Back in December (2007) when we got our tank I didn’t blog about it ’cause the tank was more for my husband. Besides, it was just before Christmas and I was overwhelmed with school, etc.
Then I fell in love with the tank, and discovered it was for me, too. My favorite date is to the fish store, and I’d rather study or write with the sound of the circulating water in my ear than anywhere else. Saltwater fish are actually interesting, and unique, unlike most freshwater fish I’ve seen. But it seemed a bit late to start blogging about it.
A few months passed, and our first (and only) fish disappeared.  A mysterious clicking sound resounded from our rocks. Our hermit crabs started showing punctures in their shells, and little puffs of sand would appear out of the rocks, accompanied by more clicking.
We had a Mantis Shrimp.
Only instead of being bright and colorful and wanted, our Mantis Shrimp was drab and grey and unwanted. It was a murderous fish-eating hitchhiker that would prove truly obdurate to get out of our tank.
So far, double thumbs up on the reenactment. Through a bit of careful planning and a lot of luck, we’ve avoided long lines in and out of town and had great views of the battles. Here’s a picture of me looking out toward the confederate lines and glassing the battle. You can see the union infantry lining up in the background, and the cannons were right here, too. We were close enough that binoculars were often just a plus, and could hear the guys talking or giving orders–at least while our hearing lasted!
With guns this close, the smoke was near constant and the noise pretty loud–but it was really cool! The next day we watched the cavalry charge from pretty close up, too, which made me particularly happy as I’ve always wanted to see the non-hollywood version of horses coming together in battle.
