Sunday, May 10, 2009
Dosing Vodka - really?
After 10 months of dosing vodka in my tank, I felt it was time to do a synopsis.
Vodka Dosing - Why?
Here's a recent picture from my reef, with some of the new Lyretail Anthias
Vodka Dosing - Why?
Here's a recent picture from my reef, with some of the new Lyretail Anthias
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
LFS page updated
I've gotten some emails lately about the LFS (local fish store) page on my site, because people that visit the area like to see what's available to see while they are in town. I made some updates since some stores were gone, others moved location, and a couple of new ones cropped up.
Then a guy on DFWMAS requested that the map be interactive at the top. He wanted to be able to zoom into his area. He even gave me a scrap of code to get me started, and the rest of my afternoon was devoured learning how to make an awesomely colorful map. LOL
For those of you waiting for me to get something done, I'm on it. Yes, I feel guilty, and yes your stuff is on the top of my To Do list. :)
In the meantime, here's the new version. Enjoy! DFW LFS page
Then a guy on DFWMAS requested that the map be interactive at the top. He wanted to be able to zoom into his area. He even gave me a scrap of code to get me started, and the rest of my afternoon was devoured learning how to make an awesomely colorful map. LOL
For those of you waiting for me to get something done, I'm on it. Yes, I feel guilty, and yes your stuff is on the top of my To Do list. :)
In the meantime, here's the new version. Enjoy! DFW LFS page
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
New items in the Reef Shop
Two new goodies have been added to my online shop, so if you want to see what they are, this is the page to visit:
Melev's Reef Shop
And here's a bit of eye candy...
Melev's Reef Shop
And here's a bit of eye candy...
Labels: reef shop
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
A booth at MAX - April 4 & 5, 2009
I'll be speaking at the Marine Aquarium Expo in Orange County, California the first weekend in April. And while I'm there, Melev's Reef will be represented as well, with a real live booth! I'll have some of my products for sale there during those two days, and will be speaking about Aquarium Photography on Sunday at 2pm.
So look for this pretty banner, which Jessica at CreativeSoup.com just made for everyone to see at MAX. I'm actually very excited about the booth, even though I really prefer not to be tethered to anything during such events because I love to explore all the new stuff in the other booths. This should be an interesting experience. (Maybe the only one ever - LOL )
So look for this pretty banner, which Jessica at CreativeSoup.com just made for everyone to see at MAX. I'm actually very excited about the booth, even though I really prefer not to be tethered to anything during such events because I love to explore all the new stuff in the other booths. This should be an interesting experience. (Maybe the only one ever - LOL )
Friday, February 27, 2009
A sudden visit to the hospital
To get everyone up to speed, the road trip to Arizona was a lot of fun. I got home Monday morning at 5am. Of course, as soon as I walked through the door, I checked on my reef and did a bunch of minor tweaks to adjust things they way they needed to be. All was well.
By 7pm that night, my stomach started hurting. I ran up to the store to buy some Mylanta tablets, and chewed up 5 of them over the next few hours. Since this was the fourth time in a month that this pain had occurred, I felt I better go to the hospital. Plus, that evening I was watching a recorded episode of Grey's Anatomy, and the woman had stomach cancer, so at 3am I threw on some clothes and drove up to the hospital. Within an hour or two, they told me I wasn't going anywhere for a few days.
I was diagnosed with acute Pancreatitus, which was a symptom of gall stones in the gall bladder. The bloodwork told the doctors that I had elevated enzyme counts (somewhere around 6600 instead of a mere 68), and I was put into a private room and got my required IV drip. No food or drink was allowed as surgery was imminent, and that included even ice chips. They medicated my pain, and watched my bloodwork daily. Within 24 hours, the enzymes had dropped like a rock to around 200, and my surgeon was eager to get in and remove my gall bladder since the opportune time was upon us. Surgery went well, and with four small incisions, they removed the gall bladder. I believe at this piont, I've had all of my back-up organs removed, and have to rely upon whatever is left in my body. ;)
The next day, I was given a good bill of health and by evening got to go home. As you can imagine, I'm still very very sore, but at least I'm not paying the hospital for another day or two to stay in their room. I'm going to be resting up for the next few days, because even sitting at the computer long enough to pay bills is too much at the moment.
The Aquacontroller 3 and my iPhone have been one of the best purchases I've made in a long time. I've used it often to make sure my tank is okay, including yesterday when Fort Worth was unseasonably hot (84F).
Over the next few days, I'll be working on the magazine as my body allows, but won't be too active online.
By 7pm that night, my stomach started hurting. I ran up to the store to buy some Mylanta tablets, and chewed up 5 of them over the next few hours. Since this was the fourth time in a month that this pain had occurred, I felt I better go to the hospital. Plus, that evening I was watching a recorded episode of Grey's Anatomy, and the woman had stomach cancer, so at 3am I threw on some clothes and drove up to the hospital. Within an hour or two, they told me I wasn't going anywhere for a few days.
