Hello, Geezer coming back to this forum. Paul B

[T Diddy]

So I have been coughing my brains out for a week and a TV crew is coming here in 4 days so I don't want to look like I am croaking when they are here. Normally I wouldn't care but I wanted to see if a Dr. could give me something to suppress this cough at least for a couple of days. After that I could get Diphtheria, irritable Bowell or appendicitis.

In the meantime, my wife wanted me to go out and get celery keeping in mind that we are in the middle of a blizzard and are supposed to get 8" of snow.
This was early this morning when it just started.

(make believe there is a snowy picture here)

I get to the Supermarket and weave between the snow plows to get inside for celery.

The saleslady said to me, You came out on a day like this for celery? I said, yes. I am married. Do you think my Mother would send me out on a day like this for celery?

Anyway today my wife has an appointment for a MRI and the MRI place don't answer the phone so I figured I would drive the 8 miles there to see if they were open. Of course not. Bunch of Sissies. A couple of inches of snow and the world stops.

But next to the MRI place is one of those "Doc in a Box" places. You know where they advertise, no waiting, instant care and all that.

I go in and the place is pretty empty, like 2 people waiting. I go to the "nurse" at the window and ask if this is one of those "immediate care places". She says yes. But there is no doctor here and he may get here in 2 or 3 hours if he comes in at all.

I told her, that isn't exactly the "Immediate" care I am looking for...Bye.

The world ain’t what it used to be…at least you got the celery

 

[Paul B]

Exactly, the world is full of Sissies and Snowflakes. In the almost 50 years I worked in Manhattan I never took off because of weather, and in the 70s we used to measure it by the foot, not inches. I don't remember exactly when so many people lost the ability to do anything even remotely difficult.

 

[Paul B]

The News film crew is coming to my house this Saturday to film my meeting with Cathleen who wrote to me in Vietnam. I am pretty excited to meet her.

 

[griss]

Awesome Paul. When the video is available, please provide us a link. Hope your cough is getting better.

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

Paul, the cheap whiskey is not as good as the $$$$ stuff for a cough.
Just Sayin!

 

[Paul B]

I am taking Grand Marnier for the cough. Whiskey is to cheap and won't work for a cough.

I noticed my DIY skimmer wasn't making many bubbles so I checked it out. Eventually I have to remove the air/ozone inlet tube on te DIY venturi because it gets clogged. Normally I just take off the hose and stick a drill bit in it to clear it.

Of course I removed the hose and the acrylic tube broke. So I had to re drill the thing and glue in another tube. After a few years with ozone, the tubes get brittle. It isn't acrylic, some kind of hard, clear plastic.

So it's back together and if my tank doesn't empty out on the floor by tomorrow, I will know it is a success.

 

[Paul B]

I normally walk around with a toothpick sticking out of my mouth. I quit smoking in Nam where cigarettes were free and started "smoking" toothpicks. My Grand Son, Teddy wants to look like me.

 

[Paul B]

I figure I would put this Chalk Bass here because he doesn't come out to the front very often. He normally spends his time writing on the back glass with chalk.

On another note, look at that beautiful growth on my rocks. I love it but most people would get out the tooth brush

 

[T Diddy]

I figure I would put this Chalk Bass here because he doesn't come out to the front very often. He normally spends his time writing on the back glass with chalk.

On another note, look at that beautiful growth on my rocks. I love it but most people would get out the tooth brush


View attachment 32396811

That’s a great shot, and a beautiful fish!

 

[griss]

I love Chalk Bass, one of my all time favorite fish.

 

[Paul B]

The news crew came here yesterday todo a story about a Christmas Card a little girl sent me in Viet Nam in 1970. They even got my fish tank in. I am waiting for Martin Scorsese to call me about the mini series.

Now it's on every 10 minutes all day so I am getting tired of looking at myself.

53 years later: Rediscovered 'thank you' card prompts meeting between Vietnam vet, pen pal

 

[Paul B]

So yesterday we took the Lady and her sister around because they have never been on Long Island and she wanted to see the "Famous" Hamptons.

WE took them to a winery were we are members. There was a party going on so the place was crowded.
As we walked in, most of the people recognized us from the TV appearance and all came over thanking me for my service and telling us what a nice story it is. I didn't know any of these people.

Then a few minutes later, a guy came to our table and gave me a $30.00 bottle of wine saying his Dad was a Vietnam Vet.

Then I took them to a farm stand here because she likes horseradish and they grow and produce it there.

The woman who owns it saw us get out of the car and ran out to hug me.

My wife and I went to a diner for breakfast and they have 3 TVs on constantly. The story came on a few times while we wee there so quite a few people came over to talk as they recognized me.

Long Island is about 150 miles long, there are about 7 million people and we only have one local news station so most people here see it and it loops about every 15 minutes for like 2 days.

This morning everyone I ever knew in my life is calling to ask me if I knew I was on TV. It was a lot of fun.
The reporter and camera Lady took a lot of video of my fish and steam punk stuff and all the innovations I built in my man cave. She said there is to much going on here and they may have to come back and do another story.

This is Kathleen who wrote me the Christmas card in Nam in 1970.

And in the winery

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

Nice!

 

[Paul B]

I brought them back to the railroad this morning so they can get home to New Jersey.

 

[Paul B]

I had to do something I always say not to do and it is something you would do. I ordered a small can of sinking pellets.

These 3 Waspfish are getting very picky and only want to eat at night. They think they live in an all night diner, but they don't. Many times they won't eat during the day .


At night, before the lights go out, I will "shoot" some pellets into their caves in the hope they will eat at night. I really hate dry foods but I don't think my smaller ones are getting enough food in the day and with all the crabs and bristle worms I have, I need to supplement them.

Many times I can't even find the smaller ones.

 

[Timfish]

I've seen fish that won't eat pellets but in defense of dry food I've had fish outlive their wild counterparts eating a quality pellet.

I also use a "mixing tube" that lets pellets or frozen foods get sucked into a return pump without food building up in the slow areas of a sump.

 

[Paul B]

They will eat clams like all my fish do, but I can't hardly find them in the day time as they are normally sleeping in a deep hole someplace so I can't feed them easily

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

I have no idea what mine eat. There were 3, lost 1. Just the other day I was moving some gravel & out darted one.
I thought they were all lost. Saw one this morning again. So maybe I have 1, maybe I have 2 ???

 

[Paul B]

I think I still have 3. I think tomorrow I will go to a LFS and if he has more, I will get some more

 

[Paul B]

This has been a busy week and it's not over yet. Just 5 minutes ago I got a call from the "Honor Flight". That is an organisation who honors Veterans from all the wars by taking them to Washington BC once a year to honor them.

We will get a flight to DC and tour all the monuments. I assume listen to some speeches and get dinner. They will fly us back that night.

They asked me to apply last year but I didn't get picked, but I am going May 4th. I am kind of excited and Honored.

This is long so don't watch it. I didn't even watch the whole thing.