KillerJackRussell.wmv (6MB)

KillerJackRussell.wmv (6MB) just love Jacks!  My all time favorite of course is Rosie.  We'd have ten of them if they were all like her!

Almost Done!

Well the time is near......we will only be open thru Labor Day on a daily basis then it's weekends until the fat lady sings!  We stay open weekends until not enough people are around to make it worth our while.  We have lots to do this off season on both the outside (new roof) and inside (new display rack for grow-outs) so Dave will be busy!

Its Blues Weekend in the Bay which we love since we love to listen to the Blues and play them for the entire weekend.  There is not one thing we can be blue about this year ~ we've had a great season.  Everyone downtown is complaining about how slow it is but those people have to just realize that we will not be going back to the 80's when times were supposedly great in the Bay.  Time can only go forward and if you don't do any changin' with the times THEY PASS YOU BY.  Which is  why Clayton is doing so well..... Forward, people, forward.  Quit holding on to the PAST.

Amma.org

Amma.org: "The amount of love, the amount of heart which you pour into your work makes it significant and beautiful."
No wonder the AquaZoo has been around since 1996 ~ we love what we do with all our heart! Yesterday we went to Azial's graduation party and gave him one piece of advice which was pick something you love and you'll never do a days work in your life. David's dad wrote that in his graduation card back in the day, as they say, and he was so right on target.

One of those OMG moments at the AquaZoo

Hotchi Momma!  Yesterday I was on my way to do paperwork and when I turned the corner to get to my office low and behold WATER was on the floor in a BIG WAY!!!  David sprang into action thinking maybe it was the crappy silicone that we have to use now due to all the government regulations on the good stuff, but thank heavens it was a water return pipe that the Snakehead (yes we have a permit) moved out of place.  We vacuumed up the water, replaced the water that was now on the floor back into the tank and reopened, all in about 15 minutes.  Now to get thru the rest of the season without that kind of excitement would be great but if life doesn't throw you any curve balls how do you know how talented you are?

So Funny those Redtails are!

It was so funny the other day when the Redtail that I call Grady and the Yaki Cat were after the same piece of fish.  As Grady began to swirl around to get the food he created a whirl of water that kept the food going around in the same circle that he was in..I watched laughing for at least 30 seconds!  Sometimes when I feed this particular exhibit they make a huge woooossshhhh and I end up getting wet.  The other day I literally had to change my clothes because I got soaked!

Let's get something straight, lol

For all you locals who want to know....we GAVE it back, it did not get TAKEN back....Not that it really matters anyway ~ ka-sir-ra-sir-ra

Almost Time!

Well its almost time!  Time for the tourists to come back to see us again or visit us for the first time.  Its always fun for us when people say "Gee I didn't know what to expect ~ its wonderful in here!"  Most people enjoy our Aquarium but then there are those who thought they were going to visit  Marineland, lol. 
Many people visit us every year, some visit once in a while and some come in that haven't been in for years.  Then of course there are the first timers.....The ones that stop in on a regular basis are fun to visit with since we, being the gabbers that we are, know details about these people that we remember and then share.  We have made many friends, been invited to many weddings and parties.  Because we are here for 16 years now we see kids who drive in the parking lot then first visited us in-utero, lol.   

Great Weekend!

Thanks to everyone who came out in support of the Backpack Program.  It really warms your heart to be able to contribute to such a good cause.  All of the fish were on their best behavior, well except for the Minniatus who although I have not seen him, must have been picking on the big-eye ~ on Friday I saw the big-eye up in the corner hiding with the panther grouper.  I figured since we had removed the snapper they were all just marking their space in the tank.  I noticed a chunk out of the big-eye but I hoped it would not lead to his desmise....sad but it did.  We had him for a quite a few years so its sad for us, but the nurse shark had a afternoon snack....

Backpack Program

This Saturday and Sunday, Victoria Weekend for our Canadian friends, we will not be charging admission but instead will be collecting donations for the Bays backpack program.  Its a great program where they send food home with kids whose parents need a little help keeping them fed.  In today's day it is more common then we'd like to admit.  Shaina Twain talked about being hungry on Oprah recently.  David has told me about a particular boy in school that he remembers never had any lunch and I guess back then they didn't have any state or local programs in place to take care of those kids.... he said he would often give this kid some of his lunch. I hope everyone comes out to see  what we've done for our 16th season and to support this great cause.  These kids are ones you see in the Big M or at Kinney drug.  Kids you know.  See you Saturday or Sunday, 11 am until 5 pm!

