Alex, Tubs and others, do you regret leaving the hobby?
- Thread starter Maximus
- Start date
Quatro
New member
Sang,
If you have already made your decision, you need to have confidence that you made the right choice, and believe that your life will be better because of your decision.
If you are still on the fence, have you thought about automation? Make the tank self-feeding and self-sustaining, so you don't have to stare at it daily. This way you can spend time away from the tank to do more important things like vacations, children's plays and hanging out with the wifey. Another option would be to downgrade to a smaller tank, but I think your current tank is doing very well, and with some additional equipment, you could be able to leave it for a few weeks at a time if necessary.
Remember, you can only make your family happy if you yourself are happy. This may just be the regret of taking down such a beautiful tank setting in, but is it going to affect you more substantially than you thought? It would be far worse to feel resentment against your family months later when the tank is down.
Having a reef is one of the greatest things in my life, but more importantly is my family and loved ones. If one side of your life becomes unbalanced, of course trouble is gonna happen, maybe seek a balance between reefing and other areas of life. I don't know what religion you are, but in Buddhism, there is something called the middle path or magga, and it is a process of constant renunciation of the extremities in life. Our minds are contantly on fire with defilments of our ego, and often reefing can become an obsession, so maybe the time has come to renounce this attachment that has lead you down the wrong path, at least for awhile. You don't have to completely give up on it, just prioritize things and seek a balance.
Not sure if that's what your looking for, but I'm trying to write this paper for my Buddhism class, so sorry if it came off as too "religious"
Take care bro!
Harry
If you have already made your decision, you need to have confidence that you made the right choice, and believe that your life will be better because of your decision.
If you are still on the fence, have you thought about automation? Make the tank self-feeding and self-sustaining, so you don't have to stare at it daily. This way you can spend time away from the tank to do more important things like vacations, children's plays and hanging out with the wifey. Another option would be to downgrade to a smaller tank, but I think your current tank is doing very well, and with some additional equipment, you could be able to leave it for a few weeks at a time if necessary.
Remember, you can only make your family happy if you yourself are happy. This may just be the regret of taking down such a beautiful tank setting in, but is it going to affect you more substantially than you thought? It would be far worse to feel resentment against your family months later when the tank is down.
Having a reef is one of the greatest things in my life, but more importantly is my family and loved ones. If one side of your life becomes unbalanced, of course trouble is gonna happen, maybe seek a balance between reefing and other areas of life. I don't know what religion you are, but in Buddhism, there is something called the middle path or magga, and it is a process of constant renunciation of the extremities in life. Our minds are contantly on fire with defilments of our ego, and often reefing can become an obsession, so maybe the time has come to renounce this attachment that has lead you down the wrong path, at least for awhile. You don't have to completely give up on it, just prioritize things and seek a balance.
Not sure if that's what your looking for, but I'm trying to write this paper for my Buddhism class, so sorry if it came off as too "religious"
Take care bro!
Harry
reefer on a budget
New member
sang,
i left the hobby due to dimishing interest in keeping a reef so our situations are probably different. it sounds like you were more forced to take a break in the best interest of family which is understandable.
sad to say this but in all honestly once my tank was fully powered down i felt a big burden lift off my shoulders where i no longer had to worry about caring for the tank and spending more money on it. it felt good knowing that an extra $150 or more a month on electricity was being saved up and for once in the past 6 years leaving town for several days was possible w/out having to worry about feeding fish, topping off, having a tank disaster or relying on someone to tank sit.
in short, i dont miss taking a break and maybe later down the line when im at a different stage of my life ill setup another talk. in the meantime i still like looking at tanks and checking out things online. its just now, i dont really look at keeping tanks the same way and always remind myself of how much of a chore it was in keeping a nice reef tank. at this moment, im typing this up im looking at my ever so neglected 7gallon nano in my cube. the tank has 1/4 of the water evaported, all corals dead, micro and cyano algae everything but with a happy clown fish so that just tells u where im at with reefs..haha
i left the hobby due to dimishing interest in keeping a reef so our situations are probably different. it sounds like you were more forced to take a break in the best interest of family which is understandable.
