A Fish Out of Water
Stone Lake is now making the natural transition from brown algae to green. The fish love it but they cannot be easily seen through the haze. So I went to Fish Pros when last in the flatlands and bought an expensive bottle of AlgaeFix to control the green algae. The stuff works as advertised but Stone Lake is Murphy's favorite source of water. Indeed, he will go right by both the water and toilet bowls to go outside and slurp water from the pond. But, mind you, the AlgaeFix label sez "This product contains a chemical known to the state of California to cause cancer." And it also sez that if swallowed you should call a Poison Control Center immediately. Hmmm. Sam Walton, 28 Cents, Plain Jane and Forrest Gump are living in water treated with a chemical known to the state of California to cause cancer and Murphy is drinking the same water like a fish. So, no more AlgaeFix. You win, green algae.
The solution, of course, is to periodically drain half the green water from the pond and replace it with clean well water. To drain the water I've "constructed" a trough from a piece of rusty tin roofing bent to look like a piece of guttering to shunt the circulated water away from the pond. It takes about an hour and half to pump out half the water.
So, today I remember that I'm draining the pond after three hours. Maybe two inches of water were left below pump level in the bottom level of the pond. On the ledge at middle level I found Sam Walton sunbathing on his side in maybe a quarter inch of water. Since fish are not particularly adept at swimming or breathing in thin air, I figured poor ole Sam was dead and gone, a golden sun-dried sardine. But, as I picked him up, he sprang to life from a state of suspended animation and jumped out of my hands into the water in the bottom level. He appears none the worse from his time out of water.
Goldfish are truly amazing creatures when it comes to survival. If you don't believe it, try jumping into a pond with your arms and legs tied together and see how you fare after 90 minutes!
The solution, of course, is to periodically drain half the green water from the pond and replace it with clean well water. To drain the water I've "constructed" a trough from a piece of rusty tin roofing bent to look like a piece of guttering to shunt the circulated water away from the pond. It takes about an hour and half to pump out half the water.
So, today I remember that I'm draining the pond after three hours. Maybe two inches of water were left below pump level in the bottom level of the pond. On the ledge at middle level I found Sam Walton sunbathing on his side in maybe a quarter inch of water. Since fish are not particularly adept at swimming or breathing in thin air, I figured poor ole Sam was dead and gone, a golden sun-dried sardine. But, as I picked him up, he sprang to life from a state of suspended animation and jumped out of my hands into the water in the bottom level. He appears none the worse from his time out of water.
Goldfish are truly amazing creatures when it comes to survival. If you don't believe it, try jumping into a pond with your arms and legs tied together and see how you fare after 90 minutes!
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