Japan - Part Two

As I said in my earlier post, I only visited cities while vacationing in Japan, and didn't see many animals. Then, one morning outside of my hotel, I spotted a green snake! Normally, I would have been hesitant to stick around, but I was so happy to finally have a chance at snapping a photo of some wildlife, I couldn't get my camera out fast enough. This Japanese Rat Snake was almost gone by the time I did. You'll have to click on the photo to enlarge because the snake was, sadly, pretty small. He's in the centre of the picture:




Inside our hotel, there was a large stand for people to store their umbrellas for the day. Yes, they're just umbrellas, but don't they look like snakes in a crowded subway car?




Of course, there's lots of Koi. I took this photo at Kiyomizu-Dera, a Buddhist temple in Kyoto. And look! There's a turtle on the rock. Two for the price of one -- it was a good day.

Fortune Telling Fish

I picked up these Fortune Telling Fish at Pier One Imports a few weeks ago (I know I'm stretching my animal-themed blog by including them). What's so cool about them is that we had these things when I was growing up in the early 60's -- this is what we did for fun back then. Anyway, seeing them was like a mini-trip down memory lane. To get a closer look, just click on the photo.





According to the back of the package, this means I'm passionate. But since it had turned over, it might mean I'm false. I suppose I'll have to try it again. You see, hours of fun! Who needs video games?

Gone Fishing

We used to have fish -- in a five gallon tank, I believe. The fish were lovely to watch, though I always felt a bit sorry for them as they swam around and around, imprisoned by four glass walls. That is, I felt sorry for them until it came time to clean the tank. Then I felt sorry for me.

I was rather fanatical about keeping the tank clean, so I bought a sucker fish. He was a great little housekeeper, mouthing his way silently along the glass surface. As he grew and grew, never complaining about his lot in life, I became quite fond of him. Over the four or five years that we had the tank, fish would die, only to be replaced by others. But that sucker fish -- he just kept doing his job.

When the last fish died, I decided my tank cleaning days were over. The sucker fish still thrived, so when a local fish store offered him a new home, I gladly dropped him off. Okay, not so gladly. Do you know, I actually cried when they slipped him into his new tank? Man, sometimes I just get too emotional.

I'll never venture back into the world of fish and aquariums, but I could surely be tempted by some of these:

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I'm not too sure how this works, but wouldn't it freak out your friends when they came to visit? And think of the convenience when it comes time to dispose of the dead fish (Note: we always buried our fish. Flushing seemed so ... so disrespectful).

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This aquarium is suspended from the ceiling. I have no idea how you'd clean it, but I don't recommend it to anyone living in an earthquake zone.

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This is the coolest aquarium. Impossible to clean, but so much fun for the fish. Hmm ... can fish even have fun?

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You know how fish don't like it when the side of their tank is tapped? With this, what happens when you have a party, and everyone is setting down their glass? Your fish would most likely become nervous wrecks, cowering from the creatures hovering over the table.

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All pets are high maintenance in one way or another, or at least, they should be. As much as we love 'em, there will always be aspects of their care that drive us nuts. With my cat, Meeko, it's the 5:00 a.m. wake up call she gives me. She'll begin kneading my head if knocking things off my bedside table doesn't work. That's still better than sticking my hands into a fish tank, and cleaning poop out of the gravel.