What do you do with a silly mermaid?

Where to begin?! Things have been so crazy the past few weeks. I have been a busy busy mermaid! As we have updated on Facebook, we are officially working with the fabulous Fairmont Aquatic Center on some upcoming projects, and I will even be attending their Easter Egg Dive this weekend. I'm really looking forward to diving for treasures, meeting new kids, and making a splash! I even did some special shopping for the event, and went and purchased a new type of goggle. Swedish goggles have no rubber around the lenses to seal them in, they just seal directly to your eye. So they are almost invisible, stay off my makeup, are super comfortable...oh and did I mention that they also give me regular vision underwater? Yup, I can see as clearly under the water in the goggles as I can see above water without. They are amazing. For all you mermaids out there, these are a great option to protect your eyes, and they are almost invisible! AND since you put them together yourself, you can decorate them. I plan on beading the nose piece and decorating the rubber straps so they look prettier. I was really excited when I tested them yesterday.

I really wanted to blog about my experience with the photoshoot a couple of weeks ago too. It was the most fun I've had out of the water in a long time. Our photographer Hannah Call and her team was absolutely amazing! I felt so glamorous at the shoot, and I'm sure Dottie and Nikki did too. We shot at the Gateway Mall, and being naughty mermaids got into their fountains. And yes, took pictures right next to the "No Wading or Climbing" sign. The water in the fountains was ice cold! But felt fabulous on our tails, silicone can get so hot out of the water! We also propped ourselves up on concrete balls to shoot in front of a beautiful building, and on a park bench. My poor tail was soooooo dirty after! My tub was practically black after washing the poor thing. Here's the fabulous thing about my silicone Mermaid Creations LLC tail......I won't lie, photoshoots on dry land can beat a tail up, and while we do our best to protect it, we're still hopping and scooting on rocks and on benches. No damage was done to the tail. Zip. It still looks brand-spanking new. Dottie's tail took some damage sadly though. Jesse, if you are reading this, you're probably cringing right now, BUT you have more proof that those things are virtually indestructible! We haven't gotten updated photos yet, there were so many taken that I'm sure it will take our photographers awhile to sort through them all. But as soon as I get some, I will share!

The weekend before was wonderful too as we got to attend a birthday party at the Murray Aquatic Center. The little birthday girl was thrilled to have real mermaids show up at her party! We blew bubbles, played games, and sang mermaid songs. I even rewrote "What do you do with a drunken sailor?" to "What do you do with a silly mermaid?" I was thrilled that not only the kids were singing along and clapping but the adults were too! It's always wonderful to have an entire room dancing and clapping while you sing. She was a gorgeous little girl and so polite! As were all her wonderful friends!

The next few weeks will be busy busy busy too! This mermaid is off to San Diego for spring break to go back "home" for a few days. Hopefully the call of the ocean doesn't entice me to stay for too long!

Big Mermaid, Big Dreams

I wanted to put up a quick post here to share my Indegogo campaign with all those that view my blog. I have decided to swim out of my shell just a little bit more into some very foreign waters! With some coaxing from friends and family (especially Janelle) I have decided to participate in this years MerPalooza mermaid pageant. BUT I need your help! Please visit my campaign on Indegogo, share, and donate! Even a few dollars will make a huge difference for me, and show to the world that you support being body positive! I am going to prove to the world that your shape and size DOES NOT determine your dreams! Whether you're a size 16 (like me) or a size 6 or anything larger or smaller you too are gorgeous, talented, and amazing! Oh, and did I mention that for donating you get perks? Anything over $10 gets a particular handmade mermaid item from me. AND I can take custom orders when you do. So it's a win-win, Donate and get some fabulous mermaid gear. Transform me into a MerPalooza pageant princess and I will help transform YOU into a mermaid! It's that simple!

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/transform-this-big-mermaid-into-a-big-beauty-queen/x/2435863?c=home

Also, I have lots of fin-tastic updates that I will post this weekend. You can check out some of our adventures on Facebook, but I will update with all the silly details here soon!

Thanks to everyone for reading and for supporting! Wouldn't be here without ya!

Mermaid Swimming

I had an interesting hiccup come up with a booking I'm doing next week. I found out that the recreation center that we had booked to do a child's birthday party recently banned the use of mermaid tails. What I found was interesting that this happened in landlocked Utah! Which probably means there was an accident at that particular pool. Needless to say, we will still be there, but are having to jump several hoops to get special permission to swim.

This leads me into a blog about the importance of practice in a mermaid tail. Even with over 300 hours of training under my fin, and very regular training habits, I still occasionally have problems. Lets be honest, you're tying your legs together, and jumping into 9 feet of water (or deeper at some pools). There are bound to be problems sometimes. Even in shallow water, accidents can happen. I can't tell you how many times I've "missed" and bonked my head. Luckily, with all of my training (and the fact that I NEVER swim alone) I have plenty to rely on in a fishy situation. So here's what I recommend for those that would like to start mermaid swimming.

