Re: [Killietalk] Aquabid vs BNL - I prefer BNL

["Keith Cook" <kcook at sdgdocs_com>]

Long non-fish related.  Find "Delete" if necessary. Just part of the annual
AKA "vent" that our shrinks say we need to participate in.

I'm beginning to see a problem.  Say I'm a newbie with no local affiliate,
say, in Utah.  (Can fish live in Utah water??  :-)  I discover killies by
accident and join the AKA thinking I can obtain some fish.  No one in the
AKA lists fish anymore because of "need to network" or "too few fish" (you
could list as limited) or poor policing by the AKA with regards to "this
person is a no pay/no return of very nice mailing styro."  

Newbie then needs to go to an affiliate show (which is apparently evil as it
is a parasite to the "Mother Show" over Memorial Day) to find fish.  Needs
to make a two day out-of-town commitment because the local has no box sale.
Maybe there is no local show, so said newbie HAS to fly to the National.
Gardneri go for $20/pr.  Isn't even sure what a gardneri is because people
on Killietalk don't want to talk about fish stuff, just computer stuff.  No
one talks to said newbie because everyone is catching up with old friends
they haven't seen since last Memorial Day. 

Finally newbie goes home with some Aust. alexandri and puts them in an 80F
tank where they quickly expire.  Newbie quits.  

Moral of the story:  Make fish as available as often and in as many places
as you can.  Affiliate shows, general aquarium auctions, pet stores, club
meetings, National Convention, Registry on the website, and in the BNL.
Have as many shows as the market will bear, sell your fish for as much as
the market will bear, breed as many fish as your market can bear, send fish
to other people's shows.  If your aren't listing in the BNL and instead are
only making your fish available to your close circle of friends, you aren't
helping the hobby much.  Once you "pass," so will your fish as you haven't
spread them around.  How else is a newbie to get hooked if we don't get
these fish out there?

Anyone want to network with me (wink, wink).  Oh, and see my list of fish
under the MKA Co-Op listing in this month's e-BNL or BNL.

Keith      


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