April 14, 2012

M is for Mermaids

I’m certain I can’t be the only person who has noticed the Mermaid/Siren trend. (And while you're scrolling, feel free to note how they all share the same blue/green color in their color scheme.)
  



For the record, I have not read any of these yet, but I think I'm safe to say that Helene Boudreau's title is very misleading when she says "Real Mermaids don't wear toe rings."

I think it should say "Real mermaids don't have hair."

One of the characteristics common to all mammals is the presence of hair, yet most (if not all) aquatic/marine life shares the trait of the absence of hair. (Some whales do have little patches, but it's nothing like these mermaid's luscious flowing tresses that never seem to tangle. And lets leave polar bears out of the discussion.)

Hair should be a huge disadvantage in the ocean. I mean, have you ever seen a fishing lure?
Mermaids who have hair are just asking for some predator to come along and mistake it for a slippery seal or a juicy morsel.  
There are even strict rules about shaving for competitive swimmers. Anyone else see this article?

Maybe mermaids wouldn't be extinct if they invested in some swimming caps?

25 comments:

  1. Thanks to you, I'm now aware of this "trend." !! This is delightful -- and colorful. That's SO interesting about hair. I smiled all the way through this post. IMHO, smiling is a great way to start a Saturday. Thanks!!
    Ann Best, Author of In the Mirror & Other Memoirs

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  2. I'd never heard of illegal shaving for swimmers. Seems like it should be someone's own choice. As for mermaids, I'm partial to sexy mermen.


    Catch My Words
    http://joycelansky.blogspot.com

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  3. You have a good point! Fish don't have hair. And light colored hair would be a flash of light underwater that attracts predators.

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  4. If I ever write a mermaid tale, that will be my first consideration. Mermaid uniforms will include swimming caps. :) That's a very good point that I've never thought of before.

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  5. You make excellent points!!! :)

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  6. Ummm...fur seals, anyone?

    Yeah, I'm sure I heard of that story too, and felt disgusted at the time. Seems a lot of sports have bizarre rules like that, and anally retentive officials applying them with brute force. I thought we were trying to encourage kids to do more sport, not put them off!

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  7. There are some really excellent points here! (I really like the theme by the way.)

    www.modernworld4.blogspot.com

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  8. I love mermaids! A light dusting of flour and a quick pan-fry accompanied by some chips......what? It is still considered seafood right?

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  9. I enjoy mermaids, but have no real desire to read a book about one. I think Aquamarine ruined me on the subject. LOL.

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  10. Followed you over from the A to Z Challenge blog. I never gave a thought to mermaids having hair before. On Easter Sunday, I enjoyed brunch at the Oceanarium Restaurant where a two-story aquarium is the best view (indoors) in town! They featured two mermaids for the day! (They both had hair!)
    http://gail-baugniet.blogspot.com Theme: A World of Crime

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  11. I couldn't believe that about the shaving - but I suppose on health grounds the rule makes sense. As for mermaids, I have always regarded the lack of legs as a distinctly uncool feature!
    Yes, it does seem that blue/green is the in colour for them!

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  12. Ahh, mermaid, siren, ondine. Love them. As for the shaving takes away the title...stupid. I understand the health risk, but taking away the title was a bit far.

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  13. it's merman... merman!

    Nice post, making it happen...

    Jeremy [Retro-Zombie]
    A to Z Co-Host
    My New Book:
    Retro-Zombie: Art and Words

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  14. Hello Mistress Kimberlee! Victor the guinea pig here. I told you I'd come and visit. Here I am.
    Your blog is very pretty.
    I've never met a mermaid. They sound very interesting. Did you know that in some languages the word for guinea pig is 'little sea pig'? So maybe we are merpigs really.
    Bye bye
    Victor xx

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  15. BWHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAAHHAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    i love it!
    so!
    much!
    it just makes so much sense...
    now i wanna draw a hairless mermaid!

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  16. Great points! And that article made sense in the fact of safety. Great post!

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  17. Oh my word, this cracks me up, from the color scheme on the book covers to the hair issues! Very creative thoughts here! And I have yet to read a mermaid book, BUT my daughters are hooked on the Australian show "H2O" about mermaids. I'm kinda hooked on it, too--it's a very well-written script and great characters.

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  18. I haven't read any of the mermaid books, but I've seen them out there. Um, this might be a bit indelicate, but do any of the books out there hint how mermaids and mermen reproduce? I've wondered this ever since I was a kid.

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  19. what the EFF happened to my blogger comment i left on saturday?! DAMN YOU BLOGGER!
    I've only read one mermaid book so far and i was underwhelmed. Which made me sad because the mermaid idea is something i can get on board with. As long as it's done right

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  20. Ha! Great points--it's true, you'd think hair would be a drawback for mermaids/people.


    The Golden Eagle
    The Eagle's Aerial Perspective

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  21. Interesting! I never really gave hair any thought. Haha That's quite the article there - though it makes good sense.
    Thanks for stopping by my blog!
    ---
    Bonnie Gwyn
    http://bonniegwyn.blogspot.com/

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  22. I think breasts would also be a bad thing. I mean, there are no creatures in the ocean with breasts. Think about it. Evolution would take care of that eventually. And then you wouldn't need coconuts to cover them up.

    Good lord, Kimberlee! Look what you have me talking about!

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  23. Well hey, the walking dead can apparently reproduce (hello Twilight) so why can't mermaids have hair? We shouldn't let a little thing like logic come between us and a story. :))

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  24. Excellent point. I like how you pointed out the matching color schemes in the books.

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  25. LOL - such a good point!!! That's probably why they are extinct! Or maybe we've got it wrong. I'm envisioning a mermaid with tentacles instead of hair...

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