I have a new hobby. Aquarianism, or tropical fish hobbyism. Whatever you call it, I went to Petco today and bought a 10-gallon Marineland tank, 20 lbs. of large blue gravel, assorted pleasing artificial shrubs and sea grass, a couple of standing stones with holes in their middles like Utah's Arches, diamond clusters, a heater, a couple of nets, some water purifiers, a BIO wheel filter, a tank thermometer, and lights.

Tomorrow, I'll fill the tank, crank up the filter and heater, and let the water purify for about two weeks. After that, I'll go fish shopping. I'm doing some research on tropical fish and have found some candidates worth noting. The Neon Tetra seems to be a favorite and they're beautiful, especially in clusters of half a dozen or more. About an inch long, they have highly reflective teal, red, and silver bands, which makes them appear to be luminous. Other suggestions have included a Zebra Danios school, perhaps about 8 or 9. They're community fish and thrive socially in each other's company, but they're not spectacular to look at. African Rift Lake Cichlids are handsome and colorful, but they may be a tad too large for the populous, school-like effect I'm after.

I'm leaning toward one type instead of several types living together. Esthetically, I like the idea of identical fish in numbers weaving through the rocks and flora. But I'm still open to the idea of mixing it up with gorgeous Tiger Barbs, Cardinal Tetras, Harlequins, Platies, or a delicate mixture of a few small and a couple of larger fish, all compatible, of course.