Kurt Johnston -

It is an Extravaganza!

2009-11-25T18:41:00.002-05:00

It has taken me 3 whole days to get my thoughts together and write this post about the OCA Extravaganza. This is the one event that has earned its name. More than just a show or an auction, it is without a doubt THE EXTRAVAGANZA. The speakers all did a fabulous job and were available to answer questions through the entire weekend.

Friday started off at 8PM with Jay Stauffer from Penn State talking about the behavioral habits of Malawians. I am sure glad that this was the first talk because Jay gave a lot of information for me to absorb. Next at 9:30 was our friend from Pittsburgh, Eric Bodrock with a talk about some of the OddBall Scavengers that he has had experience with. Eric was his ever energetic self and held everyones attention for the entire hour he spoke. Finally on Friday night was Rusty wessel from Louisville holding us captive with a program about The Panuco Basin of Mexico that was the perfect talk for the first "Nighttime with Rusty" performance. On Saturday we had programs starting at 9AM with Don Conkel of Don Conkel Tropicals showing us the Fish Farming operations he has in Florida, Costa Rica and Guatemala. Following Don was Willem Heijns of The Netherlands who showed us all how easy it is to Breed Central American Cichlids in our home aquarium. After a few hour break to enjoy the Swap meet that was going on and take an afternoon nap, we were treted to a program about the Lake Malawi predator fish by Ad Konings. The grand finale was just that with a gentleman whose style and personality cannot be equaled anywhere, Charlie Grimes. the program was titled Collecting Cichlids in Cuatro Ciénegas and I am sure that somewhere in between the jokes and haranging of Ad Konings and anyone else that Charlie can think of, we got to Cuatro Cienegas but by that time Charlie had us laughing so hard we were all crying and couldn't see the screen anyway.

In addition to the speakers the Ohio Cichlid Association members were the most hospitable group of people I have ever met. The hospitality room was a great place to meet people after 10:30 until the hotdogs dissappeared. The "spudnuts" and coffee in the morning were great. And I even got to meet a lot of great people that I had only talked to on Facebook or just heard about. I know I am going to forget a few names but here goes. My good friend Ray "KingFish" Lucas who was his ever wonderful loving self, Frank Reece from BlueZoo Radio & TV, Klaus Steinhaus from Canada, Don Grey, Wayne Toven, Stephan Tanner, Discus Hans & Joanne, George Richter, Michael Barber, Pat & Tracy Kelly, Ron Georgione, Bill Sensor, Roberto Prati, Mike & Robin Schadle, Ken Walker, My Ride-sharing Roommate Andrew Blumhagen, and many many more. If you want to see more about this great event and some pictures, check out the OCA Website and mark down on your calendar the weekend before Thanksgiving 2010 for the next Extravaganza. I know that I will be there.

Home from OCA!

2009-11-22T21:30:00.003-05:00

What a great time at the OCA extravaganza. I got to meet a great bunch of new people and touch base with all the old friends. Even got to finally meet Frank Reece of BlueZoo and helped Ray Lucas celebrate his birthday. Thank you OCA!!!!! I will post more details later this week

ACLC Officers for 2010

2009-11-19T23:30:00.004-05:00

Well we had our election on Tuesday and I was elected to the position of President. I am honored by this and am really looking forward to a big year for the ACLC in 2010! Our first board meeting will be on 12/6 and we have a lot of great plans. The OCA Extravaganza starts tomorrow and I will be there representing the Aquarium Club of Lancaster County for the first time as its President. Thnk you to the club members for putting your trust in me. In the picture are (from L to R) Vice-President Lonny Langione; Treasurer Tom Thoensen; Me; and Secretary Vicki Oatman. Congratulations All!

ACLC Election Tomorrow

2009-11-16T17:59:00.002-05:00

Well, tomorrow, Tuesday November 17th is the Election of Officers for the Aquarium Club of Lancaster County and I am nominated for President. It should be interesting as we have quite a few things that the new board would like to accomplish and get the club moving forward again. I will update on Wednesday after the election and I will try and update throughout the weekend at the OCA Extravaganza in Cleveland, Ohio!

Fish Food Nutrition

2009-02-11T14:59:00.010-05:00

Over the last 7 months I have had the pleasure of presenting a program on Making Your Own Fish Food and Nutrition to the Greater Pittsburgh Aquarium Society, the Capital Cichlid Association and the Aquarium Club of Lancaster County.

Through the last 40 years years I always had at least one aquarium that were set up for show but due to several moves never really got involved in a big way until moving to York County 6 years ago. After meeting my wife, her father introduced me to a 29 gallon tank that he was not using and the addiction started. Shortly thereafter I went to a meeting of the Aquarium Club of Lancaster County and started learning from the many members who were breeding many different species of fish. My first fish for breeding was a trio of Zoogoneticus tequila that I bought from Rit Forcier when he came to Lancaster on a speaking engagement. Goodeids and other unusual livebearers are still my favorites but I have also had several African Cichlids from Malawi, Tanganyika and Victoria as well as some Peacock Gudgeons (Tateurndina ocellicauda) and Bristle nose catfish. Because of my varied interest in different species of fish and, the cost of quality foods, I decided to explore the possibility of making a food that would meet the nutritional needs of many different species whether they be herbivores, omnivores or carnivores. Over the past 3 years I did a lot of research into the different ingredients that others used and checked into what different "difficult" or "special needs" fish needed. What I came up with is a food that is fairly easy to make, inexpensive, and nutritionally complete to serve as my main but not only food. I explain the whys and hows of this ongoing project during this presentation.

