The Golden Mean ~ 中庸

Life is like riding a bicycle. To find your balance, you must keep moving. ~ Albert Einstein

Fortunately for the goldfish hobbyists in Singapore, there are two goldfish shows these two months to tide through the usual quiet months after the Aquarama. The Fish-Hub Flower Horn and Goldfish Show is currently held in the East Point Mall till this Sunday, 20th September while the Mid Autumn Goldfish Show will be held on 3rd October.

I entered 2 self-bred Dragon Eye Pearlscale for the Fish Hub Show. The same fish which won the 3rd Prize in the Aquarama 2009 Pearlscale category, came in 1st in the Pearlscale category.

It isn't that encouraging for my other entry of the Black Dragon Eye Pearlscale. This fish has a structural problem that causes its head to dip whenever it stops swimming. To keep balance, it has to keep swimming. It is my mistake for not checking on its deportment before sending it for shows. It was kept it in a pond with 6 other fishes and never displayed it in an aquarium.

I have also found some time last evening to update the show winners' pictures in the Vermillion Goldfish Club website. It has also been a great challenge for me to balance work, family and hobby these few weeks.

Pictures:
1) Fish-Hub Flower Horn & Goldfish Show in East Point Mall.

2) My 1st Prize winner.

3) A Short Tail Ryukin that I am most impressed in the show. This guy has the potential to grow more beautiful in future shows.

4) My Black Dragon Eye Pearlscale with structural problem.

Synergy ~ 众志成城

Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.

~ Henry Ford

Few years back, I used to be the "scout" for my goldfish club members to recce on new shipment of goldfish. Every week, I would wake up very early on certain weekdays, drove from nearly one end of Singapore to the other just to check out the newly imported Chinese goldfish. Then I have about 20 minutes to select and made my purchases before rushing to work by 8:30 am.

We would all meet up in the evening after work to distributed the fishes. I went on this routine for almost 5 consecutive years, every week without fail. It was madness, but very enjoyable; as I drove through the long journey in the early dawn, I was always excited about the suspense of guessing what varieties of goldfish the dealer would import for the week. These "reconnaissance sorties" had trained me to be quick and sharp to scan for the fishes I want amongst the thousands of newly arrived goldfish.

The learning continues long after the purchases. My friends would feedback on the fishes that I bought for them and as we grew the fishes, we continuously studied their development in order to refine the selection criteria. We also adhered to a strict quarantine regime for newly purchased fishes, where we learned through practical experiences on handling various goldfish diseases. The strong synergy resulted in accelerated learning. As we learned from each others' mistakes, we brainstormed for solutions and made rapid progress together in this hobby. Eventually, we became confident to form the first goldfish club of Singapore - the Vermillion Goldfish Club in 2003.

Nowadays, my work commitments and the goldfish breeding projects leave me with much lesser time to join my goldfish club members on their fish hunting trips. However, the teamwork and close knitted sharing stays strong in both the goldfish clubs I am associated with - the Vermillion Goldfish Club and the Oozeki Goldfish Club.

I am really looking forward to the 2 imminent goldfish shows - The FishHub Show and the Mid Autumn Goldfish Competition to meet up with my friends again. What "secret weapons" would they field in for the Goldfish competition?


The Oozeki Ranchu Club and the Vermillion Goldfish Club welcome anyone who wants to know more about the hobby to contact them.

Pictures:

1) My amateur cartoon of the Goldfish Fanatic
2) Photo taking and chit chat sessions
3) Pair of rare scarlet dragon eye pompoms, one of the most memorable catch in 2003
4) Harvesting goldfish to study the development
5) Oozeki Ranchu Club JMIFY 2009