sad to say this but in all honestly once my tank was fully powered down i felt a big burden lift off my shoulders where i no longer had to worry about caring for the tank and spending more money on it. it felt good knowing that an extra $150 or more a month on electricity was being saved up and for once in the past 6 years leaving town for several days was possible w/out having to worry about feeding fish, topping off, having a tank disaster or relying on someone to tank sit.
in short, i dont miss taking a break and maybe later down the line when im at a different stage of my life ill setup another talk. in the meantime i still like looking at tanks and checking out things online. its just now, i dont really look at keeping tanks the same way and always remind myself of how much of a chore it was in keeping a nice reef tank. at this moment, im typing this up im looking at my ever so neglected 7gallon nano in my cube. the tank has 1/4 of the water evaported, all corals dead, micro and cyano algae everything but with a happy clown fish so that just tells u where im at with reefs..haha
Unarce
Unshackled
John (tubs) left the business, but I think he's still going tol keep a small tank. You're going cold turkey. I thought for sure you'd keep your angels in a small FO
I can understand the mixed emotions, but it's better to get out while the gettin's good. You can always look back at this set-up, fondly, since it's on your terms.
The hobby's going to be here for you when you return...just think...BLACKURA
I can understand the mixed emotions, but it's better to get out while the gettin's good. You can always look back at this set-up, fondly, since it's on your terms.
The hobby's going to be here for you when you return...just think...BLACKURA
Mike in CA
New member
Sang, if you want to get out of town for an extended time just let me know and I'd be more than happy to help out with the tank or in any other way I can.
Welcome back!
Welcome back!
dannieboiz
Active member
3 Words....
THEY'LL BE BACK!:lol:
THEY'LL BE BACK!:lol:
reefkeeper1
New member
You know, in the movie Adaptation, Chris Cooper summed things up pretty well about any hobby that becomes an obsession:
John Laroche: Then one morning, I woke up and said, "F*** fish." I renounce fish, I will never set foot in that ocean again. And there hasn't been a time where I have stuck so much as a toe back in that ocean.
Susan Orlean: But why?
John Laroche: Done with fish.
John Laroche: Then one morning, I woke up and said, "F*** fish." I renounce fish, I will never set foot in that ocean again. And there hasn't been a time where I have stuck so much as a toe back in that ocean.
Susan Orlean: But why?
John Laroche: Done with fish.
Lordhelmet
Active member
i think i will always have some kind of tank set up for the rest of my life. to me the possibilities are as endless as well the sea.
Lordhelmet
Active member
and I'm glad your keeping your angels. they truly are beautiful.
Couldnt you just go with a more managable size, and keep only what you truly like? A lot of people get caught up in the flavor of the month and forget that it's just a tank in the end. Shame though, you had a really nice tank. I enjoyed talking to you the few times we've met, even though I was always a sales rep at that point
racrumrine
New member
Maximus:
I just want to say that I always thought you always had nice stuff.
I hauled my old 55 gallon tank and equipment from place to place for over 20 years always dreaming of setting up a salt water aquarium.
Thanks to finding Nemo, my Boys wanted to set up a tank.
Now the whole family is hooked and I finally got to do what I always wanted to do. And yes, the 55 still holds water.
Don't give up your dream.
Best of luck,
Roy
I just want to say that I always thought you always had nice stuff.
I hauled my old 55 gallon tank and equipment from place to place for over 20 years always dreaming of setting up a salt water aquarium.
Thanks to finding Nemo, my Boys wanted to set up a tank.
Now the whole family is hooked and I finally got to do what I always wanted to do. And yes, the 55 still holds water.
Don't give up your dream.
Best of luck,
Roy
zemuron114
In Memoriam
maximus - what are your plans for the interruptus pair? I hope they find a good home along with the rest of your inhabitants
Similar threads