If you are interested in a copy of the recipes in pdf form, just CLICK HERE!

Number Six for the Black & Gold

2009-02-02T19:07:00.002-05:00

Wow what a game! As a native Pittsburgher I can honestly say my pulse was fast in the 4th Quarter. My terrible towel has some bite marks that are not from either of our dogs. I hope this is just the start of things to come for the Steelers as I really would love to see a string of Super Bowls for the Rooneys.

January Meeting of the ACLC

2009-01-23T20:41:00.004-05:00

The Aquarium Club of Lancaster County started of 2009 with quite a bang. Pat Kelly presented his program titled "Why I go to fish conventions - and you should too!" Pat is the President of the Capital Cichlid Association, a newly elected member of the American Cichlid Association Board of Trustees and a member of the ACLC. Pat put on a great program and his pictures and anecdotes were very enjoyable. He showed us the great people who are a member of this hobby, some of the wonderful sidetrips that you can go on when attending one of the conventions and of course, the great vendors who supply us with the tools of our hobby. Pat's pictures of the show fish were just great and I know that several people left the meeting making plans for one of the upcoming conventions.

The club had one of its best meetings with quite a few new members joining and for January, a large attendance.

If you get a chance stop by at the Capital Cichlid Association or the Aquarium Club of Lancaster County, join the forum and ask Pat all about this program. He is a regular on both forums and is always happy to answer anyones questions. Or if you attend the OCA Extravaganza or the ACA Convention, find Pat. He is always happy to meet new friends.

Thanks Pat. It was great!

A Great Day in History

2009-01-20T15:12:00.003-05:00

I am one of the fortunate people to have lived long enough to actually witness 10 presidents in office. I have honestly never seen the enthusiasm for a politician since the 60's when Robert Kennedy was running for President. No matter what your political view, your ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or age, this is a time that we all need to forget about our differences and come together as citizens and work to make this country as strong as it once was both morally and financially. I have a great deal of pride in the fact that during my lifetime I have seen the Inauguration of a man who represents America in so many ways. My family came from so many different religions and backgrounds that I personally feel that this is a great representation of what this country is all about. I am now seeing that 2 other greats in American politics have been taken to the hospital for treatment. My prayers go out to the Byrd and Kennedy families with the hope that both Senators are going to be fine and continue to govern with the fervor that they have for so many years.

A Great Day!

2009-01-18T23:06:00.003-05:00

Well this sure turned out to be a great day. I felt bad about the fact that the Eagles lost. I was hoping for a turnpike Super Bowl but, if one of the Pennsylvania teams was going to lose, I am glad it was the Eagles. Earlier today I discovered that my late cousins' daughter lives in Pittsburgh and has 3 boys and all three of them look like their uncles. I had lost touch with most of that side of my family and in July saw my Uncle and then today was "friended" by his Grandaughter on my Facebook page . I can't wait until February first when the Steelers pick up #6....

Panther Sadness ; Steeler Hopes

2009-01-17T20:37:00.003-05:00

Unfortunately the Panthers took a tough loss at the hands of the Louisville Cardinals so, my hopes are riding on the AFC Championship game tomorrow night. I just received an email from a high school classmate of mine and thought I would post it here.

Curse Of The Terrible Towel
A Poem By Dave Crawley

There is power, they say, in the towels that wave.
Like black and gold shrouds on the visitor's grave.
It's a mojo opponents should never neglect.
The Terrible Towel requires respect.

Then this! A deed unspeakably foul!
The Tennessee Titans defiles the towel!
Although their crass actions made Steeler fans wince,
You'll notice that Titan team hasn't won since.

They lost to the Colts. Then the Ravens came in,
A game Tennessee was expected to win.
But the curse of the towel gave Tennessee shakes,
As they sank in a series of stunning mistakes.

Our Black and Gold guys had a much different story.
Santonio Holmes led the gallop to glory.
Fast Willie scored, and the Steelers were winning.
For the Chargers the torment was only beginning.

Third quarter. Alas, on the Bolts' only play,
Foote gives them the boot, and he takes it away.
The towels were twirling as Ben let it go,
And the much maligned offense was starting to flow.

That towel brings sorcery into the fray.
If you don't believe it, well, check out this play.
To add to the Chargers' grim feelings of dread,
A punt that careened off this poor fellow's head.

The message, of course, as we hooted with glee,
From the Terrible Towel: Do not tread on me.
A word to the Ravens. The moment draws nigh.
This is the reason you're still flying high.

The Titans besmirched it, and now to our glee
They will be watching this game on TV.
As you enter the confines where Steeler fans howl:
Beware of the curse of the Terrible Towel

First Blog, First Post

2009-01-17T17:14:00.002-05:00

Well I took the step and decided to start a blog. I just felt that I had a lot to say and needed a place to say it. I have been a member of the Aquarium Club of Lancaster County for 4 years now and many of the entries in this blog will have something to do with our club and the Aquarium hobby in general. We just moved into a new home on November 1st and I have a garage with 38 tanks and no fish room set up yet. I am hoping to start on the new fish room sometime this spring and am contantly searching the Internet for great ideas. I plan on having an automatic water change system this time so that I can spend more time enjoying the fish and less time with maintenance.

This weekend is turning out to be an exciting one despite the cold. We have the Pitt Panthers defending their #1 ranking against Louisville in about a half hour. Tomorrow the Steelers will make an attempt to go back to the Super Bowl and Tuesday is the Inauguration of President Barack Obama and the first meeting of the ACLC for 2009. I will be back oin here and I hope that people will comment and encourage me to write more. Talk to everyone soon and Go Steelers!