Thursday is International Cephalopod Day which might not have enough gravitas yet to be printed on every Hallmark calendar like Halloween and Valentines Day. But, it could be on its way there. You might want me to back up and explain what a Ceph-al-opod is before I begin touting the benefits of them and the need to have an international day of celebration in their honor, topped off with the ultimate recognition of inclusion in your mass produced annual calendar. I’ll give you a hint-for most people, they’re probably more familiar with the creatures in its golden deep fried version, served with a lemon wedge or marinara sauce at your local Italian restaurant.

Cephalopods are more than just the dish consumed after garlic bread and before fettucini alfredo. They’re the wavy-gravys of the ocean. The undulating tentacle-strung invertebrates glide throughout the deepest depths of the oceans with delicate fluttering motions that defy their sophisticated systems of highly developed brains and nervous systems. While there are 800 of types of them, the most commonly known ones are squid, octopus and cuttlefish. An octopus in its whole, living form, is a bit like those fuzzy neo-teddy bears known as Ugly Dolls; bizarre shapes and colors that are so ugly they’re actually mesmerizing and enticing.

I’m not spilling any of their ink as I write this blog, but all cephalopods do have ink sacs which they use against predators. It is sometimes used by chefs to stain your foods into midnight blue shades but I think it’s a lot more interesting when it’s used by the original owners to ward off predators rather than making foods an unappealing inky stain.

Cephalopods are creatures of a dangerous, dying world (though I doubt they have the same angst that I do about the planet). Their home-our oceans-is suffering from all of the turmoil and stress we’ve put onto it, from over-fishing to pollution to global warming. We have an opportunity on this special day to honor these beautiful creatures (in their alive, not deep fried form) and also take action to help to protect their habitat-our oceans.
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