FrozenMyst, There are lot of medications out there for fish. Be sure you check the smytoms and facts of what medicine you should get. I hope your Betta's home is NO smaller then 1 gallon of water with filtration. Or is he swimming in his waste like so many Bettas end up? If he is, water changes are needed. I have heard of pros and cons of distilled water. I would get purifed water. You can get that at your local fish store or market. Or make your own...Aqua Pharmecutical Tap water purifer. You can find it on ebay or at Dr. Foster & Smith. I use it for my 10 gallon aquarium and Orchids. You need to get one of those cheap water test sticks to see what condition the water is. I thought I had bought purified water from the market and when I tested it is was no better then the tap water. Theresa

Thanks guys, I will indeed check out the links you offered. One of the farm service companies here is advertising a Bausch & Lomb 20x for something like 18.00 and from some of the few prices I have seen so far this might be a nice deal. Cathy, I just had a mental vision of myself with those over-the-head lenses on...maybe that's a cheaper cure for my astigmatism?? At least then I could pluck my own eyebrows a bit more efficiently!

Welcome back! What a fantastic experience, thanks for offering to share it with us. I imagine you have LOTS to do getting back into the swing of life. I bumped the Introductions thread for you on the Discussion page, but there's another one with 150 entries that I can't bump but you can find it using the search. Lots of new folks here and lots of fun holiday discussions! Great to have you back!

Did you look at the AARP plan? My mom and aunt had that one--up till last year, it was a lot less than what you're saying you're paying (I don't know about now), and mom and aunt rarely had to pay anything for their medical needs (I know once mom went to the eye dr. and ended up owing .50!--and the dr. asked for it, do you believe!). When Aunt had an ER visit/hospital stay/rehab stay because of a burst appendix--she paid only $100 for the ambulance ride between the hospital and rehab facility. Medicare and her AARP insurance picked up EVERYTHING else. You do need to speak with someone in your area, who understands insurance, and who is NOT trying to sell you anything. How about contacting your local senior advocacy center--they generally have knowlegeable people who can help you, or can direct you in the right direction to find someone. Good luck.