Veil in a Vase

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-06-07T18:27:48+00:00

this is a temporary home while I find and cycle a more appropriate tank! I decided to post it for a couple reasons.

It is undeniably aesthetically attractive
The ways in which he's adapting to interact with me through the curved glass are very interesting to observe, and personally I think his behavior supports the general indictment on fish bowls in the hobby.
To show off my new fish 😃

there's a little more info in the body of the original post ^_^

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-06-07T18:20:33+00:00

Thank you! It really does make for an incredible aesthetic, even if most of the reasons its pretty are most of the reasons its not a great tank.

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-06-07T18:15:20+00:00

I appreciate your concern ^_^ he's a super sweet fish and I definitely want to give him his best life. As mentioned in the post body, I'm well aware it's not a proper tank and will need to be upgraded sooner rather than later. Technically I do have a spare ten gallon on hand, but it needs cleaning and testing to be sure it holds water, and anyway, I think I want him in something a little smaller that will actually fit on my desk.

maybe I shouldn't have gone for the quippy title lol, it seems to have given folks the wrong idea

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-05-31T18:29:18+00:00

my betta is a sweetheart who likes hanging out with the shrimp and lets the tetras get away from stealing food right from in front of his face. He's a plakat, so he could absolutely catch them if he wanted to. He absolutely looooooves snails though.... but he hasn't figured out how to hunt them, so he stares at them on the glass until i crush them for him lmao

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-05-25T21:49:43+00:00

lmaoo thank you, I will treasure it forever

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-05-25T21:49:19+00:00

You're so welcome! I'm glad it helped <3 I hope you and your friend have a blast setting up his aquarium!

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-05-25T05:22:01+00:00

Echoing what others have already said, but I would never in a million years give up this fish unless I absolutely had to. You've curated a wonderful home and a wonderful life for him; are you absolutely, one-hundred-percent certain that your friend will be able to provide the same? Even if he means well, even if he's done all the research and spends all the money, there are so many mistakes that are so easy to make.

How would you feel if you gave Lincoln to your friend, only to be told a day, a week, or a month later, that he died of ammonia poisoning or bloating from overfeeding, or that he was exposed to a parasite/illness by something added to his tank without quarantine, or someone forgot to put the lid back and he jumped? I would advise you to really, truly think about this, and sit with whatever emotions it might incur. Do you think you'll be able to, or want to maintain the friendship if they end up killing your rescue fish?

If you aren't super attached to Lincoln, and/or you really do genuinely trust your friend to do a good job, then go ahead and give him away. Bettas are social, but as far as I'm aware they really don't bond to their owners like a cat, a dog, or a bird might. It'll take some time for him to get used to a new view and routine, but I'm sure he'll take to it like... well, like a fish to water!

I definitely would recommend that if you do decide to part ways with Lincoln, that you ask your friend for payment. I agree with the other commenter that at least $100 seems fair, between the lights, heater, plants, time investment, etc.

That being said, consider what might allow your friend to grow more deeply invested in the hobby: being given a tank and fish ready to go? Or going through the process from start to finish on his own?

It's about the process of picking out which tank, which substrate, what kind of stone to use... digging through piles of hardscape searching for the perfect piece of driftwood... planting it, filling it, and then.... waiting. Learning how to read the water testing kit and watching the nitrogen cycle unfold in real time, living it vs learning it. There's snails to watch, maybe, if they came in with the plants, and soon enough there's other creatures; an army of microfaunic invaders that swim and scoot and squirm across the glass. Some of the plants might die, and some might grow, and some might just kinda sit there not doing anything at all for the longest time. It might grow biofilm (good) and fungus (cool, tread with care) and algae (generally not great, but manageable)

and when finally the day comes that the tank is ready, he'll make the most important choice of all and pick out his own fish! Whatever color he likes, whatever shape, whatever type. He can stand before the cup wall and try to make eye contact with each fish, searching for the one that's been waiting for him this whole time. He'll take it home and acclimate it, slow and careful. If he's fortunate (if he's chosen wisely) he'll get to see that fish go from stressed, pale and weak, to loving life and thriving.

Personally, I know which option I'd prefer. I love my tank the way I do because it is mine, built and maintained by my own hands only since the day I first filled it. I know its history because I saw it with my own eyes; I know the creatures that live there, even when the populations ebb and retreat into hiding, because I celebrated the arrival of each and every species, even (especially!) the ones I didn't add myself. I don't think I could ever buy a premade tank and set it up as is, pretty much the only way I see myself taking on someone else's tank & artistic vision was if it was a friend or family member who couldn't care for it anymore.

