Linda-ology Part I

I’m sure there are better things I could be typing today, but I’ll do this today – it’s a goofy little questionnaire from Facebook. My brain is tired. I hope these questions are easy – I haven’t even read it through yet.

I’m doing this because I never, repeat never, fill these things out when they come in email or wherever, and I’ve been sick all week and figured why not.

This is one of those things you’re supposed to tag people and they tag you back and all that – but I’ll leave that part to Facebook. You guys can copy and paste your own answers on your blogs if you like.

Presenting a rare off-the-cuff interview with Linda Paulson Adams, semi-not-quite-famous author ;-p LOL.

Autographs afterward in the Food Court.
Thanks!

***********FOODOLOGY***************

1. What is your salad dressing of choice? Red Robin’s Ranch

2. What is your favorite sit-down restaurant?
Does Red Robin count? Or do I have to put something snooty and sound all upscale? Because I’m just not.

3. What food could you eat every day for two weeks and not get sick of?
Havarti cheese, fresh blueberries, Sockeye Salmon, Canadian Ice Cream
(obviously my budget will not tolerate this sort of abuse so that I can test out this theory)

wait, where’s number 4?? OK, I will invent one.
4.
Oh, nevermind, I guess I won’t. It’s not coming to me. Sorry.

5.What do you like to put on your bagel?
Who said I liked eating bagels? Ask Sarah instead.

***********TECHNOLOGY***************

1. How many televisions are in your house?
I don’t know, I don’t use them. I think…. 3? Are there more in the garage Steve is trying to fix or get rid of?

2. What color cell phone do you have?
black & white

where’s number 3 now??
This is ridiculous. There should be a law that you should be able to count to 5 before inventing these things.
3. Mac or PC? (A-HA, I invented the missing question)
Mac. DUH. But I still use a PC until I can replace them all with MAC.

4. Have any idea how may Megahertz your computer has?
Nope

***************BIOLOGY******************

1. Are you right-handed or left-handed?
I am becoming left-hand dominant in my old age. Has this happened to anyone else?
I didn’t think so. I’m just weird.

2. Have you ever had anything removed from your body?
Well I have wondered if the BB’s I swallowed on a dare from my little brother when I was 12 ever came out.

3. What is the last heavy item you lifted?
Myself

4. Have you ever been knocked unconscious?
I think so, but I don’t quite remember ;-p

************BULL-OLOGY**************

1. If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die?
maybe, but what good would that do?

2. If you could change your name, what would you change it to?
Wouldn’t change it. Sorry. I’m attached. Linda Linda Linda.

3. Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000?
Pssh, no. Make it a million or two and I’ll think about it – but – eh, probably, NO. Hot fudge: YES.

************DUMBOLOGY******************

1. How many pairs of flip flops do you own?
one that I never wear, they hurt

2. Last time you had a run-in with the cops?
Now wait a minute, does this count speeding tickets or actual run-ins? Because I’ve never had a “run-in” if that’s what you mean. And I’m not talking about speeding tickets in public.

3. Last person you talked to?
Sarah

4. Last person you hugged?
um…. one of my kids, but we do that all at once so I don’t remember who was last.

**************FAVORITOLOGY****************

1. Season?
SUMMER

2. Holiday?
Easter and Christmas

3. Day of the week?
Saturday

4. Month?
October

***********CURRENTOLOGY*****************

1. Missing someone?
My poor hubby who is working such long hours at work and I barely see when he’s awake

2. Mood?
Calm

3. What are you listening to?
the fan in my bedroom

4. Watching?
Nothing

***************RANDOMOLOGY*****************

1. First place you went this morning?
The boy’s room to wake them up, then Bekah’s room, THEN the bathroom, yes in that order.

2. What’s the last movie you saw?
Um. Now you are making me have to think. I don’t like you anymore. Hmph.
Hm hm hm hm hm….. Queen Live at Wembley.

3. Do you smile often?
not often enough I think

***************OTHER-OLOGY*****************

1. Do you always answer your phone?
No. Pththttttttththt to the ringing phone if I’m busy. Sorry guys. I refuse to be ruled by a ringer.

2. Its four in the morning and you get a text message, who is it?
Rachel who forgot what time it is in WA when it’s 1 AM in Hawaii :-p

3. If you could change your eye color what would it be?
pssssh. Change perfectly cool eyes? Okay, okay, they’d be an exotic blue mixed with deep purple specks. Oh oh oh oh! And I would switch to cats’ eye irises while I’m at it, and they’ll reflect gold, not red, in photos.
Yeah!

