Fish Styx
In Cod We Crust
Partner Member 2024
Reef Tank 365
RGB
Hospitality Award
Reef Pumpkin Carver
WAMAS
Rock Pool Reef Keepers
R2R Secret Santa 2023
My Tank Thread
My Aquarium Showcase
Greetings, All! I figured that, given all of my recent activity here over the last few days, I should probably get around to introducing myself. My name is Matt, aka "Fish Styx", and while I am technically new here, I've actually been around since 2020, lurking like a creeper in the shadows. I'm a native New Yorker, born in Queens and later a Brooklyn transplant, though I've been gone from the city since 2005 when I left for the army. These days, I'm a denizen of the beltway on the Maryland side of the DC metro, where I am a member of WAMAS (Washington Area Marine Aquarist Society). Truth be told, however, I'm not terribly active there either. I can be a bit reclusive at times.
Having been gifted my first aquarium on my tenth birthday, I have been in the hobby, with a few breaks, for the past 35 years. I made the switch to the darkside (aka saltwater) in 2009 after a 21 month stint at Walter Reed (I was badly messed up in Iraq) that resulted in my being medically retired from the military. Since "crossing over", I haven't looked back. Back then, I was a pretty active member on another reef centric <ahem> forum, but left in 2014 because the community just got way too toxic.
Around the same time (2014) I had to tear down my system and sell off the majority of my gear due to an ugly divorce. That resulted in me being tankless for a few years while I pieced my life back together (again). Fast forward a few years and I have purchased a home (2017), remarried (2019), and gotten back into the hobby (2020). My current system is a Planet Aquariums Mega Matrix 180 (build thread coming) that has been wet since 2021 and is finally ready for SPS, which was the intent behind the build. That brings us to present day. If you want to put a face to the name, a pic of my ugly mug is attached. I look forward to being an active member here, offering advice when and where I can, and learning from the plethora of resident experts here, as I'm sure I will need to pick your brains from time to time.
Namaste.
Having been gifted my first aquarium on my tenth birthday, I have been in the hobby, with a few breaks, for the past 35 years. I made the switch to the darkside (aka saltwater) in 2009 after a 21 month stint at Walter Reed (I was badly messed up in Iraq) that resulted in my being medically retired from the military. Since "crossing over", I haven't looked back. Back then, I was a pretty active member on another reef centric <ahem> forum, but left in 2014 because the community just got way too toxic.
Around the same time (2014) I had to tear down my system and sell off the majority of my gear due to an ugly divorce. That resulted in me being tankless for a few years while I pieced my life back together (again). Fast forward a few years and I have purchased a home (2017), remarried (2019), and gotten back into the hobby (2020). My current system is a Planet Aquariums Mega Matrix 180 (build thread coming) that has been wet since 2021 and is finally ready for SPS, which was the intent behind the build. That brings us to present day. If you want to put a face to the name, a pic of my ugly mug is attached. I look forward to being an active member here, offering advice when and where I can, and learning from the plethora of resident experts here, as I'm sure I will need to pick your brains from time to time.
Namaste.
