:: Life on Planet Dan-E ::

:: Sunday, October 01, 2006 ::

:: Server tales: Part IX - Think of the Kids (plus Week 4 Picks) ::

My bartender buddy Luke, who works at my restaurant is happily engaged to a very beautiful woman. They've been together for five years and they're trying to start a family very soon. He's one of the few that I can refer to as "good people" and I hope for nothing but the very best for him.

We were talking during a slow lunch shift about a couple of our material guilty pleasures. He has a thing for wristwatches (last count, 25) while I have this thing for all things Oakley (7 pairs of sunglasses, two of which have 4 extra lenses; 2 pairs of shoes; 2 pairs of flip flops; 1 metal case and 1 array case; 2 pairs of wristbands, 2 T-shirts and 1 polo shirt). He mentioned rather excitedly how Tag Heuer just came out with a new watch that he's itching for, but ultimately decided against it since he already has enough watches and since they're trying to have a baby, he needs to start thinking about the future.

I kinda know how he feels.

I've been itching to get myself a pair of polarized Oakleys (polarized!) but I also decided against it... because my turtle is growing up.

I'm completely serious.

When I first got Mike, he could fit onto a silver dollar with room to spare. Now, he's almost as big as my hand. I first got him in a little turtle habitat that was a glorified plastic tray. (That tray had a basking platform just large enough for both of them. And he's now bigger than the platform. Did mention that he's getting huge?! I know, I sound like a doting dad. By the way, I'm honestly surprised that I still haven't printed out "baby" photos and put them in my wallet. I know, I'm babbling.)

A little over a month later, The Girlfriend and I chipped in for a 10-gallon aquarium, a UVB basking light, a turtle dock, and some bigger grown-up food. And now he's already outgrown that.

So instead of those polarized Oakleys, I just came home with a 20-gallon tank, a higher-capacity filter, water heater, water treatment, and some feeder guppies and ghost shrimp. The total of which is just a tad more than those shades.

And it was worth it. I haven't had a chance to set up Mike's new habitat but I dropped in a few guppies and shrimp just to see how he'd like them. At first he approached the new residents with the same kind of cautious approach of a curious puppy sniffing a much larger dog (except he had his front feet pulled in and his head halfway retracted - I had no idea turtles could swim this way, it's actually kinda cool).

But once he realized they were harmless, his once-dormant turtle instincts kicked in and... he remembered he was hungry. He doesn't seem interested in the shrimp (odd considering he absolutely loves the dried shrimp that I feed him; that's like a guy saying he prefers beef jerky over a freshly grilled ribeye). However, He's spent the last 30 minutes chasing after and snapping at the little guppies around the tank. For whatever reason, watching him do this makes me really, really happy. I wonder if this is similar to how new dads feel when they take their kids out fishing or hunting for the first time and they manage to reel one in.

The Girlfriend sees me go all ga-ga over my turtle and it invariably results in her saying "I can't believe you don't want to have children." It's not the same thing. Not even close. Sure some of the responsibilities are similar (food, housing, health care) but I don't have to worry about other kid-related crap (insurance, dating, driving, college, drugs).

Anyway, I'm gonna go watch Mike chase guppies. (Make those guppies your bitch MIke!)

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Week 4 Picks:

Indy over NYJ
Carolina over New Orleans
Sandy Eggo over Baltimore
Miami over Rice University
ATL over Arizona
Minnesota over Buffalo
Dallas over Tennessee
KC over Frisco
Rams over Detroit
Jacksonville over Washington
Cleveland over The Black Hole (of suckiness)
New England over Cinncinattica
Seattle over Chicago
Philly over Green Bay.

Last Week: 10-4
Total: 30-16

:: Miscellaneous Ramblings by Dan-E at 2:32 AM [+] :: | 0 comments
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