Hello, everybody. I'm James, from Knoxville, Tennessee. I grew up in Jacksonville, Florida, and my mom and dad ran a shrimping company and a marine construction company. So, aquatic life has always been a big part of my life. I temporarily left the hobby for a few years, when I had children , but I got back into it about a year ago. It started with my piranha tank, as I've always been drawn to them, but then the bristlenose pleco caught my eye. One tank turned into two tanks, two into three, all the way up to 53 tanks, which is where I am at today. I now keep everything from the piranha and plecos, to guppies and tetras, to cichlids , and lots of fish in between. There is beauty in every fish if you take the time to learn about them. Studying aquatic wildlife and plant life is one of my favorite pastimes and truly brings me joy. I collect a variety of species not only to enjoy them, but to also help breed them. I especially love the more rare species for this reason. I like to try to do my part in ensuring the longevity of these amazing and endangered species, so that they may live on for many generations to come. There are so many beautiful, fascinating creatures that you can keep, there is something for everyone. I like to think I'm doing my part in protecting them and also displaying them for the world to see. When you have enough passion about something, you can make it enjoyable for anyone, and my fish are my passion. I like to joke that I never need to watch the TV. If I'm bored, all I have to do is look at a different tank. That is another reason I like having so many different species, because just seeing the similarities and differences in each one is fascinating to me, even just fish to fish in the same species. I love being able to tinker around with the tanks until I get everything just right for the inhabitants. I hope to pass on some of my knowledge to others as well, so that everyone can have the opportunity to thoroughly appreciate and enjoy the wonderful underwater world in the comfort of their own home. As I said earlier, I grew up with the ocean as an integral part of my life, and I only hope to spread that sense of wonder with the world to the best of my ability.