The Anableps are doing great!

Anableps are either 'good' when you get them or 'bad.'  Since you don't know which you'll be getting you blindly pay a few dollars for each and then say a Hail Mary that you end up  with 'good' ones.  This time around they are great!  Well, we lost three in shipping but the rest ate like maniacs almost immediately!  They scarf down brine shrimp and mysis shrimp like crazy.  I just love them ~ they are awesome they way their eyes peek out of the water.

Moved the Morays

We had a little excitement today at the zoo. One moray decided he was going to make a run for it and wiggled out of the net! I had to run for the flashlight since he got under the exhibit while David tried to retrieve him without getting a nasty bite. I once had a good sized moray bite me and boy it really festered for days. I probley should have had it checked out but I'm still here so no harm, no foul, but I certainly don't want that to happen again. They were moved to a 155 bowfront and as soon as they went in they literally disappeared. Its amazing how something of their size can hid since we didn't put a ton of rock in the tank. We put the snapper in the old moray exhibit. Now everyone can relax in his old exhibit. No matter how much I pre-fed him he still would try and get all the food put into the tank. What a hog....

The Redtails

Those silly redtails are driving me crazy. They are bullying the yacky cat more and more at dinner time. Since they are larger then him girth-wise he lets them.....No matter that I use my stern voice ~ they continue the rude behavior. Grady and White are their names and Merc is the yacky cat. If I hold the food above the water until the yacky comes over, the red's literally dive out of the water for the food; this AFTER they have a full belly.

Never ending coolness

The reef with the corals always amazes me.  If you look closely there is always something that you find interesting.  Like the pulsing Xenia attached by only a thread of macro algae, or the serpent star that only emerges once in a while and always with such a secretive air about him.  I love feeding this tank because everyone is very polite unlike some of the tanks that have crazies that will try and get ALL of the food even if it means they are bursting themselves from having so much in their bellies! Case in point?  The marroon clown that I have to literally shoo away so the tomato clown can eat. 

Babies!

How fun!  Found some babies today in the balloon fish tank.  Not sure at this point but am  guessing they are mollies ~ a little hard to tell they are still mere specks.  I just love it when they are little like this.  They are so cute and their little personalities just shine through.  Some are scared and hide, some are brave and venture out of the comfort zone. 

Colonoscopy

Well THATS not a fish word, is it?  But I just have to pass on our experience from yesterday at Samaritan in Watertown.  David was having issues with his belly so he finally took enough time out to get the dreaded colonoscopy.  Now, everyone said the worst part is the preparation.  And they are right!  He was so hungry AND he was the last patient of the day so he hadn't eaten anything since 5 pm Wednesday and it was 3 pm Friday before he went in the procedure room!  Liquid diet Thursday then not even water on Friday.  Believe me, it is nerve-racking as all heck because you just always think, "what if"?
Had we known how fantastic the staff of Dr. Weinstein and the hospital staff on the floor was we would not have been half as scared.  They were so helpful in aleaving the stress its crazy!  Dr. Weinstein, the waiting room staff,  and the recovery room staff were great. They were helpful, kind, compassionate, gentle, patient with our questions and even humorous!  You could almost say they made it enjoyable ~ save for all that hunger! lol  You get put into a twilight state and the medicine you get makes you have amnesia (cool) so you don't remember ANYTHING.  There is no pain after just some really great tooting BUT they don't have odor so its not gross or anything.  And the best part?  You are all doopy and say some pretty funny things that the person who goes as your ride home gets to enjoy.
Please, if you are scared ~ don't be.  Knowing you are ok is so much better then wondering if you are ok.  The unpleasant day before is so trumped by the ease of the actual procedure, honestly.

A wonderful day!

What a charmed life we get to live in the 1000 Islands!  And being able to spend every day with our fish is just the icing on the cake.  Yesterday I had a blast feeding everyone ~ no matter how many times ~ which is daily ~ I still enjoy watching them.  During the summer when I am across the street at the Greens, David takes over the job and being so busy I don't miss it, but when I spend all these months in the off-season doing it I am reminded just how fun it is.