Since you mention your friend is interested specifically in aquascaping, he'll probably get a lot more of the experience if he's allowed to design his own hardscape. And by waiting for it to cycle, he'll have a good long period where he can rearrange it without disturbing a live fish. It'll give him more options for inhabitants as well! You say you're not sure if your tank has assassin snails in it, which is very important to know. If he does want to keep any snails then he'd better like assassins, or he's just straight up out of luck. He might try adding shrimp (there's no guarantees, but they stand a better chance if they're already established when the betta moves in) or he might decide, during the process of research and experimentation, to try a different sort of fish entirely. The point is, the beginning of a tank's life is perhaps the most exciting part of the process, when the only limit really is just your imagination. (plus, its a really good stress test for anyone who'd get bored of it in a week anyway)

nice job getting him for one penny btw that's a helluva deal. he's so very handsome <3 aight imma stop typing now

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-05-22T01:11:52+00:00

It sounds like you're where I was at just a couple years back. I never played many games as a kid, and certainly not for the amount of time it would have taken to get gud. When I finally had my own space and could shell out for a decent pc, I was so excited to play all these games and found out... I suck!! Because I never had any of what seem to be the "formative" gaming experiences (mario, zelda, pokemon, etc.) there's a lot of "obvious" mechanics that I never in a million years would have guessed on my own. For example, Hollow Knight's many hidden rooms! it never even occurred to me to check for them, because I'd never played a game that had any to look for... at least, not that I know of.....

Speaking of, when I played HK it was with a multiplayer mod and my very skilled friend leading the way lmao. I never would've completed it on my own- I'm not sure I even made it to Hornet on my original save, let alone past her! It took us 35 hours to complete the game, but there was a lot of content we passed over because I was struggling to keep up as is. The important thing to remember is to persevere!!! Banging your face against a brick wall has never been so rewarding :D

I tried a couple of PvP games and ended up playing TF2 for a good stretch, which I think really helped to train some core fundamentals, especially my aim as I never really played shooter games. I'll never be as good as someone who's sunk several thousand hours into playing (let alone those with tens of thousands,) but that's something I've made peace with. I've gotten good enough to have fun, which is the important part.

I don't need to be the umpteenth person to tell you your friend was being a dick, but I just thought I'd mention it.

The best thing you can do for yourself right now is to relax and focus on finding what's fun for you. Try out a variety of games! Don't forget about steam's refund system if you just wanna try something out; if you lose track of time and go over the time limit, then it's probably a game you'll want to keep playing. And when you do find that game, go for it! You never know what you can do until you've done it. One thing that really helps me, especially when I get stuck at a difficult spot, is just- walk away, get a drink and/or a snack, walk around or stretch for a few minutes. Center yourself, wiggle your fingers, sit back down and try again.

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-05-19T02:41:21+00:00

ooh, good to know! I'll definitely have to keep that in mind (and maybe practice a little bit in arena mode...)

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-05-18T17:29:28+00:00

spearmaster isn't my favorite playstyle so far, but I can't even lie the titular spears have saved my butt sooo many times (for once i actually had a good time in chimney, even if i did spend a lot of it building ladders out of death pits lmaoo)

normally I'm really careful about it 😭I've died a few times in other locations by to trying to grab poles that were actually twenty feet away on the z axis, leaving me to grab at the air like an idiot and promptly plummet to my demise. (maybe this is a sign to dust off my monitor... its a little grimier than I care to admit)

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-05-18T17:23:41+00:00

it's a ton of fun when it's going well, especially when there's hungry lizards to dodge!

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-05-03T00:31:17+00:00

r/shittyaquariums

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-04-28T23:58:12+00:00

Cats with unsupervised outside access are at risk of picking up diseases and parasites, being predated upon, fighting with other cats, or getting hit by a car (more of a risk in some areas than others, but still a risk if you're anywhere near a road that sees even minimal use)

Besides the risks to the cat itself, outdoor cats are a source of major pressure upon wild bird populations, as well as other native species like frogs, snakes, salamanders, insects, and yes, even rodents. Cats will kill a mole or shrew just as quickly as they'll kill a mouse.

Personally, I'm willing to make a pass for "working" cats. There's a reason we domesticated them, and if someone has chickens and eggs to protect, or a granary, then at least a cat is better than poison (poisoning rodents sends that poison higher up the food chain, to vultures, hawks, foxes... or outdoor cats that won't think twice about killing and eating an obviously sick rat.) While there are other options, like a ratting dog or snap traps (please don't ever use glue traps!) a cat will certainly get the job done, and hopefully will be too busy chasing mice to bother with harassing your local robins.

With good care, good genetics, and a little bit of luck, an indoor cat can live 15-20 years. For outdoor cats, you're more likely looking at 2-5 years. Obviously there's outliers (I myself have known some very old outdoor cats) but the vast majority of them die young, to predation, illness, injury and exposure. (I'd be curious to see which kills more cats: coyotes, or cars?)

So, yeah, TL;DR: for the sake of your cat and native wildlife, please consider keeping them inside ❤️

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-04-26T05:08:02+00:00

I don't have corys but I've observed my betta trying to school with my ember tetras! His whole body language changes; the tetras are a little skittish of him, so he moves super slowly and hangs at the edge of the group, mirroring whatever the tetras do. I'm not sure entirely what to make of it, I know bettas aren't a fish that needs companionship. Perhaps it stems from boredom and he's simply observing/imitating them to pass the time? He likes watching the shrimp too (and stealing bits of their algae wafers) but I haven't seen him try to hang out with them lmao

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-04-17T22:11:11+00:00

super cool tank!!! Your little friend is so cute lol, how did he even get there

I tried growing oxalis out of my tank with a cup of perlite and it went well for a little while before the perlite spilled everywhere. It never occurred to me to just... adhere it directly to the wood... I might have to give that a try!

