Elmo

I have a fish.

Yes, just one.

He's a betta fish, and he lives in a glass jar with a peace lily at the top. I got the first one back in 2001, just before Christmas. The thing is, fish don't live that long - at least not in small glass containers - so I got another one, and another one, and ... well, I forget exactly how many. At first, I changed names with each fish, but eventually it was easier to just call them all Elmo.

The current Elmo has lived a long time. About a year ago, he started doing odd things (like swimming on his side, which isn't really normal for a fish). He did it many times and I thought the end was near, but then he just stopped doing it.

Today, he's still happily swimming around, hiding in the plant roots and trying to avoid being taken out so that I can clean the bowl.

He might be the last Elmo. It seems like a boring life (even for a fish), and it might be better to stop buying fish so that they can live out their lives in their natural habitats, instead of in a fish bowl.

Luckily, I don't have to make a decision about that unless Elmo starts swimming on his side again. Or his back - that's even worse.