Back in the day we would feed the live eaters for $1.00/4 minnows so people could watch them eat. We also fed Big Al a white mouse for $3.00.  I'll never forget the two little girls with their dad who begged him to spend that $3.00 for a mouse.  He kept telling them he wasn't so sure they'd want to see it...but like all good dads he caved. 
I'll set the scene:  two little sweeties about age 6 or so directly in front of the exhibit
little noses practically pressing against it.  I throw the mouse in and it starts to swim directly at the glass where the little girls were situated.  Just when it got right in front of them Big Al lunged at it, snapping it up in his jaws RIGHT in front of them.  Blood squirted they screamed and the dad said "see? I told you,you may not like it!"  The dad and I laughed and I still chuckle when I think about it.

Holy Moly

Well, we didn't think it was possible but really nothing is impossible or so it seems.  The foot long Midas Cichlid that has been an ongoing problem with bad behavior was moved to the tank with the very large Redtail Cats.  Long story short?  For a few days everything seemed fine.  Then this morning Mr. Redtail had a very large belly.  Turns out it was Mr. Midas.  We feel bad for him after all, what a death ~ it had to take a bit for the Redtail to consume him because of his size but it happened overnight and we  only saw the aftermath.

Pretty cool....

 http://translate.google.com/
This is a pretty cool link!  I can't stop myself ~ so many phrases and words to try!

A Bail Out!

So sad this am......our ornate polypalmus bailed out of his tank.  He was about a foot long so pretty strong as fish go ~ when he hit the top cover it moved just enough for him to get out.  I remember a day when he was about eight inches and we added another polypalmus to the tank; almost on the fishes impact into the water CHOMP and he was literally cut in half.  The culprit of course, the ornate polypalmus.  At first its like AWESOME did you see that?  Then reality sets in and your bummed about the poor fish getting eaten and the cost of him to be replaced. 

Looks like RAIN!

It may be raining outside but inside the AquaZoo its always sunny!  During the season we get so busy when its raining but actually we are just as busy when its windy out.  Often times wind means people can't get on the river with their boats and maybe they are afraid even to get on one of the tour boats when there are white caps; you know, on account of sea-sickness or should we say river-sickness?

Amma

Where there is love, there is no effort.Amma

Little Rays

Yea!  We are finally going to visit our friend, Little Ray at his attraction in Ottawa.  He operates a facility that specializes in reptiles.  It looks pretty amazing www.raysreptiles.com.  We'll be picking a day that travel looks good of course since its 2 1/2 hours north of us.  Ottawa is great to visit.  We have some fine memories of a tournament we used to go to there with our son's hockey team.  The city is beautiful and pretty easy to get around if you pay attention instead of looking at all that is around you, way easier said then done. 

Man bit by piranha in northern NY!

Yesterday afternoon we finally started to move the piranha from their exhibit ~ its leaking, but hey, it was suppossed to leak six years ago when it was ten years old and it didn't so we are doing pretty good!  We drained the water into two different exhibits, one close by and one around the corner from their exhibit.  David put his old pair of LaCross boots on and stepped inside with about eight or nine inches of water remaining because these guys and gals are 15 and 16 years old so they are large and IN CHARGE!!  He used a laundry basket as a net and went to work on catching them, one by one.  My job was to be the 'runner' or the person who retrieves the basket and runs with it to the tank where the fish are going to be temporarily kept.  The tank next to theirs meant that it was a few seconds from catch to release.  Let me tell you, they were flipping almost out of the basket.....I kept it facing slightly tipped away from me so that if they jumped out at least my face wouldn't get a nasty bite.  It was so nerve-racking because you had to be careful to hold the basket at the handle area to semi protect your hands and fingers and ascend a ladder (hey I'm a shortie) and dump them in all while saying your Hail Marys that you would not get bit.  Everything went well until David got  bit! Unfortunately his finger went through ever so slightly into the basket and he swears that the fish in the basket was intent on attacking him, as if it seeked out his flesh!  It's teeth hit his nail and the back of his finger.  Thank God it didn't bite and tear or his finger would have been gone and become waste matter when the fish digested it, lol.  Each one of them has a mouth large enough to slice off a finger like it was butter.  I think the trauma of the event was instramental in saving David's finger, as the fish was in the midst of saving his own life.  The bite went down to the bone ~ blood was dripping at this point but the job had to get done.  Piranha's and blood...add that to the equation and you can see how I became REALLY nervous.  We had to move the last 11 by having David put the fish from the basket to a bucket and then put a lid on the bucket.  It gave him more contact time with the fish but it was the only way I could finish the job; the 'run' was longer and my contact time increased as well! 
One of them grew a large tumor recently so we had to destroy him.  The most humane way at the moment was to put him or her in snow.  David made a little grave for him, I prayed to St. Francis to be with him/her, I thanked the fish for his service to us, cried and went back to moving the rest of the fish.  It is very difficult to lose a fish that you raised since 1996, a fish that was the size of a quarter and grew to the size of a dinner plate.  These guys are our employees and we respect them as such.

