I know there is nothing I, or anybody for that matter can say to you right now that will make this horrible situation feel any less so, but id just like to commend you on the way you have handled this, and the positive way in which you are looking at your future in the hobby. It probably seems that a serious amount of money was lost with this, but try to think of it as money well spent with regards to how much joy and education this tank brought to you.
Chin up mate, you and your family are still in good health.
Mark.
Peter and of course myself are delighted to hear the strong words of support from the RC community. Peter in particular is so proud to have friends spread across the globe who share his hobby and follow his person effort in it. Hearing kind words from Australia is an honour he doesn't take lightly.
Although Peter is very youthful, he has settled into retirement and the subsequent routine. As such, he doesn't travel much, and unlike many people in his income bracket he does not own a cottage, Island in the Caribbean, a yacht, or second home down south. What he does have is an extension of himself in his aquarium and through this community he has a network of fronds that is priceless. So any words of condolence, encouragement to go on, and "holy..." are greatly appreciated.
When the disaster occurred, the last thing on my mind was "what will Peter do". After some days had passed, it was an obvious question, but the answer wasn't as obvious. Knowing Peter for the past five years, I can assure you there wan;t a day where he spent less than an hour or two feeding the fish and inspecting the tank. As I've said before, he lives in a 10,000sq' house but you can invariably find him in the basement with his fish tank, like a teenager. That's what I was doing when I was 14 anyway. The aquarium has become such a significant part of his routine that he really can't change that without great sacrifice.
As Peter stated, it's impossible not to focus on the massive expense of rebuilding. Even this late in the game, Peter earned perhaps the greatest lesson of all, it really isn't about the money. Well of course it's about the money, or we would all have one of these in our homes, but once he waved the magic wand and took the cost off of the table, he was able to focus on how he truly felt on the matter. So if money is the only obstacle, then you revisit the idea and try to find an angle where you can make it work.
To answer the obvious question, Peter cannot just pull out a cheque book and pretend this never happened, and outside funding is sure to be a long drawn-out and painful process.
One of the many ways a large tank differs from a typical reef aquarium, is the ease of rebuilding. There have been many incidents oaf a fellow marine club member losing a 90 gallon tank. Quite often a new tank is acquired at a discount from a sympathetic vendor and fellow hobbyists jump in and donate excess livestock. A few frags from a dozen friends can get you back in the game overnight. This practice has proven to be a great way of building a coral livestock bank that we can all fall back on when we lose a particular coral species in our tanks. We are looking at a completely different process here but we are hoping to utilize whatever resources we can find to help numb the pain of the rebuild. Sanjay had an Acro die off that was absolutely devastating for him. Fortunately, he has friends who reached out tot him and helped restock his tank at the university without raising tuitions
So thanks, no effort too small and no effort too big in helping Peter get back in the game.