4. What flavor do you add to your drink at Sonic?
Oh I MISS SONIC! But I never added flavors.
I miss the strawberry limeade in the summer. Sigh…

5. Do you own a digital camera?
Yep

6. Have you ever had a pet fish?
ROFL… come to my house, see the aquarium. Free admission!

7. Favorite Christmas song(s):
The First Noel, Breath of Heaven (Amy Grant), LEAST FAVORITE: The 12 Days of Christmas and The Red Shoes song

8. What’s on your wish list for your birthday?
QUEEN’s NEW BOX SET: HINT HINT HINT HINT ***HINT!!!!* That’s October 24, folks.
Or the Freddie Mercury Complete box set (12 CDs) but that’s flamin’ expensive.
Or maybe an iPhone.
And health and happiness.

9. Can you do push ups?
LOL, you’re kidding me, right?

10. Can you do a chin up?
ME? Why ask ME?

11. Does the future make you more nervous or excited?
Both.

12. Do you have any saved texts?
Yes. I save the really funny or poignant ones. Or the blackmail ones. Or the ones you need to keep to prove that person actually said that.

13. Ever been in a car wreck
yes

14. Do you have an accent?
I can make one up if you want me to

15. What is the last song to make you cry?
Now this is ambiguous. I call for a rewrite. It could mean the last song you listened to which elicited a response of tears, OR it could mean the last song on earth that would EVER bring you to tears.
If the first, I don’t remember but I’m sure it was a Sacrament song during Sacrament meeting, and it wasn’t the song that did it but the emotion I was feeling about my Savior at the time.
If the second, I think it would be inordinately difficult to cry while singing Jingle Bells.

16.Plans tonight?
DATE NIGHT, Boo-YAH!!! Every Friday, baby!!!

17. Have you ever felt like you hit rock bottom?
Now; what IS rock bottom, and how can you really be sure you couldn’t sink any lower?
If we can more thoroughly define what rock bottom is, I could possibly answer this question.
Have I been slammed to my knees by life events, adversities, trials? Absolutely.
Have I ever found myself guilty of shameful behaviors due to addictive behaviors I needed to change? Nope.

18. Name 3 things you bought yesterday?
Two vitamin supplements ordered by the Dr., and that’s it. If I’d had the energy I’d have stopped at Draeger’s for more Clover Perfect Blueberry Kefir which I just ran out of. Man, that stuff is divine.

19. Have you ever been given roses??
Duh! Is my husband’s name Steve? And did he BRING ME ROSES AGAIN JUST YESTERDAY? Oh yes he did!!

20. Current worry?
My health equals that of Jack Sparrow, but I haven’t drunk any rum

21. Current hate right now?
I don’t hate. But I’m dissatisfied with the state of order in my home and my lack of energy to change it.

22. Met someone who changed your life?
Absolutely

23. How will you bring in the New Year?
Wishing I was at MaryJane’s house.

24. What song represents you?
What part of me? Really, only one song? And what aspect of me would it represent? This question requires essays of songs, an entire catalog with explanations. You expect me to boil down my entire existence into one three-minute sound bite? Ridiculous.

25. Name three of your FB friends who might complete this?
Probably the under-20-year olds. Steve will not. He may not even ever see this.

26. Would you go back in time if you were given the chance?
Now, for what purpose? Why am I going back in time, and what are the parameters of my visit? Am I there as a mere unseen observer, or physically there interacting with the timeline and lousing it all up?
There’s a great deal of responsibility here, you see. It’s ponderous. The implications are frightening.
Whoever writes these things really needs to think the questions through more thoroughly before just tossing randomness out there like this. Preposterous.

27. Do you have any tattoos/piercings?
Pierced ears, and a single closed hole from a 2nd ear piercing in college.
I have NO TATTOOS. I am more unique than most of America.
Wait, scratch all that. I think for this one I’ll just answer:
“yes”
And let all my friends wonder if I have anything hidden they’ve never seen. LOL.

29. Will you be in a relationship 4 months from now?
Better be!!! 21 years with Steve and holding!

30. Does anyone love you?
yes

31. Ever had someone sing to you?
yes

32. When did you last cry?
Why do you care? I’d like to know when YOU last cried. What about, oh interviewer? Now we’re getting nosy.

