When I was a little girl, like most girls my age, I was a teeny bit obsessed with The Little Mermaid. And pretty much anything else mermaid oriented. Even though I never dressed up for Halloween when I was little, I remember my mom made me a mermaid tail out of turquoise muslin material. Only I guess I was growing quickly or she miscalculated and my feet ended up sticking out by about 6 inches out the bottom. But that was okay.

I had the soundtrack to The Little Mermaid on cassette tape and would play the tape in our basement for hours on end while I sang and danced to every song…even that weird “Fathoms Below” song the sailors sang at the beginning.

I think every girl in some way can relate to mermaids. They’re beautiful and mysterious. And especially with The Little Mermaid- she felt out of place and longed to be part of something bigger. I think that’s a feeling we can understand.

As I grew up I continued to love mermaids. I once photoshopped a picture of myself as a mermaid (picture left). I geeked out when I got to visit Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida when I was 5 years old, and then again in my twenties. I still wonder what it would be like to breathe underwater (top 5 coolest superpowers ever, am I right?) and swim with fish and dolphins like they were friends. To be fair to my husband, the house isn’t decorated with mermaids, but I’ve thought about buying things once or twice with mermaids on them. Especially now that I’m married to a sailor. How fated is that?

When I moved to Hawaii, I had the great pleasure of realizing one of my childhood fantasies: to meet a real live mermaid.

My friend Kariel (yes, that’s Ariel with a K- it’s really her name!) is a mermaid. She lives by the water and she has her very own beautiful tail. I couldn’t stop asking questions when I saw her tail airing out to dry one day on her lanai overlooking the water. I have been a little bit fascinated ever since.

I got the chance to sit down with Kariel and ask her some questions. The five year old me was squealing inside the whole time!

When did you first come up with the idea to create a tail and become a mermaid?
I decided to make a tail about 2 years ago when I moved.  Hawaii is the perfect place to swim with a tail. I had always wanted a mermaid tail since I was about 4, I watched The Little Mermaid in the theater as a girl. I’ve been pretty much obsessed since then. Then I saw Splash! That was a great movie too.
I remember when computers were just getting popular and I would look online, trying to find who made that tail (from Splash) and how to get one. It was around $5,000 as I remember. Which seemed like millions in the 80’s. But that’s the moment I knew it was possible to make a tail that could swim in the water.

Tell me about the tail.
When I first started looking up how to have one, I knew I could buy one online but I wasn’t ready to spend my savings to buy one, especially while I lived in a cold area. 
So when I got to Hawaii I started thinking about it and thought, Well, I’m creative. I could just make one and it would be less expensive, more special and I definitely would appreciate it more. Well, it wasn’t exactly less expensive. And it didn’t take two days to make like I thought. But it was worth it!

So how long did it take you to make the tail?
About 400 hours over about a 5 month period. I sewed it and handpainted all the scales and detail on the tail. I’m working on a pink and gold tail now that’s almost finished too. I started that about 2 months ago. By the time I am finished,  that one will probably have about 200 hours into it.

Where do you hope to go with all of this?
I’d love to travel with it and do shows. I would also really like to create my mermaid-inspired bikini line and for that to be successful. It would kind of be like allowing every girl to be a mermaid at heart. I’ve also written a children’s book. I’d like for most of the proceeds from the children’s book to go toward cancer research. In the end my final goal is to do something gigantic for mankind. Something that makes a great impact! I believe that is my purpose, so I'm using every talent I have, to start!

 Tell me about the children’s book.
I illustrated it with pastel colored pencils. It’s about mermaids, and it’s a self esteem book for kids. I actually got to test it in a classroom setting and they really grasped the moral of the story, which just made me so happy. They really understood what self esteem was and how they can affect someone else’s self esteem.

What made you want to write the children’s book?
My grandma was dying of  Leiomyosarcoma cancer (that cancer isn't even in my new computer's dictionary!), and I was in the waiting room and I always drew these pictures. I thought, you know, instead of just drawing random pictures, why not just create something? I needed something to show for it. I wanted to put everything together and really make something, a book. Some way to help. I felt kind of helpless throughout her experience. I wish I could have done something big to make a difference while she was still alive, to make things easier on her. I promised myself I would do it, finish, sell it and donate the proceeds to finding help and knowledge.

What would you tell little girls that want to grow up to become mermaids themselves?
I would tell them to go for it. Lots of kids email me from my website and from my Youtube channel, and they’ll say, I wish I could do it but my parents or somebody will laugh at me. It just goes back to self esteem- if you have a dream, I say go for it. Even my husband laughed at me for years. But then I had this idea and actually went through and created it. And he is really impressed now. So many people laughed about it and thought I was silly for spending all this time making this tail, but now that it’s finished people are amazed.

