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That is a good-sized sunny! Real good-sized!

Only water changes can remove nitrate, the final, and least toxic, result of the nitrogen cycle. Fish can tolerate high nitrate levels for a good while, but are healthiest if nitrate levels are kept low. How often and how much water is changed depends on the bioload (how many and how large in what size tank). My large tanks are plumbed so it is matter of opening some valves and closing others. I have portable pumps for the smaller tanks. The African tank is the only one I need to do a water change on every week, and I do a big on, 40% or so. My other tanks are lightly stocked, which helps a whole lot. Big tanks with few fish are easy peasy.

A recommended benchmark for a typical tank (which is typically overstocked for the tank size) is a 20% water change weekly.

Nitrate toxicity is low and a long term issue, if I miss a change, I just make it a bigger change next go round. I do have water test kits of every type, but once you know a tank, you have a good idea of what needs to be done on what kind of schedule.

Fresh water is simple. Back on the farm, I had 180 gallon marine tank running for seven years or so. Salts are lot more work. But, again, the right sort of plumbing makes it all go a lot more smoothly.

My Amatitlania nanolueus have spawned and the fish world is atwitter! Twenty babies about 3 weeks old. This is not a common species in the trade; these little guys will be in demand. Not "get rich" demand, but they will wanted.

A. nanolueus is small Central American cichlid (cichlids is the common name for large family of fish very loosely related to sunfish & bass. ). Cichlids take good care of their babies, protecting them from predators as best they can (they attack my fingers when I do tank maintenance). They are now herding their young'uns about the tank very much like a pair of mother hens.




The proud parents!

Happy Birthday, Phil!

Waiting for you in Todd's shop!

She appears to be the type of person that once they start something they are determined to finish it. If she appears to be a tad down next time you see her, compliment on her stick-to-itiveness! Iowa at its finest!

When I was on the school board, there was this one new fellow who kept coming up with all these great new ideas that could be implemented. The experienced board members knew what to do, they put him on a committee of one and told him investigate his new ideas for six months or so and then report back, which kept him occupied and out of their hair so they could get the real business done.

It took me all of those six months to figure out what was going on (and it was such a good report, so sad that no one ever read it).

Well, unless they put it in writing and then mailed the contract to the Democratic National Committee for safe keeping, there won't be an issue... if he even gets a job, which remains to be seen.

Diet and Health is a huge concern, but it isn't one I would associate with Trump or with the majority of his base.

On a personal level, the people I know, I don't see any connection between party preference and eating habits.

On the political level, Democrats have the edge, if support for programs and policies advocating healthier foods and diets is the measure. And if a consumer advocacy group that advocates for restrictions and oversight concerning the amount and degree of food additives and highly processed foods in the national diet is going to endorse a candidate or policy, it will invariable be a Democratic candidate or Democratic policy.

And on the food shopping level, if you go to a food coop or some such in search of organic, unprocessed, no additive, healthy-type foods, it will either be run by an apolitical church group such as The Seventh Day Adventists or it will be run a group of progressive lefties. You will see very few Trump stickers in the parking lot but you will see a flood of Harris/Walz stickers and buttons.



There is no doubt among health professionals that incidences of childhood obesity and diabetes are rising. And there is no doubt that the incidence of colon cancer is rising dangerously amongst young adults. And there is no doubt that most of these professionals name diet as the chief contributing factor behind the rise of both. If these concerns are political issues, under what sun would they line up in support of Trump?

The issue with the diets behind these concerns/diseases is settling out. Not enough whole, unprocessed foods and fiber in the diet; too much low fiber, highly processed and additatived food in the diet. This is a widespread concern, not a late-night radio one... unless there something going on that only the listeners of late-night radio are privy to.



(I have spent the last month eating nothing but sweetcorn, green beans, and tomatoes every day all day. My colon is as polished as a '57 Chevy on its way to the town parade.)