Frogs, Frogs, Frogs!

I have frogs coming out of my ears!

I finally have three Cryptophyllobates azureiventris in my hands, as well as some lovely green legged lamasi froglets. I have two more vivaria in progress for the new species, but it has been a slow process. I finally cut enough glass for one tank, and all I'm waiting for is a miraculous windfall of money so I can afford all the lovely plants that are necessary for making a tank worth of putting $50 frogs in.

Some pics of my project:



How awesome does it look to have three tanks neatly in a row? It's froggy feng shui!



This is the current interior of the tank to the right. For the price of a 10 gallon tank ($9.99), polyurethane foam ($6), gorilla glue ($12), and coconut fibers ($3), you too can build yourself a Taj Mahal of froggy bliss.



And this is why I do it. Imagine having a teeny tiny frog (smaller than your thumbnail!) this beautiful in your dining room. Suddenly all the fly cultures you must devotedly make are completely worth it.

Frogs, Frogs, Frogs!

I have frogs coming out of my ears!

I finally have three Cryptophyllobates azureiventris in my hands, as well as some lovely green legged lamasi froglets. I have two more vivaria in progress for the new species, but it has been a slow process. I finally cut enough glass for one tank, and all I'm waiting for is a miraculous windfall of money so I can afford all the lovely plants that are necessary for making a tank worth of putting $50 frogs in.

Some pics of my project:



How awesome does it look to have three tanks neatly in a row? It's froggy feng shui!



This is the current interior of the tank to the right. For the price of a 10 gallon tank ($9.99), polyurethane foam ($6), gorilla glue ($12), and coconut fibers ($3), you too can build yourself a Taj Mahal of froggy bliss.



And this is why I do it. Imagine having a teeny tiny frog (smaller than your thumbnail!) this beautiful in your dining room. Suddenly all the fly cultures you must devotedly make are completely worth it.

Contrary to Popular Belief...

I'm not dead!

In fact, Val and I are happily settling in to our brand new place. Our first mortgage payment came in a week ago (not due until May! Let's celebrate!) and we're busy getting everything decorated and sorta organized. To try and play catch up, here's the news:

Val has decided to cut back on school a bit and join Airtight Games as a full-time mid-level programmer.

I've applied to Charter Bank as a Operations Specialist. Thanks to Ashley, a past coworker at WaMu, I had an interview with the V.P. on Thursday. Cross your fingers for me!

Val and I got a U-Haul stuck in a random snow storm during our move. We pulled an all-nighter on February 28th-March 1st, once we were able to move our U-Haul out of the snow at 3am. Going to work right after moving everything out of our apartment was hell, considering we didn't get a drop of sleep. We got the $1000 bonus for moving out in one day though. Worth it? Hell yeah!

Finley the froglet died during the move. He burrowed under a pebble smaller than a quarter... when it shifted, the weight of it crushed him. I never thought I'd cry so hard over an amphibian. It's so hard to see something grow up only to see it crushed.

My remaining dart frogs, Petri and Adama, have started courting. I heard my first "Hey Baby" calls on Wednesday. Wish me luck! Maybe I'll have a few more tadpoles to murder. :(

Val and I have been daydreaming about adopting an Italian Greyhound. We've decided to name him Sparta. "This is for SPARTA!!!" Or... "This is SPARTA!" It's all very dramatic. Plus, the Burke Gilman trail is right at our doorstep. It'd be a great place for a pooch!

Hope all is well with you and your own!

Update

If I had one word for all the emotions going through me right now, it'd make my life a hell of a lot easier. There's just so much going on, and so much changing that it's a little too much to handle right now.

Increase of responsibility at work = yay, but more chances to screw up.

Found a really nice condo that Val and I adore. We love it, so of course it'll sell for at least $20k more than the asking price. In other words, we have yet to find a place to live.

I discovered a new hobby that is insanely biology nerdish but too expensive for me to dive into. I have yet to reveal it, but let's just say that a webpage dedicated to the hobby is in the works. I figure I have to balance my life- trivial purse obsession on one end, biology geek at the other.

Due to a thermostat issue, my newest d. ventrimaculatus died. The heat was out of whack and I walked into a sauna. I opened the tank and found him on the floor of the tank, not moving. I saw him open his mouth once and he died right there... It's my first adult frog death, and it was heartwrenching to watch.

On the positive side of the hobby, Finley is growing so, so fast. He's starting to look like a real frog!



Please excuse the over-exposure, but I had to capture his new markings! Note the stripes down his back and the spots on his legs. He's starting to look more and more like an adult!



So, there's the update on my life. Hope all is well with you!