pingpong

So often I talk about my cat(s) here and I think I've been remiss to mention one of the most important men (at least I think he's a man) in my life, PingPong. PingPong is my turtle. My BFF Kate gave him to me for my birthday almost 4 years ago. She bought him illegally from a pet shop when he was the size of a silver dollar. He came in a little to-go container and he lived in a tiny 10 gallon tank.




He was so tiny and fragile. I spent hours hovering over his tank, making sure the water was warm enough and that he was eating. It took me forever to get a filtration system that actually worked without splashing water everywhere. To this day, one of the most annoying sounds for me is that of the tank filter splashing into the water. It's like nails on a chalkboard.


I remember when Pingers went through his rock eating phase. For the longest time he would down the little red and blue pebbles in his tank. I'd find little red and blue poops in the video tape maze that I'd make for him to exercise in. I bought bigger pebbles for his tank now and he hardly ever eats rocks anymore. Over the years we've developed our own little games like follow the finger. He loves the rare chances he gets to swim in the giant corner fish tank. He's way too slow to actually catch and eat the fish, but he loves the room to swim just the same. I wonder how much more he'll grow (he's already about 6 or 7 inches long) and how long he'll live (I've heard reports of these guys living up to 35 years!).



I can't imagine my life without my little repillian buddy. He's been with me longer than any houseplant, cat, or boyfriend. One of these days, when I'm rich, I'm going to build him an indoor pond with real plants and all the inch worms he can eat.