Category: Fish
December 21 2005
FLV Test
This is a test to see if I can play Flash video. I’m interested in this because I can’t watch WMV or QuickTime files at work, but Flash video can get through. However, I’m not too thrilled by the results of these experments. For instance, the Fishcast video below has been compressed to a small iPoddish 320x240 window but still tallies up to an overly healthy 33.7 MBs. Meanwhile, the original QuickTime version has a bigger 480x360 window yet still has a much smaller file size of 12.2 MBs.
Regardless, here’s the Fish in Flash (...before he got flushed).
Posted by Mickey at 03:51 AM in Blogging, Personal, Podcast, Fish, Video | Comments (1) | Email this entry
December 17 2005
The Fish is Dead
Seeing as how I blogged about this a while ago, I figured I’d submit this follow-up. Below, in video form, is a tribute to the long hard final days of Fish VI.
Posted by Mickey at 06:47 AM in Blogging, Personal, Podcast, Fish, Video | Comments (1) | Email this entry
November 6 2005
The Fish is Ailing
Fish VI seemed fine when I left him on the morning of Friday, October 21. But he was behaving differently that night and the next morning. He was listless and instead of just sleeping on the bottom of his vase he looked like he was flattened. Over the nexr days I would check on him and find he had barely moved; in fact, I would think he had died, until he finally stirred when I tapped the glass.
His water was needing cleaning but I hated to bother him. I was afraid moving him might be too much and would finally kill him off. I hated to think leaving him in dirty water would finish him off too. I finally put him in fresh water on Thursday, October 27 (when the following picture was taken). I moved him into the old cube, the original house of my first bettas. I ended up leaving him there.
He spends so much lying on the bottom that he wouldn’t need too much room; and besides, less water meant it would be easier for him to get to food. Another concern of mine was that it was tough to feed him. His food would float at the surface, out of reach, until it would rot. I managed to get some food to him most recently by gently stirring the water. He panicked and tried to struggle against the sudden current, but at least it caused him to rise up as well as causing the food to swirl past him where he could snap it up.
And that’s how it continues to be. I keep expecting to find him dead, but he’s still showing signs of life. He’s looking worse each time though. His dorsal fin droops, his tail is curled up. In fact, it almost looks like he has back problems since his tail fin hardly moves. He lunges about more than swims. I’m also noticing him listing to the side, which is a sure sign the end is nigh. And, he’s exhibiting a mild form of the fishy dementia I’ve seen before—where, out of nowhere, they’ll suddenly burst into activity and zoom about madly—although Fish VI’s movement is obviously more limited than Fish III’s or Fish IV’s at the end.
He’s still hanging on though. It’s hard to believe Fish VI has lasted this long. It would be impressive if it weren’t so sad to watch.
Posted by Mickey at 11:05 PM in Fish, Photos | Comments (0) | Email this entry
July 25 2005
Video Review: iHome iH5
Video Blog review of the new iHome alarm clock for the iPod.
I’m making another change to my database so some entries might be affected. I stayed up till around five this morning editing half the database, so at least all entries from 2005 and 2004 should show up correctly. Anything older than that will show up, but without a title.
To distract you, here’s some more v’log content: a video review of my latest toy...
[2 and a half minutes. 6.3 MBs. QuickTime H.264.]
Posted by Mickey at 06:06 PM in Blogging, Personal, Fish, Tech, Gadgets, Video | Comments (1) | Email this entry
March 29 2004
Ladies & Gentlemen, Fish VI: The Undiscovered Country
The weather being almost close to decent Saturday, I remembered what I’d said last year about waiting for it to get warm again before buying a new fish. I also remembered how my fishes’ longevity seems to correspond with the success of the Star Trek movie franchise. I swung by the fish store this afternoon, so here he is: ladies and gentlemen, please welcome “Fish VI: The Undiscovered Country”...
Posted by Mickey at 05:01 AM in Fish, Video | Comments (1) | Email this entry
November 7 2003
Another Burial at Sea
Amazingly, Fish V has already died. He passed away some time late yesterday evening. Right from the start I had a feeling he was already a bit on the mature side and he was already exhibiting signs of the fishy dementia I’ve seen before, but he didn’t even last two weeks.
Unlike the manic spastic behavior of Fish IV’s last days, Fish V seemed weak and listless, but he still behaved just as oddly. Fish V never seemed that hungry and he would spend most of his time huddled at the bottom of the bowl, hardly ever rising or moving. Once I came home to find him sitting in the middle of the bowl’s lone plant, sitting amid the little green twigs as if he’d swerved out of control and crashed. Just a few days ago I found him on his side, with his head wedged under the base of the plant as if he were trying to hide or trying to dig a tunnel out of there.
Now that I’ve said goodbye to another fish, I’ve come to realize two things. Firstly, it appears my fish bowl has become a kind of hospice, where weak and tired bettas come to spend their last days. And secondly, it’s becoming more obvious the lives of my fish are beginning to parallel the Star Trek movies, since the odd-numbered ones do less well. I’m not sure when I’ll get another, but when I do I suppose I’m obligated to call him Fish VI: The Undiscovered Country.
Posted by Mickey at 09:41 PM in Fish | Comments (1) | Email this entry
October 27 2003
Fish V
All right, I admit even Scarlet O’Hara would find the brevity of my mourning scandalous, but I’ve gone out and bought a new betta. I hated to let all those freeze-dried bloodworms go to waste, and they’re too fishy for my taste.
Fish V is already a big fish, which makes me wonder if his time with me is already limited. He’s a dark blue, with dark red coloring that looks almost purplish in certain light. He’s quite eye-catching and was my first choice as soon as I saw him. So, without further ado, Fish V…
Posted by Mickey at 12:59 AM in Fish | Comments (1) | Email this entry
October 24 2003
Another Fish Down the Tubes
I’ve been thinking about writing an update about my Fish’s condition. This would’ve been to describe how he seemed to be improving. I moved him from the parsons table to a desk: a sturdier surface, so he wouldn’t spaz out every time he felt a vibration, like he had been doing these last couple weeks. I also started leaving the desk lamp on in the evenings for him. If it got too dark, he would, by the sound of it, freak out if he hit the sides of his container and would thrash about madly. Of course, when I finally had to turn the light off each night, I’d still hear those little splashes, until he would calm down. Otherwise he seemed to be doing okay. He would listless hang about just below the surface, but at least he was eating all right.
However, I came home just now to find he had died. At least, I suppose, I was able to give him a couple extra weeks of comfort, and his passing was certainly the most graceful of the four fish I’ve had.
Now I’m wondering if I should get myself a new one or if maybe I should just wait till after Winter, when the house gets warmer.
Anyway, in memoriam, Fish IV in better days:
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| Fish IV October 24 2002 - October 23 2003 |
Posted by Mickey at 01:39 AM in Fish | Comments (1) | Email this entry
