May 2

May 2, 2008

My goodness, why didn’t you tell me it has been a while since I updated this.

 

Ponds: I decided we should raise seabass (barramundi) to avoid shrimp diseases and because they are happy over a wide range of salinity. However, feed would be expensive. So then, the next plan was to put tilapia in with them. I had been told the type that can tolerate seawater (Mossambicus) were not available, now I’m told they are easily available. Oy. The tilapia will have lots of babies which become seabass food. Theoretically, you don’t have to buy fish food. You put fertilizer in the pond, for the plankton to grow, which is eaten by little critters. The tilapia eat the plankton and the critters. Adding seaweed would also help to provide food and substrate for the little critters. And the seaweed can be processed into agar, an additional source of income. But the fish want deeper water than the seaweed. And now they tell me the tilapia will eat all of the seaweed. Why can’t this be more simple! Someone told me if you keep the salinity at 20 ppt, the shrimp won’t get diseases. I’m absolutely positive it is not that simple!!

 

Contacts: I got together with Maria for lunch and shopping. Today at meetings, I got to encourage an Italian atheist to seek God.

 

Meetings: Yesterday and today I was at meetings on shrimp farming etc. I did learn some stuff. But often the most valuable part is making contacts. Next week there are meetings on the progress of aq here and plans for the future. Hopefully that will help me to get a better picture of the situation, and maybe help to find a role that I can play in it.

Other: As I was typing tonight, a long skinny bug came up out of the keyboard, walked around and went back under the keys. I couldn’t brush it off, because then it would end up on my bed. After it had come up a couple times to look around, I finally put the computer on the floor and was able to brush it onto the floor. How do you type knowing a bug may crawl up at any time?

 

Travel: Friday I head south for the wedding of my house-mate. Then to KL for a visa stamp and rest/recreation. AND Mexican food – yea!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Last time my friend took me to a really good Indian restaurant. Maybe we can do that again. I’ll be gone 7 days and sincerely hope things are stable at the ponds while I’m gone.