33. Do you like to cuddle?
What’s it to you? Again, what is the point of asking this question?
I’m exceedingly picky about my cuddling. So there. Hmph.

34. Have you held hands with anyone today?
Now what’s next? I am beginning to worry where else this interview will go before it’s through.
No comment. Skip. I will skip now, before it gets any more graphic. Land sakes, what is the world coming to?!

where’s 35???
35.
There, I added a “35.” Someone else can write in a new question. Yawn. I haven’t got the moxy.

36. Are most of the friends in your life new or old?
Old, actually.

37. Do you like pulpy orange juice?
Now wait just one minute. THIS QUESTION BELONGS UP IN FOODOLOGY.
Why sort the answers into categories if one refuses to USE said categories, I wonder?
And the answer is yes.
If I buy Tropicana with LOTS OF PULP no one in the house will drink it but Me. bwahahahahahaha. Pulpy means I get it all to myself.

38. What was the last band you saw live?
Aw, man! Unfair, I have to go back too far.
~~~memory banks frazzled~~~
Ah! Must have been that band at a Sumner Summer Concert sometime last year.

39. If you could have any job, what would it be?
Broadway Star or Oscar-deserving Actress (note, Oscar-Winning and Oscar-deserving are not necessarily the same thing)

40. What was the best thing that happened to you today?
Can’t I come back and answer this on a different day?
I had enough oomph to make my bed.
OK, there. Not a super-fun answer, but this is that day.

And *I* am going to add one myself, one from “The Actor’s Studio” show on Bravo:

41. What’s your favorite sound?
for me… babies laughing is right up there at the top.

I should blog…

…but I’m not.

Yawn.
I’m tired today and feeling quiet.
Not bored, not low: quiet.

How are all of you?
I’m tired of yapping about my boring self!

Big Sale! –Maybe. Let’s Talk Business!

Well….. I said on my website last week that I’m out of stock of Prodigal Journey. I’m pleased to report that more books should be in by next week and I’ll get your backorders finally filled! Yay.

Also very important is that there are about two cases of Refining Fire left in print in the known universe. That’s about 60 books, folks. Unless I find more copies hidden somewhere that I’ve forgotten about–but I think that’s it.

I’ve been offering a great discount on this one, but I need to go back to cover price to make sure the stock holds out for a while – I have no plans to reprint it until after I’ve printed the third book, and I’m too busy right now to figure out electronic copies, Palm Readers, Kindles, and all that. I do want to do that someday – but not now. I think most all of you would agree with me that getting the third book done is more important!

Also, I got word from my distributor that the 1200 copies of Prodigal Journey still left over (yes… it was a huge initial print run, and when everything went haywire, I got stuck holding the oversized bag of books) are pretty much taking up space. So… I can put THAT title on a deep discount, once my stock arrives. Cool? Cool.

I would also like to offer anyone in a Utah school district in need of a fundraiser the supremely low price of $50/case for 24 books if any of you would like to use them for a school fundraiser. The list price is $14.95, so this is a much better deal than the 50% cut most fundraising products offer. What’s the catch? You’ll need to fetch them from my distributor (in Brigham City, UT). Send me a note through my website, comment here, OR email linda@lindaofficial.NET if you’re interested. I still have to clear this big idea with my distributor, and I’ll most likely need to issue you an authorization code which allows you to pick up the books.

And if you just really, really want 24 copies of Prodigal Journey – and can pick them up in Brigham City – talk to me about that bulk discount. None of these will be signed, unless you want to buy me a plane ticket to come speak and sign books at your school – which I also would be glad to schedule. Keep in mind these are high school to adult level books. Not many 2nd graders really want to go home with a signed 500-page chapter book with no wizards or dragons! Ha.

In unrelated news, I’ve bought a new DOMAIN NAME for my website:

http://www.lindaofficial.net

I thought I’d snag a good idea from Adam Lambert, whose site is “adamofficial” – since “lindaadams.com” has never been available, and nobody can spell my maiden name correctly (twenty years of living with it taught me this 80x over), I figured why not try this route? This domain is good for the next 10 years. Yeah!

I couldn’t get “lindaofficial.COM” – which belongs to a singer in a Spanish-speaking country, where I’ll bet the name Linda is much more popular than it is here in the USA. (I haven’t seen or heard of a baby “Linda” in ages! have you? nope!) And yes, I do know my name means “beautiful” in Spanish. Thanks. My reply to that pick-up line? “Yes, and did you know your name means ‘ugly iguana’ in Cantonese?”

If ”lindaofficial.com” comes open, I’ll try to catch it. Meanwhile, try hard to remember to type .NET and NOT .com.