You must be a really great swimmer- have you had any scary moments swimming as a mermaid?
Whenever I go under water for pictures I don’t wear a mask. It’s always a little bit scary because I can’t really see. You don’t really know what’s out there. This one time I swam with another mermaid friend so both of us were blind swimming out there and we just saw this big grey thing go by. We were like, “Did you see that? Did you see that? Was it a shark?!” We never found out. That was a bit scary. Yes I am a good swimmer now, before I was only capable of doggy paddling believe it or not. but when you have a dream you must go for it and I wanted to be a mermaid!

You’ve swam with turtles, stingrays, and even dolphins so far.  What else do you still want to swim with?
I still really want to swim with dolphins some more. I’d love to get closer to them! I believe I have a friend- it's a Spotted Eagle Ray. He came and found me multiple occasions and we have swam side by side. That is the neatest experience I have had yet. I can't wait to go to that spot again and see if he joins me.  I think the sea creatures are curious about me.  Some fish even follow me and I swear I get looks as if they are saying, "Who are you?"

What’s coming next for you?
There are big things are happening soon. I’m really excited! The swimsuit line is coming together. And so much more! Either way, you’ll see me swimming around.

Kariel is currently living her dreams as a mermaid in Hawaii. She models with her tail under and above water for print ads and film. She performs in underwater shows in aquariums and lagoons. She also makes promotional and philanthropic appearances. 

Kariel is working to market and sell her children’s book with which a majority of proceeds will go toward funding research to cure cancer in memory of her grandmother. She is currently creating and developing a mermaid-inspired swimsuit line.

You can keep up to date on all of Kariel's mermaid happenings by “Liking” her on Facebook and following her on Twitter. You can also visit her website at www.MermaidKariel.com.

My little girl self is still squealing. :)

Aloha!

I felt it was time for a website pick-me-up. Hope you like it! I think website design & graphics can be like a new hairstyle- sometimes you need a little update to feel good. That was definitely the case here. I plan on blogging more often now that I feel like my website represents me better.

Enough about nerdiness.

This deployment is chugging along, albeit slowly. But it's still progressing. Summer just officially ended. Of course, for Hawaii I don't think that really means too much. :)

I made sangria a few weeks ago for a beach day at Lanikai with my neighbor and good friend Shannon, and made it again the following weekend for a potluck with the boat wives. I got a few compliments and requests for the recipe so here it is:

Beach Bum Sangria
Ingredients:
1 bottle red wine (or whatever is left of multiple bottles of red wine)
1/2 bottle rum (I use Puerto Rican- any kind would probably work)
4-6 oz. pear or passion fruit vodka
6-8 oz. pomegranate or pomegranate-blueberry juice
1 orange
2 lemons
1 lime
1 cup sugar or Splenda
1-2 liters of Sierra Mist or Sprite

Directions:
Try to make one night before an event.
Mix together wine, rum, vodka, and juice.
Cut oranges, lemons, and limes.
Mix in sugar or Splenda.
Let sit overnight (the fruit rinds will flavor the drink more and the actual fruit will soak up the alcohol and be yummy to eat later).
When ready to serve, add Sierra Mist/Sprite to taste. One whole 2 liter bottle will cause your Beach Bum Sangria to taste like it isn't as strong as it actually is. (Note: Personally I prefer Sierra Mist because I think it's a little sweeter than Sprite and I don't always need to use as much sugar/Splenda.)

The great thing about sangria is that you literally just throw in what you have around. Another option instead of the Sierra Mist/Sprite is flavored sparkling water, such as the yummy ones they sell at Wal-Mart - which, if you have not tried yet, you need to do so asap!
If you have white wine, use that instead of the red (you may want to reduce the rum so it doesn't look gross). If you use a more dry wine you may need to add more sugar and if you use a sweet wine you may need to use less. You don't need to use the rum or the vodka if you don't want a strong sangria. I've also heard of people using bourbon in sangria.
This recipe makes a strong sangria so feel free to adjust accordingly. Makes about 2 gallons prior to adding Sierra Mist/Sprite.

This is a great all day beach drink- though I will warn you if you do the red wine version it can cause a killer headache later- keep Tylenol on hand!

