Week 2 Story: Squidward Tennisballs

https://sites.google.com/view/nathanielvoportfolio/squidwards-art

Squidward Tentacles works unending hours at the Krusty Krab restaurant as a lowly cashier.  He labors day after day to make enough to achieve his dreams: winning a dance competition, playing music at the Bubble Bowl, and being a movie star.  However, his dreams are shattered each and every day as he only makes a nickel for every day he works. Squidward spends his free time as an artist, dancer, and musician.  He enjoys dancing painting and building sculptures of himself, as well as playing his clarinet.  Despite all of his hobbies, Squidward has no friends.  He does not want to associate with his neighbors, SpongeBob and Patrick, as they spend their days blowing bubbles and fishing for jellyfish.  He once had a friend named Howard.  Howard shared many interests with Squidward, such as playing the bassoon, enjoys fine art, and especially dislikes blowing bubbles.  However, SpongeBob and Patrick later convince Howard to blow bubbles with them, thereby taking the only friend that Squidward ever had.

One day, Squidward, feeling as if no one deserved to be his friend, finally creates his masterpiece: a self-portrait sculpture made out of wax.  He is found to be very satisfied with his profound work of art.  Days go by, and Squidward comes home after each and every day and he has a romantic dinner of casserole with his wax sculpture.  Squidward decides that he cannot take it anymore.  He knows that he is in love with wax sculpture.  He finally decides to go and visit the Flying Dutchman to persuade him to use his magic.

Squidward goes to the Flying Dutchman's ship.  He gives one of his most prized possessions, a self-portrait painting called "Bold and Brash", as an offering to the Flying Dutchman.  The Flying Dutchman sees the love that Squidward has for his wax sculpture and turns the wax sculpture into an octopus.  After paying tribute to the Flying Dutchman, Squidward comes back home to find that his sculpture was alive.  The alive sculpture felt the sheer love that Squidward gave to it.  Squidward names the alive sculpture "Squilvia".  Months later, Squidward and Squilvia finally get married and have a child named "Squiggle".

Photo of Squidward and Squilvia

This story is adapted from a Greek story where Pygmalion falls in love with an ivory figure that he makes.  He gives an offering to Venus(Aphrodite), and she makes the ivory figure into flesh.  My adaptation features characters from the cartoon "SpongeBob Squarepants".

Bibliography. "Ovid's Metamorphoses", translated by Tony Kline. Web Source