My http://www.alyssastory.com domain is still valid, and both domains point to the same website. I’ll keep that name until at least next February, so there will be some overlap. But it does get me funny looks sometimes, when I pass out my business card and have to explain that ALYSSA is the main character in my STORIES…. eh, anyway, it was time for a change. Simplify.

Oh–and while I was simplifying, I changed my Twitter ID to “LindaOfficial.”  If you were already following me, no big deal, but if you’re looking for me there – that’s what to search for. Side note: a really, really nice teen in Europe had “LindaOfficial,” but I wrote to her and asked how attached she was to it, and she changed it for me! That was SO nice. I was so impressed and so pleased I could get the same name everywhere. Branding, branding, branding – right? (If only changing your username on MySpace was so easy… heh. Well, MySpace is mostly dead, anyway.)  So, one more official shout-out to Linda in Europe: Thank you so much for your kindness!

OK. That’s the business news for today.

I’m still writing and hope to press forward in faith and get this manuscript done. School starts the end of August, and I’ll have my quiet time back to forge on ahead.

Thanks for listening, and have a great day. ~~Linda~~

Where Were You When…

….you heard Freddie Mercury died?

I’ve had a terrific idea for a new book: to compile all your stories answering this question into one nice volume. Yes, I will finish part III of my trilogy and get it out before I start real work on this project, but meanwhile I can send some feelers out for an agent, and collect some initial stories.

Too young to remember that particular day, but learning about his death still affected you? That’s fine too. Just write about that.

This will be a book to let others share–and read–how the death of this brilliant musician and soul affected each of us firsthand.

I’ve set up an Earthlink address just for collecting your stories in English, from 100 - 5000 words:

thedayfreddiedied@earthlink.net

It should be “live” as of now. Comment here if you have any problems with bouncing.

I’ll take comments left in this blog post as well – I can track that easy enough. But please – even if you know me and have my normal email – please email stories on THIS topic to the ABOVE address. That keeps them all in one place.

For the legalese:

Permission granted to post links to this blog post wherever you like. Please, however, contact me for permission before copying/posting the text of this call for stories anywhere else. Copyright is reserved.

I cannot guarantee or make any promise whatsoever of compensation for your participation in this book project. I can give you a byline by your story, so you see your name in print. (If at all possible, depending on how any publication contract goes, I would hope to extend at least a discount if not a free copy to contributors, but that’s in my heart, and I may not be able to, financially or otherwise.)

Sending in your story authorizes me to edit and publish your story in the upcoming book. When possible, I will review any edits with you before publication. Again, bear in mind that this may not be possible, especially if you write in as “anonymous” or some other false or unfindable name, your email address bounces, etc., so again, I am not promising; I can only say I will try.

Please include at the top what name you wish to be published under. If you don’t sign a name, I will have to make one up for you. Bwahahahahhaaaa.

I am a Freddie and Queen fan, so replies/stories such as, “That guy was a freak, he deserved to die” will not, repeat, will NOT be published and will be deleted.

This will not, again I repeat NOT, be any type of expose’ or tell-all piece of garbage: I want no part of that drivel whatsoever. This is a tribute book. Meaning: any risque’ or sordid stories or thoughts will be deleted on sight. Curse words will be deleted or toned down. I believe it is entirely possible to come up with a family-friendly book.

If you did meet or know him and have a kind, personal reminiscensce of him to share, that’s fine, even encouraged. However, please expect to be asked to verify either your identity or the story, or both, before I will agree to print it. I will be diligent about proving anything celebrity-related whatsoever before publication. I deplore gossip and tabloids with an ultimate passion. No secondhand accounts will be considered. Period.  Find the actual person and encourage them to write in. Otherwise–no dice.

I reserve the right to select stories for publication based on merit, lottery, whim, or whatever other method I so choose. Sending your story in does not guarantee publication. I will make every attempt to let you know if your story is included. Again, no promises, since if you move, give out a phony, blocked, or broken email address, die, or otherwise fall off the face of the earth, I can’t tell you you’re in.

Depending on volume of replies, I will try to let you know if I can’t use your story, but again, this is not a promise. This kind of project may take some time to complete, and if I’m flooded with thousands of emails to comb through– seriously, I just can’t make any promises. I can’t predict how this is going to go.  