Tips & Tricks for Making Friends on the Beach:
Ask people if they have an extra plastic cup you can use.
Borrow a bottle opener.
Compliment someone on their swimsuit.
Bring a dog.
Wear a gorilla costume (I actually saw someone do this at Lanikai before. Not kidding.)
Share your sangria.
Bring a d*ck towel. (If you don't watch Always Sunny, Google it. A sure friend maker.)
Wear your bikini backwards.

Okay...kidding about that last one.

Now go forth & make sangria! Comment or send me a message if you do- I'd love to hear how you made my Beach Bum Sangria your own.

I've begun randomly breaking into song and dance. Not well choreographed musical masterpieces like in Glee. More like random rap songs consisting of the words "puppy," "walk," and "WHAT" repeatedly and accompanying hawt dance moves.

Maggie and I are having some great in depth conversations. The neighbors look at me funny.

My Dear 2001 Toyota Echo,

As our relationship comes to a close and I pass you on to someone else I can only wish for the best for you. After all, I've always wanted the best for you. Don't let the 4 month old Taco Bell quesadilla under the passenger seat fool you.

We have had some amazing times despite the name calling...mostly on my end. You've been called "Clown car," "little plastic toy," "piece of crap," and "Why won't you go faster dammit?!?" But amidst the name calling, there were also the fond names- "Bubble car" (not meant to indicate you're chubby although you are slightly more hip-pey than your big sister the Corolla), "girl," "little bug," and of course, "Little car."

I pretended not to notice when hubcaps were repelled from you. I've encouraged you along the way when you would creep over the 76 mile-per-hour speed and I could feel you huffing and puffing just a teeny bit but I didn't want to hurt your pride by drawing attention to it.

You were there for me in college when I would nap with the seat back when I got to class too early. You had drunk sorority sisters falling all over each other in your back seat when I was the sober sister at socials (Sorry for the vomiting- but you should be thanking me for that detailing two years ago). You went out with me to meet up with friends in Towson, Bel Air, Glen Burnie, Baltimore, Charleston, and Ocean City. You may have even been accused of hitting some people once or twice...I'm pretty sure you just nudged them when they walked in front of you though.

You are a true beach girl like me. You're from Florida, you were here for me that year I turned 21 and lived in Ocean City for the summer (sorry for all the drunk, sandy people who inhabited your back seat on occasion), and all the South Carolina beaches- Myrtle Beach, Folly Beach, and Isle of Palms.

You traveled back and forth with me from Charleston, SC to Baltimore, MD. (Sorry for the dog's multiple bouts of car sickness.) You were even in an episode of Army Wives (with me of course) which was filmed in Charleston.

You were there during my worst roadtrip ever (although with the best results)- driving from Baltimore, MD to St Louis, MO for some boy at 11:30pm the day before New Years Eve just over two years ago. Turns out that didn't work out too well for you since now I'm going to be moving 5500 miles away with that boy to a tropical island....hence the reason you're not coming with me. Sorry to rub that in. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings.

In all seriousness, I feel like you were my first. My previous, the Neon left me high and dry with her flickering ghost dome light that would randomly come on while driving too fast, having the bass too loud, or even if someone leaned their leg too hard against the passenger side door. But I digress.

You're the first car that was mine. I had you the longest and I even paid you off all by myself. I'm sorry you won't be there for me when I go to the ultimate beach.

So I hope that the new girl can appreciate you and have as much fun with you as I have. I hope to be able to find another "little car" who will come close to what you've been to me. And maybe your cute older sister might just do...(I just saw an O'ahu Craigslist ad for a silver Corolla!)

Love,
Your favorite owner

As I watch (laugh at?) Jersey Shore and have an evening off where I’m not falling asleep, (actually I already napped for an hour) I thought I’d catch up. :)

December was crazy!

Christmas was awesome. My family celebrates on Christmas Eve because of my parents’ crazy schedules. That worked out pretty well because I ended up flying out on Christmas day to St Louis to be with Nick for Christmas and the few days after.

My sister was upset this year we didn’t do the Twelve Days of Christmas…Last year every family member awkwardly jumped in front of a video camera to sing/say/yell/scream/laugh a verse of the Twelve Days of Christmas. It was a hot mess we all complained all the way through about doing but cracked up laughing when we got to watch it. Unfortunately my stepbrother and his wife had to run to church because they were in a play or something so we didn’t have time to sing this year. Darn.

Christmas day I spent a good deal of time at airports and on planes. I wasn’t fortunate enough to get window seats and spent the two flights (there was a layover in Atlanta) trying to sleep with my head strangely pushed forward while safely cushioned in one of those round travel cushions.

