Charley
Active Member
Ouch! Reefing isn't looking so bad right now
Is the hobby really fun or simply rewarding if done successfully? Possibly another go tank thread...
- Thread starter Charley
- Start date
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WVNed
The fish are staring at me with hungry eyes.
Most every thing you do in life that is fun and rewarding has a potential downside. Don't let it stop you.Ouch! Reefing isn't looking so bad right now
The day I flipped the car in the ditch it was fun and rewarding to go get my school stuff I needed out of the car at the wrecking yard on my bike. I got dog bit and had had to go to the doctor because my leg swelled so bad.
LOL
Charley
Active Member
Yeah, I guess......but I thought that's what I had jiu jitsu for!
Charley
Active Member
Yes, agree....just wish there was more upfront info for new hobbyists. A better understanding that is is rewarding not necessarily fun.
Hermie
Valuable Member
Snookin
Well-Known Member
I don’t really get what you are talking about. It’s keeping things alive in a box of water using knowledge and tools that you learn. If you don’t find that fun it isn’t the hobby for you. That’s the basic premise of reef keeping. Did you expect to swim with your fish? Take them for date nights and dance? Play games with them? Party till the morning? What were your fun expectations?
Charley
Active Member
Just fuel for thought. I do not want more regulation either.
Yes, by pure coincidence, there were some threads with "why are so many people leaving the hobby " or to that effect and I went thru this mini crash in the same time period. So, instead of posting another " I am leaving the hobby thread" and listing all my stuff, I would be share my thoughts as to why one would seriously leave the hobby even after 5 yrs and all the money and time put in. Maybe something good can come of it, who knows. Sort of like an exit interview when leaving a job. Some companies want to know why they left and what were the issues. So I threw myself out there.
Like everyone else here, I have alot of "skin in the game" dollar wise. Thousands of $. From new high end equipment, to buying from LFS's, to buying at frag swaps, buying from fellow hobbyists, online purchases.
When you buy new higher equipment, you do have expectations that things will run a bit more smoothly. That's the whole reason for buying the higher end stuff anyways. When things go south its not a good feeling.
I know the hobby had some complexities to it but not to the extent it really is. I never saw dinoflagelattes in a LFS. Had no clue these things existed to even do the research. No one mentioned I had to dose and test every day to keep alk and calc at proper levels. I just thought I could 200 ml each every week and parameters would rise. and so on...
If I knew all these types of fairly tough issues to deal come up and that the tank in the meanwhile looks so badly, I might not have jumped in. So now here I am.
Quite sure others spent some big bucks thinking with all that money things would run a bit smoother for longer periods of time.......I am just expressing it in this open forum.
We have meetings, usually once a year at work. A "corrections of errors" meeting. what we did wrong , what we did right and where to correct. Maybe the hobby could use one. Or maybe the correction is to throw me out of the hobby!
If you all chip in $50 bucks each to leave, it would make my decision easier
A "Go Fund Me" page to get me out the hobby OR will happily accept $50 bucks each to stay in the hobby. I am easy, will go with the flow. No pun intended.Alot of the replies are very inspirational. So cool to see so many people come to the defense of the hobby.
and yes, I will change the water more than 2 times in 9 months
I dont know if it is fun, but it is unique and I love it. Whatever it is. I guess rewarding is a good word. I love to tinker and be creative and problem solve. And I love DIY stuff since I am very handy.
Charley
Active Member
No, well maybe some of the above. I do hate dancing. I did expect that my money would go a little furthur in having a nice looking tank for longer periods of time with a bit less complications and attention to detail.
Charley
Active Member
Yes, because less time dealing with issues and more time watching the tank issue free. It is fun for me to observe the inhabitants not so much dealing with aggravating issues with conflicting as to how to resolve. All I am saying is I wish I knew there was as many potential issues upfront as there are. Not to mention since the info can be very conflicting, to spend more $ on a chance is not in everyone's budget. Then if that path does not work out...again some more $. All I am suggesting is that this is part of my consideration about leaving and maybe was for others who already left. But most times, the research on how to deal with the issues is alot of fun. What is not fun is the time spent sorting thru it all. That's what I thought I would be avoiding to a greater extent.
