March 01, 2016

Find your geeky bliss...

Seems like the longer we're around, the more insane it gets each day...

I always said I'd never want to be "that guy" who is a hardcore hobbyist then starts a company, and gets "too busy" to do the things he likes to do- like interacting with fellow fish geeks...Well, some days, I must admit, it feels like I've become "that guy..." I mean, there literally aren't enough hours in the day sometimes to do everything that you want.

Between setting photographing products, packing shipments, answering customer questions, dealing with the business needs, and all of the other minutiae of running a company, it CAN get a little hectic. I guess it's a good "problem" to have. But I think it's a problem nonetheless. Self help gurus will tell you that not being able to do the things you want to do is a function of "poor time management" or "not being kind to yourself", or...whatever!

Anyways, I'm happy to be here to interact with you cool people- as you're what it's all about. In the mad frenzy of a busy day, I remembered to acknowledge the things that really make me love this hobby- an exercise we should all do from time to time. And one of the things I enjoy ruminating on is the fact that we as fish geeks are into the most obscure stuff! Think about it. If you've entertained the idea of playing with, say, propagating Bucephalandra- there's probably some hobbyist out there who's not only had the idea, but who's built out a propagation system just for that purpose in her basement!

Want to grow Daphnia and create an automatic feeder for your fish room? There are actually "experts" on that. Creating a system for "crack spawning" killifish? There's a guy who actually wrote a whole series of articles on that back in 1980! I mean, there are so many cool things that you can do in the hobby, and so many cool resources at our disposal! Our "tribe" has insanely good knowledge of many, many things, ranging from the basic to the downright obscure.

That's totally cool.

Thanks to the internet and the general geekiness of hobbyists worldwide, this stuff doesn't stay obscure that long. We talk, brag, share, assist, and just generally let the information we've gleaned percolate into our culture, which enriches us all. And it's fun to get into these seemingly obscure things, isn't it?

Lately, I've been getting really back into my long term love affair (sounds sordid, doesn't it?) with Tetras. I used to play with all different types, but just kinda ran out of time and resources to keep going. Well, flash forward a few years and I had a 16,000 gallon saltwater facility with all kinds of toys to play with! It kept me pretty busy.

After selling my interest in Unique Corals, I was once again able to focus my mental energies on freshwater with the launch of Tannin Aquatics.

So, when the opportunity came up to acquire some cool Pencilfishes from an awesome source, and curate the collection I've been dreaming of for over a decade, I jumped on it. So, much to the chagrin of some of my colleagues, on any given day you'll find me doting over my little section in my newly set-up Amazonian-themed biotope aquarium. In addition to a geeky obsession, it's been just fun doing something that I sort of lost track of over the years...the fun and excitement of doing something that's interesting, "new", and weekly obsessive is a sublime delight for the hobbyist!

Okay, so the point of all of this rambling is quite simple: If you have one of those geeky and obscure obsessions, indulge yourself and play! Do the geeky stuff to your heart's content...and remember to share your passion for it with other hobbyists. It's the kind of stuff that makes things really fun. The kind of stuff that makes a hobby more than just a pleasant diversion...It becomes a lifelong obsession- a rich and rewarding passion.

Find your geeky bliss.

What geeky hobby obsession do YOU indulge in?

Stay tuned for more of the usual absurdity from yours truly.

Stay Wet

Scott Fellman