I made it one piece and got to clean up and nap before heading over Nick’s Aunt Cathy’s house to meet…well, everyone. I met his grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Everyone. They were hilarious. We had a Chinese gift exchange (where everyone brings a gift and everyone gets one but you can steal other people’s gifts) where I won a duct-taped wrapped soccer ball that took me 10 minutes to open. I was cool enough to be the only person to get something sort of adult (The Hangover on dvd) and the youngest cousin ended up getting it…ooops. I didn’t know there was going to be a 15-year-old. Ah well.

Nick, his two twin brothers, one of their girlfriends, and I went to see Avatar Saturday, in all our 3d glasses glory. The movie was awesome…it also really reminded me of Pocahontas and Ferngully but set in Jurassic Park. Hah.

Saturday was perhaps the funniest night in St Louis. We went out to a little local bar in Ferguson called Marley’s. It was such a hilarious mid-Western bar. I don’t know what the funniest part about the bar was.
There was a winking wolf sign on the wall. The bartender didn’t know where the gingerale would be if they had it.

When I asked for white wine (I know, I know, I should have just done beer!) I was given a wine glass and a plastic individual-sized plastic bottle of Sutter Home Chardonnay. The dj played two Lady Gaga songs in a row and 4 out of 5 of Gaga’s latest singles within a 40 minute period. With "Oops I Did It Again" interspersed in between. We met up with Nick’s cousin Colleen and her boyfriend Nick there and had a blast laughing about the bar and the rednecks in it who looked beyond confused when Gaga came on and not-so-subtly ogled every girl who walked through the door. Oh Lord.

Sunday we were supposed to go to his grandparent’s house two hours away on a farm, but the snow began early and wouldn’t stop coming down. Instead we got to enjoy a totally lazy day inside eating cinnamon buns and watching movies. Can’t complain.

Since I was set to leave Tuesday, Monday became my touristy day. Nick took me to the Budweiser brewery for a tour. The tour was an hour long- we got to see the Clydesdales, their stables, the brewery, the packaging/bottling factory, and finally the hospitality room. That was probably my favorite. We got two 12 oz samples of our choice of beer. I had Shock Top for my first “sample” and got to try Michelob Ultra Golden Light for my second sample. The Mich Ultra Golden Light is only sold in St Louis and parts of Illinois so it was cool to get to try. We got to see a bunch of different kinds of beers I didn’t even know Bud made- although we didn’t get to try them all. Bud even makes a Bud with Clamato and a Bud Light with Clamato…Nick told me Clamato is clam juice and a bloody mary mix. Ew.

After the brewery we went to see the Arch. Tickets were sold out to go up to the top, and there was a crazy security line where they made you lift your pants legs and scanned you and everything just to go to the gift shop inside. So we just took some cheesy pictures outside, got some Hooters wings To-Go from the Florissant, MO Hooters, and then headed back to enjoy our last evening together for a whole month.

I was back to work the next day and since I was lucky enough to have off for Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve, I had to work New Years Eve at my restaurant. It was a really long day. I was a double and was there from 9:30am until just after 2am. Up until about 1am I still really wanted to go out afterwards and celebrate with some other work people…then the day caught up with me. I ended up coming back, having a hot shower, eating a bunch of Bagel Bites, and finishing two glasses of champagne before going to bed about 4:30am, just when my mom was getting up for work.

The fireworks in the Inner Harbor were gorgeous. This was the first New Years Nick and I haven’t been together. It honestly made me a bit sad. But I’m so happy I finally got to be with him for Christmas at least. And while I didn’t expect to be spending New Years Eve with my fellow co-workers in our awesome khaki cuffed pants, white button-up Oxford shirt, and crazy fish/lobster/crab ties, when the clock struck midnight even the bitterest employees had huge smiles on their faces as they walked around wishing everyone else a happy new year.

I had all these thoughts as I watched the fireworks about how I’m getting so much closer to such a huge adventure. It’s unbelievable.

There are only 32 days from now before my big move to Hawaii. It is slowly becoming more and more real to me. (Except when I’m outside with my two scarves wrapped around my entire face sans eyes…Hawaii isn’t quite as realistic then.)

The New Year is just a reminder to me now of all the things I need to do. I still need to send in all my forms and information for my dog for her quarantine. I need to buy her crate for the flight. I need to put my car up on Craigslist- but before that I need to get an oil change and clean that poor car out too. And most importantly, I need to spend some quality time with my family and friends before I leave.

2010 is going to be such a crazy big year. I can’t wait. :)