Heres my rant, I have to get it out to more than just one person.
Ive been trying for almost a solid YEAR to get my parents to support my hobby.
Not telling them to pay for it - but, letting me use my fathers credit card (I pay him beforehand, I just need to use the card for online transactions) to buy 40 dollars worth of stuff. I'm having a difficult time even doing water changes, and every time I do, they have to make some comment, or shake their head when I'm doing it.
Ever since I got rid of my Oscar, I've wanted to do a planted tank. I went out and bought some plants for myself and put them in there, they liked it.
Then the plants died.
I read up on planted tanks. I raised money to buy lights. I have all the sites that sell these things ready to go (they aren't even shady, 1000bulbs and amazon). Then we get in a whole gigantic debate on the proper way to take care of fish and the proper way to have a planted aquarium. "Oh no, all you need to do is buy different plants, those ones were bad" I then explain about co2 and lighting and all that good stuff (they seem interested), but then it goes against everything they know and they kick and scream about the way it was a decade ago.
They say that 14 (literally) years ago, when they had their 20 gallon, with 16 Gouramis, never changed the water except every six months, AND they had some plants in there (Anacharis). I explained to them that Gouramis can live in toxic mud puddles and survive, and that those plants were low light, low upkeep... Then they tell me to go buy those since they're so easy.
They tell me NOT to do water changes, NOT to upgrade my lighting, NOT to do anything right. I tell them about AC, and all the experts (well, I guess you guys are experts haha : ]) and everything thats on here. But they fight it and say that the internet isn't reliable, and you can't trust everyone on some website.
GAAAHHH. It's been like this for a year and I've even told them that I wouldn't even bug them about it, just let me do my thing in my room and I'll leave them out of it except for when I need them (just asking to use dad's credit card, asking for a tiny bit of lawnspace to dry out soil). They agree to it, but then they try to lecture me on how I should do it, and why I shouldn't do it.
I have everything that proves them wrong, I don't bug them about it, I just want to have fun with my hobby.
But, I'm seriously about fed up with it.
I'm about to just drop it, throw my tank out the window and go buy little action figures and play pretend army men in my room under the covers instead of spending it on something I truly enjoy.
Sorry about the length, and if you've read it, thanks for sharing my frustration.
Ive been trying for almost a solid YEAR to get my parents to support my hobby.
Not telling them to pay for it - but, letting me use my fathers credit card (I pay him beforehand, I just need to use the card for online transactions) to buy 40 dollars worth of stuff. I'm having a difficult time even doing water changes, and every time I do, they have to make some comment, or shake their head when I'm doing it.
Ever since I got rid of my Oscar, I've wanted to do a planted tank. I went out and bought some plants for myself and put them in there, they liked it.
Then the plants died.
I read up on planted tanks. I raised money to buy lights. I have all the sites that sell these things ready to go (they aren't even shady, 1000bulbs and amazon). Then we get in a whole gigantic debate on the proper way to take care of fish and the proper way to have a planted aquarium. "Oh no, all you need to do is buy different plants, those ones were bad" I then explain about co2 and lighting and all that good stuff (they seem interested), but then it goes against everything they know and they kick and scream about the way it was a decade ago.
They say that 14 (literally) years ago, when they had their 20 gallon, with 16 Gouramis, never changed the water except every six months, AND they had some plants in there (Anacharis). I explained to them that Gouramis can live in toxic mud puddles and survive, and that those plants were low light, low upkeep... Then they tell me to go buy those since they're so easy.
They tell me NOT to do water changes, NOT to upgrade my lighting, NOT to do anything right. I tell them about AC, and all the experts (well, I guess you guys are experts haha : ]) and everything thats on here. But they fight it and say that the internet isn't reliable, and you can't trust everyone on some website.
GAAAHHH. It's been like this for a year and I've even told them that I wouldn't even bug them about it, just let me do my thing in my room and I'll leave them out of it except for when I need them (just asking to use dad's credit card, asking for a tiny bit of lawnspace to dry out soil). They agree to it, but then they try to lecture me on how I should do it, and why I shouldn't do it.
I have everything that proves them wrong, I don't bug them about it, I just want to have fun with my hobby.
But, I'm seriously about fed up with it.
I'm about to just drop it, throw my tank out the window and go buy little action figures and play pretend army men in my room under the covers instead of spending it on something I truly enjoy.
Sorry about the length, and if you've read it, thanks for sharing my frustration.
