The Sin of Fin

MJ and I recently watched a documentary where fishermen sliced off the fins of sharks, then tossed the bodies back into the sea to drown. The brutal practice of shark finning is fueled by the high price that Chinese restaurants can charge for shark fin soup: $30 to $40 per small bowl.


Outraged, MJ resolved to never drink this popular Asian delicacy again. I agreed.

A few months ago, MJ and I attended my cousin Ray's wedding, where they served shark fin soup. It didn't look exactly like this:


Despite insistences from my relatives to "eat it, it's good for you", MJ politely yet firmly refused to drink the soup.


Bravo, MJ! I'm proud of you for standing up against shark finning.

What did I do? I'm embarrassed to say I caved to peer pressure and finished my bowl.

But from now on, I will follow MJ's example and skip the shark fin soup. I will listen to Sherman the Shark:

Fridge Critter: Chelsea the Chicken

In 2001, I learned to use a pen tablet to colour eight baby animals. I put that drawing on my fridge eight years ago. Last year, I learned to crochet. To celebrate the spirit of learning new things, I spent this summer remaking my drawn animals into crochet critters.


The eighth and last Fridge Critter is the chicken.


For unknown reasons, Chelsea the chicken was never able to lay eggs. She didn't want to raise baby chicks; she just wanted to make her own eggs.

Sometimes she would admire another chicken's egg:


Other times, she would dare to get closer:


She had reoccurring dreams of hatching a carton-full of Grade AA eggs:


But this summer, Chelsea got tired of unfulfilled dreams. So she taught herself to crochet. What was the first thing she made with a crochet hook?

That's right: eggs.


Pop!

She makes eggs all the time now. She's happy when she's creating. At this rate, she'll have made more eggs than all the chickens in the coop.

Congratulations, Chelsea. We hope you continue to learn new things!



This summer, we met each Fridge Critter: Squire the Squirrel, Bleu the Blue Bird, Pandara★♥ the Panda, Darla the Duckling, Sherman the Shark, Turner the Turtle, Piki the Pig and, finally, Chelsea the Chicken.

There are now two photos of the Fridge Critters on my fridge:


To celebrate their completion, my girlfriend recorded me returning the Fridge Critters into the wild. Here's the video:

Fridge Critter: Piki the Pig

On my fridge are eight animals I drew in 2001. Eight years later, I'm remaking them into crochet animals.

The seventh Fridge Critter is the Pig.


For many humans, the taste of bacon is so crispy, so juicy, and so right.

But when a pig wants to taste bacon, is it so wrong?

After years of increasing curiosity, Piki the Pig secretly asked another Fridge Critter to find him some bacon. Two strips on a plate.


Piki promised himself: Just one bite.


Even after he devoured the bacon and turned away in shame, he knew he wanted more. Someday soon, Piki the Pig would eat bacon again.

Just another bite.

Fridge Critter: Turner the Turtle

I drew eight baby animals in 2001 and, eight years later, I'm remaking those illustrated animals into crocheted critters.


The sixth Fridge Critter is the turtle.

Turner the Turtle enjoys his privacy, so I was surprised to see him outside relaxing on a bed of moss.


This shy turtle avoids eye contact. If you look at him, he'll turn away:


And if you continue looking at him, he'll do this:


Taking the hint, I left Turner to enjoy his solitary summer afternoon.

If eyes are the windows to the soul, Turner prefers his windows closed.

Fridge Critter: Sherman the Shark

Are you familiar with the Fridge Critters? In 2001, when I was learning to use a pen tablet, I drew eight baby animals and put that drawing on my fridge. To celebrate learning and my first year of crocheting, I'm recreating that 2D drawing into 3D crochet form.


The fifth Fridge Critter is the shark.


His name is Sherman, and he's a natural-born killer. Watch out!


He has sunk his yarny teeth into the blubber-rich bum of a walrus.
He has munched on a school of sardines who would forever be late for class.
He has clamped onto a bucking beluga whale, all in slow-motion.
He has shared cod entrails in a blood-red sea of conquest and camaraderie.


And yet, late at night, he relaxes his unblinking eyes and sees a scene of green. It's a dream where every bite blooms with redemption and tastes not of impending death but of flourishing life.

He would kill for some broccoli.



My girlfriend captured this video of me shooting Sherman:

Fridge Critter: Darla the Duckling

From a drawing on my fridge, the yellow duckling is the forth Fridge Critter to come to life in crochet form.

Her name is Darla.


She would be happy to spend all summer in the park's pond. She does wish that swan was nicer to the ducks. Last week, after barging through the pond like it was king, the swan glared at Darla: "Know your place, ugly duckling."


Here's a video of the bullying swan:

But what bothers Darla the most is when the swan honks at her dad:

Sometimes Darla imagines swimming up to that bully:

And sometimes Darla imagines twisting that swan's neck into a big ol' knot until he swims away forever.

But then Darla's heart beats fast, and she takes a deep breath. After all, it is summer, the water is warm, and the dark thoughts can wait.

Especially for a duckling named Darla.

Fridge Critter: Pandara★♥ the Pink Panda

The third featured Fridge Critter is the panda on the left. I don't remember why I coloured her pink in the 2D drawing, but her pink fur made the transition to 3D crochet form:


Her name is Pandara★♥. She added the star and heart to her name, to reflect her individuality. Pandara★♥'s parents raised her to feel special, especially since pandas are an endangered species.


At the community garden, passerbys will ask Pandera★♥ why she's pink. She replies, "I'm 1/8th flamingo." Everyone oohs and ahhs, and she likes their reaction. "Wow, you're so exotic!"

The real reason for her pink fur is a secret:

Fridge Critter: Bleu the Blue Bird

The blue bird is the second Fridge Critter brought to 3D life from a 2D drawing on my fridge.


His name is Bleu, and he is infamous for eavesdropping on juicy conservations. Chatty birds must watch their backs:


A saving grace to Bleu: he gossips only to the morning worms. And then he eats them.


Before she flew to France forever, Bleu's mom told him, "No one shares secrets with someone who tells them." Like most parental advice, it's a lesson still to be learned.

So, for now, look around before telling secrets. A little bird might tell them too!

Fridge Critter: Squire the Squirrel

Each time I visit my fridge, I'm greeted by critters.


I drew these animals when I was learning to use a pen tablet, and digitally-coloured this scanned pencil sketch. I printed the drawing and—because I wasn't blogging in 2001—posted these critters on my fridge eight years ago.

One year ago, I was learning to use a crochet hook. The thrill of learning to make amigurumi was like the thrill of learning to draw digitally. To marry these twin thrills, I'm remaking this 2D cartoon into 3D crochet.

The first of eight Fridge Critters is a squirrel. His name is Squire.


Here's some trivia to add more dimension to Squire the Squirrel: Did you know he's mildly allergic to acorns? He eats popcorn from the park's concession stand instead. He does collect and mash acorns into a paste for his ailing grandmother's toothless consumption. He also donates food to neighbourhood squirrels:



The remaining seven Fridge Critters will thaw as the new season approaches; a summer that is rich with the smell of acorn paste and the thrill of learning new things.

UPDATE: Here's a video that my gf recorded of Squire's squirrel encounter: