Reef Karma?

[midgetwaiter]

Anyone else ever have the feeling that the reef gods do their best to keep you humble? like they give with one hand and take with the other?

I had a couple big wins the past week or so. A sun Coral I have been coaxing to open up for 4 months has finally come around, I'm very happy. Of course now it's BTA tank mate will not stay in one spot longer than 20 minutes. I'll get him settled soon I hope but man that is frustrating.

My other reef tank has been doing very well considering it's only been up for 3 months. The system is working sweet, livestock is happy, great growth on some of the corals with the mix I have packed into a small tank. I managed to find a 75 watt halogen Bulb (Philips Daylight) at HD that grows chaeto like crazy for under 10$. I even got rid of all my evil hermit crabs. All is well right? Nope. One day my open brain stops inflating during the day, I figured the clown was trying to host in it again. Couple days later my clam stops extending it's mantle, now I'm worried. I check the water out, it's good. While I am sitting there trying to figure out what is going on my baby hippo tang comes to the front of the tank and looks at me. He then turns, takes a bite out of the brain coral, swims over to the clam, hits it a couple times and then hides behind a rock. My blue tang is eating my clam, wtf?

I try and catch the little bugger for 2 days, can't do it. I rip the whole tank down and finally get him, then drop a T5 strip in the water. As I'm putting everything back in I mash a ricordia with a dropped rock... Why can't I go a whole week without a reef catastrophe?

[Delphinus]

Yep. Actually, I do fully beleive in reef karma too and you just described more or less a normal week for me too. Maybe not those specific things, but one step forward is always accompanied by two steps sidewards, and one step backwards. At the end of the day I feel like I've walked a lot but haven't gotten anywhere. Ok maybe that's a weird analogy but it's sort of the best I can think of.

I guess there are good days every now and again, otherwise I wouldn't still be in the hobby ... although I've come pretty close to just throwing in the towel several times.

[TheReefGeek]

It can be frustrating, but the fact that is is a challenging hobby that never really ends, is what keeps me interested.

I have always jumped from one thing to another until I found reef-keeping. It throws enough twists and turns on a weekly basis to keep my OCD brain entertained and puzzled.

Always something to learn, and to try. Try to enjoy the challenge, and take dissapointments in stride.

[OCDP]

Go by the saying... "If it were easy and wasn't challenging, it wouldn't be any fun" It's kind of true... if we didn't have to work so bloody hard for that slice of the ocean, it just wouldn't feel the same.... you gotta go through the good, the bad, the ugly.. it's what makes this hobby what it is :D

[danny zubot]

I agree, if it were easy, what would be the point? I gave up on African cichlids because they weren't challanging to me anymore. I'll never look back because reef keeping always presents an obsticle or mystery to solve.

[midgetwaiter]

OMFG it happened again!

I stoped by the store on my way home and find 2 things, a huge pair of mandarins who will eat mysis and one of our suppliers has sunrise dottybacks in stock. I am beside myself as this is exactly what I wanted.

Come home and my clam is dead, didn't take the moving around last night or something.

I can't handle this see-saw stuff much longer, it's like being manic depresive or something.

[albert_dao]

I happen to like tanks that I can set and forget...

[Puff]

i think its more like "tank karma".

it happens in my freshwater tanks.

you finally sort something out, feel the utter relief after weeks of frustration and stress...then 2 days later something completely different comes up...and its back to high stress for a while.

sometimes i go through periods where i cant get anything to go right...then i hit a patch where everything goes my way.

the tank gods are up there...and some of them dont like us!!

[midgetwaiter]

I happen to like tanks that I can set and forget...

Well was the idea. Foiled by Atilla the Tang.

[Snappy]

Glad to hear I am not the only one who struggles.