RIP LaCretia

Yesterday, Kyle discovered our pet gold algae eater, LaCretia (similar fish shown, our camera has been broken since March), at the bottom of our fish tank sucking on what appeared to be not algae at all, rather one of our larger snails. That was certainly surprising.

"Oh", he says, "LaCretia is not eating the snail; the snail is eating LaCretia. She's dead."

And so ends the tragic life of our little one, leaving us with a mere 13 fish, forever destined to the same fate as our little algae imbiber. LaCretia was a good fish, although I did find her skills of late to be dropping considerably. But she lived probably a good 2.5 years or so (I have had her only a year; I inherited the fish from a friend leaving the island).

Which begs the question: do I get a new algae eater if I, myself, plan on leaving?

and, inevitably,

Should I really be keeping fish in an aquarium anyway?

I like my fish. I like coming home from work and watching them dance around in the water, with ol' Blacky, the shark, chasing the striped ones whom we haven't bothered naming. I like taking care of something too, which I'm sure is some kind of deep mothering affectation I can't completely satisfy by having a dog or a boyfriend. The fish just seem to be there for me, which is why the loss of one is not entirely ignorable (although, admittedly, the small tetris disappeared a long time ago, and I have no recollection of when it died or got devoured at all...)

In any case, I am sad to see the little one go. This loss comes at the end of a summer of many changes: friends leaving the island, my grandfather's passing and subsequent cleaning of his entire house full of memories, and the end of me playing around as a student, and starting a job as a teacher. The inevitable progression of life. I guess I will have to embrace it; I'll go to the pet store tonight and pick out a new algae eater. I hope it will live up to the legacy that was LaCretia.