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Hermie
Valuable Member
What is your problem?
Snookin
Well-Known Member
People like the OP I guess and saying the hobby needs more “upfront info” on the hobby and it is not a “fun” hobby in their opinion and that they should have been told these things in the beginning lol. Also, claiming the hobby doesn’t do a good job at educating new people upfront. When BRS and SA just to name 2 large companies have a bunch of videos on setting up, maintaining and dealing with issues.
Sump Crab
Valuable Member
Also this hobby is really only as complicated as you want to make it. I have run all my tanks in a very simple, natural way. My tanks have never required any dosing or chemicals. I rely on water changes for maintenance. I also know that I will never have the same type of crazy growth and colors some other people are getting but I am OK with that because I do not want to make the hobby too complicated or expensive for me to enjoy.
Also EVERY hobby has bad parts! Do you think I kill a deer every time I hunt? It took me 5 years of hunting florida public swamps before I even killed my first one. Fishing? Man I have dumped THOUSANDS into that hobby of mine and often come home with only a headache. When I shop at Bass Pro Shops do they tell me that it may take 5 years to kill a deer? Nope.
Come on people, you cannot just throw money at something to solve your issues. You need to put the work in. I believe that attitudes like this reflect a serious issue with our culture. We are spoiled rotten and think that everything should be as easy as pushing a button to achieve success, no work required. #firstworldproblems from a country filled with a bunch of spoiled snowflakes lol!
Here are some simple tanks of mine that I still think are fun and good looking:
Also EVERY hobby has bad parts! Do you think I kill a deer every time I hunt? It took me 5 years of hunting florida public swamps before I even killed my first one. Fishing? Man I have dumped THOUSANDS into that hobby of mine and often come home with only a headache. When I shop at Bass Pro Shops do they tell me that it may take 5 years to kill a deer? Nope.
Come on people, you cannot just throw money at something to solve your issues. You need to put the work in. I believe that attitudes like this reflect a serious issue with our culture. We are spoiled rotten and think that everything should be as easy as pushing a button to achieve success, no work required. #firstworldproblems from a country filled with a bunch of spoiled snowflakes lol!
Here are some simple tanks of mine that I still think are fun and good looking:
Hermie
Valuable Member
Come on
Hermie
Valuable Member
Nobody needs your negative attitude. The OP obviously spent a lot of time and money in the hobby, so they have the latitude to complain. If you just want to attack them personally because you disagree, please don't.
If everything was smooth sailing all the time I would not do it. It’s a hobby, a challenge not a tank in A box type of thing. I hate it when things aren’t going right but that’s the fun of it. Fixing what’s wrong and maintaining what’s right. I do something everyday to my tank and I did my research before and knew what I was getting into. It’s your own little world and thinking you will have an easy time trying to control nature is just dumb. I suggest you sell your stuff and try to recoup your losses and find something else to do. I do RC in my spare time as well and believe me that’s not easy either. Anyone can learn to fly or drive these things but when it breaks there is a lot of tedious tear down and tiny screws and frustration. I love it but once again I took the responsibility to learn all about the cons going into RC.
Man, there is a lot of sanctimony going on in this thread. The OP did do some research, maybe he received bad advice... it happens. I think the guy is entitled to a little venting without the judgement. I think all of us have looked at a beautiful SPS aquarium at one time and said "I want that" without truly understanding the time involved in research and gaining experience. If anything the OP is guilty of is not having enough patience, but then again which one of us isn't guilty of that?
pa·tience
/ˈpāSHəns/
noun
pa·tience
/ˈpāSHəns/
noun
- 1.
the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset.
"you can find bargains if you have the patience to sift through the dross"
synonyms: forbearance, tolerance, restraint, self-restraint, resignation, stoicism, fortitude, sufferance, endurance; More
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