its side, not upright, although it could be if necessary. As it is, the new box is slid in so the tank's length is the width of the truck bed. It barely fits. Not a single spare inch. There is no more room for anything such as groceries.

Here's the shameful bit.

With the first aquarium over twenty years ago, a friend and I carried both the cabinet and the aquarium inside, from a cutlass back seat and trunk, up stairs, through a door, into its spot by a window with the greatest of ease.

Because we were a couple of studs.

Shut up.

We were both under forty and lifting those things was standard activity. No problem at all. We don't even think about the difficulty. We move heavy things all the time.

But now it is quite impossible.

I can't even maneuver the 2-wheeler when it is loaded. I struggle with it unloaded.  If I tried then my balance would fail and I'd end up in a heap. I cannot react to shift of weight. And I'm no longer strong enough. My muscles are just shit. I'm no help at all lifting the box onto the the truck bed.

Although I'm quite smart about how to do it.

And others are not.

The husband was not home. His wife is a small woman with two children. Their nanny is my age a grandmother type.

We hit it right off. I could tell they were not used to doing anything like this. Their discussion about how to proceed was all wrong.

The woman and the nanny, both small women, but tough as nails, maneuvered the box onto the 2-wheeler, just so. The way I described. So its weight works best to be rolled, they rolled the box to the truck, and lifted the box onto the truck bed.

But they needed my instruction on how best to do that. So we three made a good team.

You should have seen these two small women struggle to lean the box against the truck bed flap and lift its tilted bottom up onto the truck. How they struggled with that crucial portion. I bet both their bodies are aching.

I felt bad for not helping lift. I can do that. It takes a bit of positioning and planning and extra instruction, but I could have at least helped that one little lift. But there was only enough room for two people, and there I was holding myself steady with two wooden canes so it never even occurred to them for me to assist. They assumed I am worthless. They came through like two champs.

God, I love women. I love the way they jump in when required.

The baby boy cannot walk so he was sat on the edge of the garage opening to watch. Goo goo. Goo goo gah gah.

The precocious daughter was intensely interested in all that her mommy was doing and this man who is visiting. The little girl does require constant attention. To be a mother to such a daughter, honestly, is a full time job. They require your constant attention.

And that's fine as visitor.

Just yesterday I heard the voice of a child demanding attention. Soon the whole family was in the hallway approaching. I said, "I love the sound of children's voices."

That statement put me in good regard of the approaching family. Two women and an older man. They stopped. I said, "but you probably have enough of it."

The women agreed. Yes, they do have quite enough of children's voices. The older man broke apart and said "You are like me. I am these kid's grandfather. And I love hearing their voices. My name is Robert, say, what is your name?"

(Today, I saw Robert again and he offered to help move my aquariums. But I have more in mind than simple moving.)

Time to pay.

Addressing the girl, "Can you count?"

     "Yeah. I can count."

"How high?"

     "Two. Mommy, say, I can count to two."

That's not high enough. She cannot help with counting.

"Have you ever pushed an elevator button?"

     "Yeah. I pushed an elevator button before."

"How do know which button to push?"

     "Mommy showed me."

I really like these two women and the woman's children. I could have spent a lot more time there talking about why their aquarium never got set up. The boy was born and that changed everything. It's too big for the girl's dresser. There is a lot going on in that household and I would have really enjoyed spending more time but I could sense they were happy to be done with it. They've got a household to run. Things must be done. They're busy.

And they didn't invite me for tea.

So now my truck bed is filled with large heavy wooden tank stand that was never used from the previous tank that leaks and a new in-the-box aquarium that fits the previous stand.

And I also have another 55 gallon tank upstairs that leaks but is good enough to hold 1/3 the amount of usual water. The fish don't mind swimming in a shallow pool. But its cabinet is deteriorating from water damage. Both those need to go into the trash.

All four things are too heavy for me to lift.

And this is my distress.

Facing the fact that I am no longer strong enough to simply lift them and move them around, from the truck, up and down the elevators, through the hallways using a 2-wheeler. Lifting into the trash, setting up in their place.

All that has to be done by other people.

Luckily, this place is loaded with young people always in need of cash.

Right now I'm trapped in a logistics hell of deciding how to do the transfer of fish, gravel, and remaining aquarium water and plants from the old to the new tank.

If I were doing this by myself I would face each step as they come. But now that I must plan the activity of helpers I must have it all mapped out and clear in my mind.

The new tank comes with gravel and all kind of crap that I don't need, hood, lights, filters, fake plants and such.

You cannot just put fish into a new aquarium. They'll die. They need the bacteria that comes with aging. And all that is in the gravel and their remaining water, the plants, and the old filters. I can make this painless for the fish but it requires transferring old stuff to new.

That's where I'm at now. Planning these steps.

I think that I'll make use of another 10 gallon tank in an unused bathroom, and a couple of buckets for the gravel, water and plants. Have the old tank cleared completely for the big switcheroo.

That's how we do things when our muscles are shot.