Let’s make the initial deadline midnight December 31, 2009. But if you’re like me, you’ll forget about this by next week - so take a minute or two now, while you’re thinking about it.

Can’t type more than 5 wpm? Prefer to hand-write? Have no computer, email, or internet access? Or have a handicap which makes typing difficult? Drop an email to the above address (or have someone do it for you) and we’ll work out another contact method.  

OK, are we all clear? Great! As Freddie would say, “Let’s do it!”

(C) 2009 Linda P. Adams. All Rights Reserved.

And, a new hobby

So…. for some odd reason, in consequence of moving, I’ve taken up a new hobby–fishkeeping, or, the practice of having an aquarium in your home. (Or in my case, um, more than one…)

When we moved into our new place, it had a “wet bar” (which, being a practicing Mormon, I will never use for alcohol) and it struck me this would be the perfect place to put an aquarium. Or two.

If I’d been blogging these past few months, it would be about fish. I may still blog a bit about fish. So there.

Those who know me know my fascination with houseplants – and working with aquatic plants was on my to-do list anyway. Planted tanks are just gorgeous.

my angelfish tank

my betta "sorority" tank--some females can live together

I have had Bettas ever since Steve and I started dating, but hadn’t run a full aquarium setup in about 15 years – and back then, when I did, I was doing it all wrong. Looking back with what I know now, I don’t know how those poor fish survived.

Somehow this hobby is addicting, though, and Craigslist provided (or as I prefer to say, the Lord provided…) me with good access to inexpensive equipment. Still, it’s been trial and error, and I’ve learned a lot about sick fish from pet stores, fish disease and treatment, and fish just plain not making it. Put that with my tendency to want to rescue things, and pretty soon you have the family groaning when Mom walks in the door with a fish bag. I’ve slowed down, thank goodness. There’s no way to save them all–there just isn’t.

I became so distressed as I shopped around and learned about the poor conditions of Bettas in those little tiny cups, that I decided I want to breed them myself–to keep them OUT of pet stores and directly into the hands of owners I can help teach about their proper care.

With a lot of research, trial and error, and finally a stroke of luck, I succeeded in putting two beautiful fish together without killing each other in the process, and now have about 20-30 six-week-old baby Bettas in my home. Thankfully, this was a “small” spawn–sometimes you can wind up with two or three hundred. They’re almost two months old now and pretty adorable. They won’t have their full finnage for about three more months, but their colors are coming in nicely.

With Bettas, the Daddy fish cares for the eggs until they hatch and the babies are free-swimming. It’s neat to watch. Momma fish pretty much just lays the eggs–then Daddy chases her off before she can eat them. (ew, gross–but that’s the fish world for you.)

Frodo tending his bubblenest

Scaramouche, the Mama

Here, pics of Mom and Dad. Her fins are a little torn up from his protecting the eggs from her, but are growing back in nicely.

Their spawning tank, with fry; microworms for fry food teeming on the bottom (the white cloudy stuff)

 

And the babies:

One of the larger babies - bottom right, smaller fry

In about a week or two, I’ll have to separate the fiesty little boys from everyone else, and put them into individual containers–but they’ll have much larger and cleaner homes than any Betta in a pet store ever gets. Then, between three and five months old, they’ll be ready to find their new homes.

Did you know that sometimes they have to live in that little tiny cup for over a year? It’s really unfair to the fish. But it does take up to a year for their full finnage to come in–and everyone wants to buy them fully finned.

Two medium-sized fry

 

If you’ve had a Betta before and it didn’t live very long, it was very likely in poor health before you bought it. Try looking on Craigslist or online for a reputable breeder near you with healthy breeding and raising practices–and stay away from those in the tiny cups if you possibly can. But if you’re like me–with Bettas–once you make eye contact, it’s over. “Save me, save me, save me….” ….you can almost hear them begging to go home.

 

They have so much personality compared to many other fish, and can be very interactive with you.

 

Through the years, mine have even learned to tap on the glass to get my attention for treats. Very cute. You can’t pet them–but otherwise, they’re a lot like puppies.

 

While I’m at it, I’ll post a few simple guidelines for proper betta care, but for more information visit the International Betta Society’s website. I don’t have it in front of me at the moment, but a web search will bring it right up. http://www.bettysplendens.com is another excellent online resource, and breeder who can ship to your door.

 