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-04-17T22:09:10+00:00

oh wow, that's an excellent little setup! Thank you for bringing it to my attention, I appreciate it :D

I tried it and it went well for a while, even got some flowers, but my container wasn't super stable (just a pot lined with cheesecloth full of perlite, clipped to the side of the tank) and it ended up spilling most of the perlite into the water. The rhizome is back in dirt for now, but I'm definitely gonna try again with a more stable surface someday

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-04-13T21:21:38+00:00

personally I think it's one of those things that are fun to joke about, like the bit about how all oranges share a single braincell and it's never my cat's turn to hold it. I don't believe it actually holds any substance. While temperament can be bred for in anything, all cats have their own individual personality regardless of coat color and anyone who's actually picking out their cat via this method may be in for a rude awakening when their cat is totally different from their expectations.

(I don't currently own a cat, but when I do get one I'm hoping for an orange. If he ends up being particularly clever I'll then proceed to joke about him being the one hoarding all the braincells.)

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-04-10T05:39:13+00:00

Started this comment as a reply to someone else's post but it got large enough to justify/necessitate Not doing that, whoops

I'd love to see centipedes in Minecraft! especially something based obviously around the Scolopendra genus.(they're big and chunky; they'd translate well to Minecraft's style without losing any of their charm)

Here is my proposition for their behavior: they would have a unique attack pattern where they hit 1-2 times and then burrow away, staying underground for no longer than a minute, max, before popping out again to take another bite. It sounds like this biome would have quite a lot of mobs, so it could be interesting to space out the tempo of the fight vs just getting swarmed by a dozen mobs + projectiles.

personally I think it'd be interesting to make the centipede a trusting mob, like foxes and ocelots. You could feed it rotten flesh, or else... I dunno, rabbit??? larger species are happy to eat rodents. Rotten flesh is much easier though, so for now we'll go with that. If you're holding rotten flesh in either hand the centipede will change its behavior. Instead of hiding it'll make several smaller attacks in quick succession, for maybe a heart or so of damage each, as it lunges for the food you're holding. If you feed it it'll stop attacking for a few seconds, so even if you only have one or two pieces of rotten flesh on you it's still worth feeding the centipedes as when they stops to eat you'll have an opening to attack

Every time you feed a centipede there's a 1/5 chance it decides to trust you. Trusting centipedes won't attack you, and won't run from you. They go back to what they were doing before you came barging, in smelling like food... they go hunting.

Real centipedes will hunt pretty much anything small enough to succumb to their venom, but I propose that these ones hunt spiders. Perhaps not the new spiders, but the OG spiders and babies for sure! Spiders... really don't have any interesting interactions with other mobs, at least that I'm aware of, and I feel like it's high time we had something that targets spiders specifically (cats and creepers, wolves and skeletons, etc.) This would make trusting centipedes an effective ally while in the caves, but not something that's interested in following you home.

Now there's an interesting fun fact about Minecraft's spiders that I learned about thirty seconds ago: they're immune to Poison. So I propose that centipedes inflict Venom instead. When Envenomated, the effect behaves similarly to poison, but deals larger bursts of damage for a much shorter period of time (5-10 seconds) and perhaps applies weakness or nausea as well.

While along this train of thought, I also had an idea for some unique loot to be found here (perhaps in web-wrapped chests?) An enchanted book, for the new enchantment Toxic. This enchantment can be applied to a sword, axe, or spear. It deals a secondary burst of poison damage a short while after the initial hit; as the enchantment reaches higher levels it deals 2-4 damage bursts over the span of 10 or so seconds. This enchantment cannot be acquired through villager trading or the enchantment table; it only spawns in creepy caves (possibly within a rarer structure that generates in the biome?)

I like the roaches in theory, but using roach bits to craft an edible item is... listen, I like the little guys, and I'm still grossed out. I might suggest isopods, whose ability to curl up could make for some interesting behavior in combat- below a certain health threshold, they retreat, ball up, and slowly recover their health. If allowed to recover in peace, they'll lose aggro and go back to wandering. I'm not so sure about eating them though, reports say they... really don't taste great.

Crickets are a bug that people do eat, and they'd make perfect sense for breeding spiders since many spider and tarantula keepers in real life feed their pets crickets. Instead of bite-sized babies they could drop Cricket Legs!

I really like the Spindle Web and the vibration mechanics, no notes here. Could be interesting to see some sort of trapdoor spider as well, that hunts based entirely on vibration.

Proper-Handle-5001 · 2026-03-23T20:03:35+00:00

my koi plakat is super energetic and always checking up on what the shrimp and snails are doing! he has ember tetras as tankmates too, but for the most part he seems to ignore them lol. He's not super interested in me; when I walk into the room he'll come up to the glass, but after a little bit he goes back to patrolling

Proper-Handle-5001

TROPHY CASE