Mirroring ~ 以人為鏡

以铜为镜，可以正衣冠；

以古为镜，可以知兴替；

以人为镜，可以明得失。
~唐太宗

Mirror our image to adjust our attire;
 

Mirror history to understand the rise and fall of empires;

Mirror others to self appraise.

~ Emperor Tai Zhong, first emperor of the Tang dynasty

1st prize "Mirror Image"# entry of MFGC2010

Most of us use the mirror everyday - when we wake up in the morning, we wash up in front of the mirror; before we get out of home, we check ourselves in the mirror to ensure that we are neat and appropriately dressed.

We all know too well of this mirror that reflects our external self but few know of the other mirror that reflects our inner self. The latter is none other than us - human beings. We can always self-appraise from others' failures and successes.

It is not difficult to see our true self especially in competitions where our pride is at stake. Have we been objective to see our own weakness when we lost? Have we been humble to see more room for improvement when we won? The flying eagle and the well frog see the same sky very differently - the eagle feels small and humble as it soars in the vastness of the sky; the frog feels big and arrogant looking at the "small" sky above the well. 

The 2nd prize "Mirror Image"# entry in MFGC 2010 by
Dr Wee is one that I admire very much.

#The "mirror image" is an interesting category introduced in My Fancy Goldfish Competition (MFGC) since 2008. In this category,  winners will be judged on how close the duo entry resembles each other. Since all goldfish are unique, it is indeed a great challenge! Check out the MFGC2010 updates in the Vermillion Goldfish Club website now!

Too Good To Be True ~ 好事多磨

宁為有瑕玉,不為無瑕石。

Better a jade with a flaw then a stone without.

~ Author unknown

As the Ranchus grow bigger, some of their structural flaws manifest. Fishes having desirable traits for breeding are earmarked as breeder fishes while those with show potential will be groomed specially for shows. Besides segregation by show and breeder classes, the sexes are also separated to minimise the chances of premature spawning at such juvenile age.

 

Tosai 2010

Through all these years, I have learned to appreciate how difficult it is to produce a good Ranchu. The work is humongous, but the results are always uncertain and the more I breed Ranchu, the more I am humbled to feel how much I still do not know about this art.

 

My favourite fish with a bent right shoulder.

It will be one of my important breeders for 2011

 

Hopefully, the few promising breeder fishes selected from each spawn would yield better results next year. My main focus of for the next few years will be to achieve consistency both in TVR grooming and breeding techniques.

Stretching The Limits ~ 極限所能

休息是為了走更長的路。
To rest is to prepare for a longer journey ahead.
~ A Chinese saying

My initial plan to push the Dragon Eyes Pearlscale fries to grow faster is hampered by the drastic weather conditions. One moment it was so hot and humid and the next moment torrential rain. In this weather conditions, it would be foolhardy to feed the fries aggressively to hasten their growth rate; one wrong step could potentially wipe out years of hard work. Slow feeding means slow growth, and slow growth means slower culling as their flaws are less obvious to cull.


Rare blue-brown

Though things have slowed down for the pass weeks, I am still kept busy with more frequent water changes to dilute the acid rain. Life  only got a little easier finally after the 4th culling of the Dragon Eyes Pearlscales yesterday. Some day, some where, some things or someone would break if I do not slow down a bit on goldfish breeding. So for the next few months, I hope to channel my focus  on filling the orders for my goldfish artwork. 

Picture
1. Dragon Eyes Pearlscale spawn #4 at 19 days old.