Indie Squid Kid

Yesterday was my birthday, and my brother-in-law Jeff got me this awesome shirt. I wore it to watch Inception, which is neither here nor there, but damn that was a cool movie.

Now, I know what you’re probably thinking…didn’t I already do a post about “Subway Squid?” Yes, yes I did.

However, this particular shirt was purchased from ThinkGeek, the online emporium of artifacts recovered from the cultural intersection of Hip and Nerdy. “Subway Squid” is their first piece of Gama-Go merch, and it comes in Black for $27.99 ($28.99 for XXL). Incidentally, it appears that this shirt is no longer available directly from Gama-Go.

Buy it now from ThinkGeek!

Born in Providence, Rhode Island on August 20, 1890, Howard Philips Lovecraft would come to be considered one of the most influential American horror authors of the 20th century

He is best known for the creation of what has become known as the Cthulhu Mythos, a series of stories and novels that feature a pantheon of cosmic entities so horrible and incomprehensible to the human mind that the mere knowledge of their existence is enough to drive a person insane. These tales of cosmic horror were often set in his native New England, and they featured a number of memorable fictitious Massachusetts towns such as Arkham (home of the equally fictitious Miskatonic University), Innsmouth, and Dunwich. Lovecraft also created the concept of the Necronomicon—an ancient book containing secret knowledge pertaining to these Great Old Ones.

Other authors, such as Lovecraft’s friend and publisher August Derleth, would go on to write their own stories of the Mythos, elaborating and expanding on the themes, settings, and mythology of Lovecraft’s bleak and fascinating universe.

Lovecraft died in 1937 of intestinal cancer. He was 46.

Lovecraft's original sketch of Cthulhu

I came across the above image on the Ectoplasmosis! blog. They do a regular feature with the fiendishly clever name Cthulhu Cthursday (a name I wish I had come up with!). I wonder what Lovecraft would have thought if someone had told him that his work would be so revered and influential (as well as controversial) 119 years after his birth?

Euprymna tasmanica (aka, the Southern Dumpling Squid)

Originally posted by Saspotato.

This cute little guy is a Southern Dumpling Squid—a species of bobtail squid found in the coastal waters of Southern Australia. It grows to maximum length of 7cm and spends its days buried in the sandy bottom. For camouflage, it creates a mucus-lined coat of sand which can be shed quickly (with the help of acid glands) to create a decoy if attacked. Bobtail squid (Sepiolida) are closely related to cuttlefish, and they have a symbiotic relationship with bioluminescent bacteria, which inhabit a special light-emitting organ in their mantle.

This drawing (based on the photo at the top of the post) is by Joe Komenda. Joe is the creator of the webcomic Feral Chicken, the inventor of the bacon-infused Bloody Mary (yum!), and one of the many über-talented people I have the good fortune to know. The orignal drawing now lives in my house, and once I figure out where to hang it, I’ll post an update here.

Here’s another birthday present from last year—the awesome Octopus Field Bag by Deadworry, a small independent print shop from Florida.

Here are the specs from the Deadworry Etsy store:

$25.00 USD

Octopus design hand screened on 100% cotton canvas; heavy enzyme-washed; cotton webbing straps; front flap with antique brass turn buckles; inside hanging zippered pocket.

Color: Smoke Grey
Specs:

DEPTH 3.5″

LENGTH 16″

WIDTH 12″

The octopus design is also available on men’s t-shirts.

A different octopus can be found on baby doll dresses, tote bags, messenger bags, and something called a trapeze dress.

But wait! There’s more!

Siamese Octopus t-shirt!

Tentacles hoodie!

And last, but not least, the enigmatic Octo-Owl!

octopus on my shoulder, originally uploaded by Cryptonaut.

This was a birthday present from my sister last year, but I don’t remember where she got it! (Emilie, help a brother out!)

I have a feeling it came from Etsy, but I haven’t been able to track it down. (A search on Etsy for “octopus shirt” yields 20 pages of results!)

So if anyone recognizes this shirt, I’d love to be able to link to the seller!

UPDATE: My sister says she got this from Deadworry. It doesn’t seem to be currently available, but they still have loads of other octopus stuff, so check ‘em out!

Yesterday was my birthday, and while I’m not claiming that it was an event of cosmic import, per se, it was heralded by signs and portents.

I’m just sayin’.

Last year, as some of you may recall,  I fully intended to catalog all the cool cephalopod loot I received.  I failed.

So, now that this blog is jet-propelling itself at top speed through the murky squid-strewn landscape of this modern Internet, I feel that I can finally keep that promise. Before the month is over, birthday gifts both old and new will take their destined place here on ISK. And there is some very cool stuff indeed!

Octopus bithday card by Rachel Nabors

Birthday squid cartoon, originally uploaded by Cryptonaut.

Here is the reason why Natalie Metzger is the Official Artist of Indie Squid Kid. For my birthday last year, she sent me this amazing cartoon. This year, she continued the trend by sending me the physical version of this!

I have really awesome friends.

squiddy birthday card, originally uploaded by Cryptonaut.

Yesterday was my 34th birthday, and here is the card my awesome wife gave me.

We shall resume a more regular blogging schedule this coming week with more birthday fun.