First of all, Bettas do like space to swim, and they do like heat. They do not need an airstone like other tropical fish, because they have a labyrinth organ which allows them to breathe air from the surface. But they do like and need clean water–which means if you are keeping one in a small vase or jar, say a quart or so, you should be changing that water 100% at least twice a week. One to two gallons can go up to a week.  And two to three gallons per Betta, changed fully about every week, with a heater to keep them between 74 and 80 degrees, is really best. And yes, you really, really should use a water conditioner, in addition to “aging” the water for a day or two by letting it stand. This does evaporate chlorine and eliminate those pesky nitrogen gas bubbles, but there may be other elements in your tap harmful to fish. You can do a lot of water testing to figure this out–some fish stores offer this as a free service–but you’ll probably be getting a conditioner anyway. I really like Prime.

 

So if you think about it, it’s not all that hard, or expensive, to upgrade your Betta to a bit more water and swimming space, or to give them clean water more often. They’ll thank you for it–and will live longer and happier lives. Remember–just because you can keep them in a tiny, cold little cup doesn’t mean you should.

 

Bettas come from Thailand, where they are found in rice paddies, and many wild species find their way into the hobby as well. But the most common is betta splendens, which includes all the various tail types you may have seen out there: veiltail (the usual), crowntail, split or doubletail (my Frodo), delta and halfmoon.

 

Their natural environment provides small insects, and they love them. Most will not touch flakes unless they are offered nothing else to survive on, and this–and the commercially produced “betta pellets”–are not the best foods for them. Also, any freeze-dried foods, while they eat these readily, can cause serious constipation, which can lead to death. Don’t do it.

 

I do keep a high-quality pellet on hand (Hikari and Omega One are good brands), but it’s a great idea to soak them in water first so the expansion happens outside their bodies rather than inside. They’re pretty voracious eaters, especially the females (sigh…), and don’t really know when to stop. The ”all they can eat in three minutes” rule doesn’t apply to them–they’ll be stuffed so big they’ll look like they swallowed a small grape. And then you have health problems, and will need to fast your little overeater until that bulge is completely gone (which also will not hurt them–in the wild, they can go up to two weeks without eating, but I don’t recommend waiting that long at home!)–all while your little guy is looking at you like you’re evil, because they could certainly eat more!

 

Just remember, they can and will eat until they explode, so don’t let them.

 

So. What should they eat, and how much? A variety of live foods is best, if you can stomach it. They’re not expensive if you ignore the price per pound and realize your fish is only going to eat about the size of their eyeball every day. A $5 package of frozen bloodworms will last you a really, really long time. These are a favorite. Snip off a small portion with a sharp knife and thaw it in a small dish of water (I pull water out of the warm tank). When thawed, you can pull out 3-4 of the juiciest-looking ones with a plastic fork and drop in the water. Easy as that.

 

There are also frozen or live brine shrimp (“sea monkeys”–although I don’t recommend raiding your child’s beloved sea monkeys to feed your fish), daphnia, and mosquito larva (I don’t recommend growing these at home on purpose, either). You can also find flightless fruit flies wherever reptile foods are sold, and these are also readily accepted. And yes, they do stay in the little jar they come in, and don’t get all over the house or your food. 

 

Take care that any food you buy is small. Bettas have tiny teeth (too small for you to feel, should your Betta ever happen to bite you), but they can’t cut up their food into smaller pieces. It has to fit in their mouth. So some foods you see in that freezer case–such as krill and mysis shrimp–are just too big for them. You can chop them up if you, uh… want to. Be my guest.

 

Chopped earthworms would also be a great and healthy treat, but that’s not exactly how I want to use my cutting board. How you use yours is up to you.

 

My favorite food for mine is live blackworms (sometimes sold as tubifex worms–which you can also find frozen). These are usually sold by the ounce and can be kept in the fridge for a couple of weeks, with waterchanges needed every few days. I prefer to grow mine out myself in a separate tank–but that’s not for everyone. In any case, Bettas love to chase them down and slurp them up like spaghetti.

 

So there you have it, Betta Care 101. To recap:

*Buy from a good breeder

*Larger bowls/tanks

*Add a heater

*Live or frozen foods

 

These simple steps will help your Betta thrive and live a happy, healthy life.

Enjoy!