Happy Holidays to a Fishkeeper

"May I help you?" "Yes, I'd like to buy my husband a filter for Christmas." "What size, ma'am?" "I don't know." "Well, what size tank does he have ma'am?" "I don't know." A thought crosses your mind and you spread your arms out wide. "It's about yay big," you say.

At this point the salesman either explains to you that you should leave and come back with more information, or very possibly he sees dollar signs and sells you a filter that is little more than a gamble. It will probably be wrong and probably be returned after the holiday. Again, gift certificate is the best option here.

Now, quite personally there's nothing that I hate more than receiving a gift certificate as a gift. But that's all I keep telling you, "gift certificate, gift certificate, gift certificate." Yeah, but don't get me one, please.

Now if I want a filter for Christmas, as I actually do this year, I specify exactly what I want. FLUVAL 303 CANNISTER FILTER (no substitutes). So, your husband writes this out on a slip of paper for you and you go back to the pet shop.

"May I help you?" You hand the salesman the slip of paper. "Ah, excellent model, wait right here by the counter and I'll go get that for you." The salesman returns a few moments later with a box that is plainly labeled Fluval 303, you pay, go home, wrap it up, whalaa: big smiles on Christmas morning!

So I'll wrap up by suggesting you stick to this rule of specifics. Don't go in to buy fish food, a heater, medicine, or a tank. By all means go pick up some Tetra-Min Large Sized Flakes, a 200-watt Visi-Therm heater, a package of Maricide, or a twenty-gallon long tank, if that's what was asked for. And please, don't buy any living things, besides they're a pain to wrap. Happy Holidays to all and I'll be back at the end of the month!

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