the person selling the used 10 gallon aquarium along with the iron stand (that can accommodate two 10 gallon tanks) contacted me this afternoon, said if i wanted it i could come by brighton and pick it up before 7:30pm. i went to the cafe to borrow the car and my father ended up coming with me as the driver. it was right during rush hour, and we tried to predict the path of least resistance, but it still took us half an hour to get there. i was instructed to wait in the parking lot of a local whole foods supermarket. i met the seller, who turned out to be an elderly chinese man whom i was able to speak mandarin with. he used to raise fish but after he and his wife moved to a senior citizen home, there just wasn't enough space for an aquarium so he had to sell his setup. we drove him to where he lived (a block away) and he unpacked the items from his car. besides the tank and the stand ($20), he also threw in a large box of fishkeeping equipment, which i'd later examine when i got home.

a lot of the extra equipment were old but still serviceable. he had two old fashion heaters, the kind you clipped to the side of the aquarium because they can't be completely submerged. at one time i think he had a larger tank because neither heaters fit inside the 10 gallon. the hood - with faux wood paneling - seemed slightly large for the aquarium, but there was a separate fluorescent light housing (that's probably the most expensive part of the hood anyway, i could always replace the plastic cover with a glass top). other items: there was a whisper water filter (just like the one i already have) with no inserts (i personally prefer the hagen aquaclear, or the marineland biowheel); an air pump attached to a long airstone; a cracked (but usable) breeding trap, so at one time he probably bred fish. when i asked him what kind and he said "all sorts," he might've been being modest; there was a small self-starting gravel cleaner (in the original box with instruction manual) and a length of tubing; a fishnet and some containers of fish food; and finally, some aquarium decorations, including 2 porcelain castles (they don't seem to be specifically for underwater usage though) and a ceramic cave with multiple entrances.

so this is actually my 6th aquarium. my first was the small 2.5 gallon hexagon, which a few weeks ago the undergravel filter system died so i have it disassembled now. then i have my 7.5 gallon minibow, home to my tetras and my long-living cherry barb. next was the used 10 gallon i bought in medford, that i cracked while cleaning it, but later resealed (even repaired, not sure if i can ever really use that tank with any degree of confidence). after i went out and bought a brand new 10 gallon replacement, which is now my divided adult guppies tank. next came the used 5.5 gallon minibow i purchased in westford, which originally i was going to use as either a hospital tank or a breeding tank, but is now my guppy fry rearing tank. finally, today, i'm adding another 10 gallon to my aquarium collection. like i said a few days ago, this one will be a guppies only tank, either males or females. i will then retire the 5.5 minibow once those fries become adults and i can separate them into either the male or female tank.

julie came over in the evening for dinner. she made tikka marsala, which is her safety recipe when she can't think of anything else to make (my safety recipe is thai red curry, which i haven't made in a while, but i haven't really been in the mood for it recently).

it was the second game of the yankees red sox series, and right from the start the red sox scored 3 runs off of a manny ramirez homer. at 4-2 (boston lead), we dug into some curse reversed ice cream hoping tavarez could survive the tough inning. red sox ended up winning the game, 7-3. the yankees are now tied in second place with the blue jays at 10.5 games back, with the orioles nipping at their heels just half a game behind. the red sox are first in the division, and currently have the best current in baseball, which is sort of new territory since we're usually the ones outside looking in. but it's still early (so they say, but can't help being excited). if schilling can't beat pettite tomorrow night, we're going to be a pretty good place.