I was diagnosed with acute Pancreatitus, which was a symptom of gall stones in the gall bladder. The bloodwork told the doctors that I had elevated enzyme counts (somewhere around 6600 instead of a mere 68), and I was put into a private room and got my required IV drip. No food or drink was allowed as surgery was imminent, and that included even ice chips. They medicated my pain, and watched my bloodwork daily. Within 24 hours, the enzymes had dropped like a rock to around 200, and my surgeon was eager to get in and remove my gall bladder since the opportune time was upon us. Surgery went well, and with four small incisions, they removed the gall bladder. I believe at this piont, I've had all of my back-up organs removed, and have to rely upon whatever is left in my body. ;)
The next day, I was given a good bill of health and by evening got to go home. As you can imagine, I'm still very very sore, but at least I'm not paying the hospital for another day or two to stay in their room. I'm going to be resting up for the next few days, because even sitting at the computer long enough to pay bills is too much at the moment.
The Aquacontroller 3 and my iPhone have been one of the best purchases I've made in a long time. I've used it often to make sure my tank is okay, including yesterday when Fort Worth was unseasonably hot (84F).
Over the next few days, I'll be working on the magazine as my body allows, but won't be too active online.
Monday, February 09, 2009
iPhone app: Is my tank okay? Sweet!
For some time now, I've really wanted something that would allow me to check on my tank when I'm out of town. Just a quick peek to see that all is well, although I don't really dread it - I just do whatever I can to keep it happy, and hope for the best. Once I'm out the door, there is little I can accomplish, other than call others to come investigate.
A few months ago, I upgraded a controlling device that my tank uses to track parameters, and turn the lights and heaters on and off. The Aqua Controller II was replaced with a III. Since I'm about to go on a road trip to Arizona, I decided to take the plunge and purchase the iPhone that I've wanted for more than a year. Being connected via the web is a huge draw, having Google Maps at my fingertips to avoid getting lost was another, and then there was the reason I first mentioned: to check on my tank.
A guy named zigzag on Reef Central wrote an iPhone App(lication) that is designed to work with the AC3 and AC3 Pro, and after you click on the symbol on the screen, it connects and reports instantly the current status of the tank:
And then if I click on the small arrow to the right of the current temperature, and rotate the phone into a horizontal position, I can check on the the past day, week, or month's temperature variance.
I'm so happy to finally get this connectivity. The AC3 can email me if anything is outside of normal range (after those parameters have been programmed), and my phone will receive those email alerts as well.
Neat, right? The app can be found in the iTunes store, and is free. Search for "aquanotes". By the way, those images above are actual screenshots from the phone. Whenever you see something you like, you can press two buttons on the iPhone simultaneously to take a screenshot that is saved to the picture directory.
A few months ago, I upgraded a controlling device that my tank uses to track parameters, and turn the lights and heaters on and off. The Aqua Controller II was replaced with a III. Since I'm about to go on a road trip to Arizona, I decided to take the plunge and purchase the iPhone that I've wanted for more than a year. Being connected via the web is a huge draw, having Google Maps at my fingertips to avoid getting lost was another, and then there was the reason I first mentioned: to check on my tank.
A guy named zigzag on Reef Central wrote an iPhone App(lication) that is designed to work with the AC3 and AC3 Pro, and after you click on the symbol on the screen, it connects and reports instantly the current status of the tank:
And then if I click on the small arrow to the right of the current temperature, and rotate the phone into a horizontal position, I can check on the the past day, week, or month's temperature variance.
I'm so happy to finally get this connectivity. The AC3 can email me if anything is outside of normal range (after those parameters have been programmed), and my phone will receive those email alerts as well.
Neat, right? The app can be found in the iTunes store, and is free. Search for "aquanotes". By the way, those images above are actual screenshots from the phone. Whenever you see something you like, you can press two buttons on the iPhone simultaneously to take a screenshot that is saved to the picture directory.
Labels: ac3, app, aquacontroller III, aquanotes, iphone
Wednesday, February 04, 2009
Reefcast: Epic Episode 30
This latest episode is Epic, so it was named Epic Episode 30. It is a video episode, and thus a large download. Be sure to save it to your computer rather than trying to stream it. Downloads page
My reef is doing quite well. Here's the latest image.
A few projects recently completed:
Vodka Dosing Drip System
Manifold Project - it only took 9 months to get this one accomplished, but two friends made it happen
VorTech Battery Backup Surgery
Algae Scraper - I waited on this one forever, but glad I finally got it
The angled tank is doing well, and has been cleaned up more since this picture was taken. I guess I got that backwards. LOL
My reef is doing quite well. Here's the latest image.
A few projects recently completed:
Vodka Dosing Drip System
Manifold Project - it only took 9 months to get this one accomplished, but two friends made it happen
VorTech Battery Backup Surgery
Algae Scraper - I waited on this one forever, but glad I finally got it
The angled tank is doing well, and has been cleaned up more since this picture was taken. I guess I got that backwards. LOL
Labels: algae scraper, battery backup, macna xx, manifold, podcast, vodka