1. NEVER EVER swim alone. Always bring a friend, another mermaid, a mertender, or someone to swim with you. If you are going to be alone, make sure the facility you are using has lifeguards and plenty of people around to help you if you get in a bind.  This will ensure your safety, the safety of others (your friend could make sure there isn't anyone near your fin when you dive, so no one gets hit!), and make it possible for other mermaids to use the pool if we are all swimming responsibly.

2. I highly suggest you practice with a lightweight fin first. Even better, practice your dolphin kick (or make sure you are a strong swimmer) without a fin. Then use a fabric tail, and move up to neoprene, silicone, latex, etc. The heavier the tail the harder it is to learn to swim. Even though a tail is water neutral (it doesn't sink or float) it still has weight that you are pulling. Plus, the professional grade tails (silicone especially) will suction your legs together and it's a much different feeling in silicone than fabric.

3. Did I mention practice? Practice practice practice! Practice does make perfect. The better skilled you are in your fin, the more comfortable the "pool authorities" will be with you being at their facility.

4.  Know your limits! And seriously follow them. This applies to breath holding, diving, currents, etc. There is always room for improvement, but don't get yourself in trouble.

5. Be careful with children (and adults!) in the pool. If you have a large fluke (like me) make sure you have room to dive and swim safely without knocking someone out with your tail. Better yet, have a friend or mertender spot you. I have been smacked with a tail (and I have smacked friends with my tail too on accident) while swimming with some of my girls. It's not a pleasant feeling. Although it's not a huge deal because we're friends, another pool patron might have a problem with it.

6. I also recommend being careful with children. Not just while swimming, but while talking and working with them too. Some kids may have autism, learning disabilities, or even just fears that make them uncomfortable with you. You don't want to cause a problem or scene, so just be careful. Generally speaking, I try not to interact with children beyond waving (or beckoning them to come visit you) until they approach me, or their parents or guardians approach me. I am also very careful with letting children ride on my back (I make sure their parents are okay with it, and they feel safe putting their head underwater, OR I'm in very shallow water), or sit in my lap without the parents close by (or without their permission). You never know what allergies a child has (especially with latex), what insecurities they have, or what their history is like. I work for a center for autism as a teacher now, and this is some of the training I was given to ensure the safety of the kids. This applies to photography too. Make sure the parents are okay with you posting and taking pictures with their kids. Generally speaking, unless I'm doing a party and the parents have posted pictures, I will not even post pictures of the kids to avoid problems. Release forms are great for this. Privacy is a huge issue with some people these days, and its better safe than sorry!

Phew! Okay, I think that about covers what I do. It may seem restrictive, but it really isn't all that bad. And because of these guidelines that I have put in place for myself (and for the other mermaids that work under me) we don't usually have any problems with parents, recreation centers, or anyone else for that matter. And now I will swim off my soap box!

Mermaid Pink Eye

Yes, that's about as gross as it sounds. This mermaid got pink eye from one of the pools here. Sadly, poor Mermaid Nikki is having some eye problems too, although her's isn't pink eye, just irritated. So I may not go to that pool a second time. I intend on writing an email to their people because I know it was from the pool. I didn't have any other outside contact that day with it. So voila! This MerQueen looks less fishy, and a little more sick-y. (Okay, that was a terrible rhyme, I know. Perhaps pink eye messes with your brain too?)

But that leads me into a brief little anecdote. And for other mermaids that read this, please feel free to use this story as your own. I do wear goggles and a nose clip while practicing. Sometimes I wear ear plugs, but not often as I find them extremely uncomfortable. Since I swim for 6+ hours a week (3x a week, 2 hours each time usually) I have found it necessary to protect my eyes every time I swim. I also have to wear contact lenses. I'm practically blind without them. The only time I go goggle-less is if I'm doing some parties, or a major event. Otherwise, I figure it's better safe than sorry. (Oh, and I went mostly goggle-less yesterday, and look at the present I got!) Anyway, I digress. So kids often ask me, "If you're a real mermaid, why do you wear goggles?" And I have found a story that works well for explaining why. I tell kids that it's important that I wear goggles because mermaids have special eyes, and in order to see in the ocean, we have a special film over our eyes that allows us to see clearly. Since the swimming pools here have chlorine in them, I wear goggles to protect that film, because the chemical eats it away. And that's how you can tell a real mermaid, from a girl in a costume. (I usually ask the kids if they can open their eyes underwater in the pool and if its okay, and usually they say yes.) A real mermaid will either swim with her eyes closed in a pool, or wear goggles to protect her special eyes. A girl in costume, doesn't have to. And this story has worked with every kid I have come in contact with. At other events where I'm goggle-less, I obviously don't tell them this story. And of course if there is a second encounter with the same child and I'm goggle-less there is always the magic excuse. 

I wanted to blog about this to remind people that wearing goggles in public pools is not just so you can see,  but it's also a safety issue. Occasionally going without is okay, however your eyes aren't worth the risk. Especially in germ-filled public pools. You only have one set of eyes and I believe that they aren't worth risking.