What up with that?

I see a banner has been attached to the fence that is at the 'gateway' lol, to Alex Bay, the 'village,' advertising that we welcome 'Bikers' one has to wonder just when is the banner going up that says 'Welcome Families.'

Snow, Snow, Beautiful Snow

For the love of God, when is it going to stop snowing?  This am, much to my surprise it was snowing again! and not just a little, a full-blown snow storm.  The only good thing at this point is remembering that all it  takes to shovel is some stored fat but it takes GAS to run equipment that mowes.  So....snow = lost fat and
rain=gas$$$$$ Viva la SNOW.

Watch the Network Solutions parody video about Go Daddy commercials #gogranny http://bit.ly/gogranny

Watch the Network Solutions parody video about Go Daddy commercials #gogranny http://bit.ly/gogranny

So this is a gale!

I have experienced northern New York winters since 1995 and I am here to tell you today is a doze!   The official weather term is 'gale' for what is happening outside our door.  The wind is howling at 30 miles an hour, the snow is flying and its only 5 degrees! Now  mind you 5 degrees is fine if the wind is not blowing; as a matter of fact with a bright sun shining 5 degrees makes for a lovely day.

Workers needing to get to Islands had to decide on whether or not to venture out on the river with the conditions that were at hand; one that I am aware of decided that since they couldn't  really see the Island through the gale,  they'd be taking a snow day. 

All of this of course has not deterred many from traveling.  Our road crews do a fantastic job keeping up on the snow so if you have to go to the store or need to pick up some supplies you just get in the vehicle and go.  I guess if you allow the bad weather to ruin your day, then you best not live here!

Guided class field trips

After a one year hiatus we'll be doing field trips again, and after a several year hiatus they will be guided!  I'll do it like in the past and not allow chaperons because they just get in the way.  A field trip from school in my opinion is for the STUDENT.  If you want to spend time with your kid do it at family time.

David won't be joining me because he'll be  across the street at the Greens taking charge of field trips over there;  Lindsay will make a great assistant for me plus she will get experience being a 'teacher.'   She wants to work with older kids but maybe when she  gets a load of how much fun little ones are she'll change her mind!  Or get out of the teaching program altogether....

Unlimited daylight

Holy Moly!  This morning when I went into the zoo at 7am I discovered that we had let the lights on ALL NIGHT!  this is something that we have never, ever done.  Aside from the extra denaros NIMO  will receive due to our screw up, the poor fish didn't have a good rest last night.  Poor things, they must have wondered all night where their mom and dad were and why for Gods sake the lights were still on.....

Another cold one OMG

Well at 28 below it is preeeettttyyy cold out.  This of course will have no impact on anything we'll be doing inside today.  First on the agenda will be feeding everyone and making sure all look nice and healthy.  Today I think I'll vacumn a tank or two and work on making new descriptions for the fish so they are updated for the 11' season.  We get lots of compliments on my little blurbs about the fish in the exhibits but I think I can make them a little smaller and more attractive then they are right now. 

Baby its cold outside but warm in here!

OMG its freezing outside but you would never know it in here as its about 78 degrees!  We're busy doing maintenance and getting ready for the new season.  Today I will be in Little Als system so it will be an interesting time.  He was bellowing yesterday and acting all mean which makes us laugh because he is only about 30 inches long.  Of course his teeth are razor sharp and he is very quick so lets hope the joke is not on me or I'll be at River Hospital this afternoon. 

Lets get started!

I've taken the plunge, done the deed; committed myself to blogging a little something about the AquaZoo. I can't promise I'll get to it every day but I am certainly going to give it the ole' northern New York try. 

The first order of business won't even be pertaining to the AquaZoo directly.  Last night was the very last time Rick DeFranco would be bringing the weather report to us on channel 7.  What a bummer!  Rick has been a part of our life almost since we moved to NNY.  Good for him to be moving ahead in his life but sad for us to see him go. 

Rick was on the very first morning show segment David did on channel 7 so we've always held a special place in our hearts for him.  He made the whole experience for David very positive and we enjoyed several years of a relationship with the channel after that initial segment.  We wish him the very best!