fish your days are numbered (note the number displayed on this guppy)
The gentle hum of the fish tank has, through the years, become a familiar background noise and it is quite soothing to watch fish and bubbles go through their daily ballet routine. It has however been a bumpy 'love affair' this fish tank thing and I because when my hubby first started this hobby of fish keeping I just couldn't see the point of it all.
He would sit for hours on end just looking at the fish tank and I thought it rather an odd thing for a man to do. One cannot interact with fish they just eat and poop and then poop some more! And since I inherited the chore of cleaning the tank and the filter and changing the water you can well imagine how enthusiastic I was about sharing both my time and my man with the bloody bubble blowers!
Then along came the day that I decided I would do something about this vacant staring of my beloved into the tank of fish. Something should be done about it, it was abnormal to stare at fish for hours on end.
The deed was done and, Ha, I couldn't wait to see my hubby's face! But, as things have a strange way of diverting the course of justice, hubby had invited some friends for supper and informed me, as they do: 'Tim and John will be here soon, hope there's beer in the fridge, and hope you haven't started cooking yet, I've invited them over for supper'. Well, as it turned out there was no beer and I hadn't expected company for supper so I had to rush to get to the shops for some 'man food'. On the way out I bumped into Tim and John at the door (who I had never met before) and said: ' Hi guys, go straight in he's in the lounge' and rushed off to get the needed man stuff.
I was surprised since both men had come dressed in suits carrying black attache cases and I thought to myself well, well, I had better slap up something more than just man food tonight as they were clearly expecting a three course meal dressed like that! Murderous thoughts swirled about in my head as I thought what I would do to my loving hubby for springing such a surprise on me!
Anyway, as is my forgiving nature, I went about quite happily considering a fitting meal for hubby and colleagues and chucked a bottle of wine into the mix as well.
When I got home all was silent and I had a feeling of acute foreboding, the tingle down the spine that shouts out clearly 'all is not well'. As I stepped into the lounge I saw five grown men huddled around the fish tank in silence. My next thought was that I had not catered for five men and I was quite sure that hubby had said Tim and John, full stop. I coughed discreetly to draw hubby's attention, all five men jumped up, like guilty children caught at a mischief of some sort.
Hubby said 'Tim and John have arrived' I thought that was a fruitless response as they had arrived as I was leaving and I sent them through to the lounge so I walked toward 'the suits' with my hand extended and said 'hi Tim, hi John'. They however backed away as though I was inflicted with the plague. Hubby pulled his hand through his hair sheepishly and said this is Tim and this is John, pointing to the two men in T-Shirts who had arrived while I was away. I pointed at the suits who had retreated back to the fish tank and whispered to hubby 'so who are they then?' He shrugged and said 'I don't know I thought they were waiting to see you because you sent them in!'
Well it turned out that 'the suits' were a pair of Jehovah's Witnesses who I so casually ushered into the lounge to join hubby at his fish tank vigil. They left without apology, preach nor prayer after introductions were made but assured us they were delighted to meet us and yes we had a marvellous fish tank.
The folly of my deed then struck me with all the might of a thunderbolt! I had pasted, at the back of the fish tank, a poster of a topless woman because I thought that staring at a fish tank for hours on end was rather an odd thing for a man to do!
Fortunately hubby took it in good humour and Tim and John appreciated the underwater scenery so I left them huddled around the fish tank with cold beers while I happily slapped
up some man food. And that's how it's meant to be! And, yes, we do have a marvellous fish tank!
Rose
