Raina's NC Merfest 2015 photo dump thread

[AniaR]

I am leaving for merfest in less than 48 hours so I am getting this thread up and running and I'll be making posts along the way. It's harder for me to upload from tapatalk here so people can feel free to grab any of my posts from other social media and post em in my place!

If you want a refresher on how awesome last year was, check out last years thread http://mernetwork.com/index/showthread.php?6852-Raina-s-NCMerfest-Photo-Dump-and-Thread!

I am looking forward to seeing people, meeting Hannah, getting my tail, spending time with Kariel, my underwater photoshoot, and all the people I miss so much and so much more!

Right now I am sick with a cold. I am subbing at a daycare tomorrow til noon then coming right home, sleeping, and heading to airport at 3am, we arrive at NC 10am Thursday morning. Ahhh!

[Vrindavana Starfish]

Have an awesome time and feel better!

[MermaidCora]

Oh I SOOOO wish I could go!!!!! :'( Really want to!!! I'll be there virtually, but not physically.....

[Mermaid Harmony]

Dude, wish I could go, have fun everyone!

[-Annwyn-]

Have fun.

Urgh, we so need a Pan Pacific version of this for us Southern Hemispherers...

[Mermaid Nerida]

Man! I wish I could go... But sadly, I have no tail yet. (And no money for that matter) and I just recently heard about it (since I'm new) otherwise I would go... :cry:

[Mermaid Wesley]

I'm getting ready too! Sneak peek! 26217


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[AniaR]

Make sure you introduce yourself to me!!

[Mermaid Wesley]

I will :)


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[AniaR]

Okay so 14 more hours til I leave! I caved and got the stronger most worst tasting cough medicine in existence. I wasted 30 bucks on brands that couldn't cut it. One shot of buckley's horrible tasting crap and I feel so much better haha.

Just found out no internet at hotel unless we pay 10$ a day so I'll be pretty limited in what i can post, and I'll likely have to post right to my FB. I invite anyone who has got me to repost my images/videos here for sharing. Tapatalk hates when I try and post pics ;)

So I am finally home. Slupring back chicken soup, then having a nice long nap. Quick dinner with family and then back to finish packing and head out.

So freaking excited!!! IN 24 hours I'll have my new tail eee

[mermaids-and-anchors]

I'm super excited to see you, Raina! I know I'll be at the hotel Friday but I'm going out to dinner with my grandpa. I'm just excited to see everyone!!! (:

[AniaR]

Okay checking in. I'm here. Hotel is like something out of a movie
Everything surrounds like this mini forest/ garden inside with koi ponds with giant koi!! The staff are amazing. The rooms are luxurious .

I arrived after no sleep and went for lunch with Christian. Since I haven't slept and my tail isn't here yet I opted for a bath and a nap while sean goes with a group to the pool.

I'm under the weather and trying to just take it easy today. But I am so excited. We figured out internet so I'll be dumping photos hehe

[Mermaid Enora]

So excited to hear about and see everything! Really really wish I was there, but at least I'm headed to Belize tomorrow.
but no tail along sadly.

[Mermaid Galene]

Thanks for giving those of us who couldn't make it a virtual experience of MerFest! I look forward to your updates and pics.

[Merman Arion]

I'm so watching this! :D

[Azurin Luna]

I hope you feel better soon, and be sure you guys have fun for all of us :)

[jukumerboii]

See you tomorrow love!

[Arella]

Hope you feel better! Been in the car with Sirena, Aldri, and Gem driving from MI should be there around 11:30ish!

[AniaR]

http://instagram.com/p/xVumJmQPyy/

[Mermaid Hitode]

Oh my gosh you're new tail is gorgeous!Is it another Merbellas creation?

[Mer-Crazy]

I'm assuming we're going to have to wait until the end of merfest to see the unboxing video? :(

[Ariel-Starfish]

I'm so following this tread! :D have fun Raina!

[Mermaid Sirenia]

Raina your new tail is so beautiful! I'm so happy for you!!!

[AniaR]

There's pics on raina mer on fb and my fan page. Hfxmermaid on Instagram. It won't let me make appropriate pic sizes on Tapatalk

[Mermaid Galene]

What a stunning tail! It suits you perfectly. Congratulations!

[Mermaid Lorelei]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/8982_1534248703520174_3068381106126530760_n.jpg?oh =6fc2c18ef14a2c7120ac2dbd2f6b05e3&oe=55419D96&__gda__=1429052907_dfc4066143970e855280502e1640970 a

[Mermaid Lorelei]

Grabbed a photo for you real quick. I'll post more for you later if I have the time. <3

[Fifi Tigg]

I'm watching every post on facebook, Instagram and here trying to pretend I'm there! Soooo jelly!
I wish everyone a fabulous time :mermaid kiss:

[Mermaid Galene]

What Fifi said! Have a great time, y'all, and keep the pics coming!

[Merman Chatfish]

Awesome Raina! Love the new tail.

[Mer-gal]

[QUOTE=Mermaid Lorelei;164575]https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/8982_1534248703520174_3068381106126530760_n.jpg?oh =6fc2c18ef14a2c7120ac2dbd2f6b05e3&oe=55419D96&__gda__=1429052907_dfc4066143970e855280502e1640970 a
OMG!!!! OMG!!! Your new tail!

[Mermaid Lorelei]

https://scontent-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/10885010_979200438781366_3812254067601427875_n.jpg ?oh=45bd0ff5895ae4dcedf22a393b58a2c7&oe=5540A493https://scontent-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/1546107_10155068215945425_2860856065015873640_n.jp g?oh=4b449e46a9774fbd76592c94585dc9fc&oe=552D4229https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xap1/v/t1.0-9/10888832_10155068217500425_7230775489425046422_n.j pg?oh=9f9c8fa0f407f60b68222ca4ac912677&oe=55454C2D&__gda__=1430002296_3c54bafe08d9aae3b07248030e662ca e

A couple more for you Raina.

[Mermaid Lorelei]

https://scontent-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/10422053_10155068217905425_618243246925618116_n.jp g?oh=3cc9149e9880777e8751371c6cc146e0&oe=553A908A

[Mermaid Nerida]

WOW! Raina, your new tail is gorgeous!

[Mermaid Jaffa]

Who's the person playing horsey?

Love the new fluke! Its so different.

[Mermaid Enora]

Such a pretty tail!

[AniaR]

Guys! I sang no doubt and Hannah and Kariel were my backup dancers!!!

[AniaR]

I also cut open a vein during my maiden swim lol. Seriously. Ugh.

[Mer-Crazy]

First off- awesome.

Secondly- how on earth did you manage to do that?

[Merman Chatfish]

Like blood everywhere?

[Mermaid Galene]

There are no words for how stunning your new tail, top, and headdress are!

There are several words for the unfortunate finger cut, and I bet you said some choice ones! Hope MerFest bathes you in so much positive energy that your finger doesn't hurt and heals up quickly.

[AniaR]

We are talking monty python style blood spurting lol.

[MerShellly]

We are talking monty python style blood spurting lol.
Oh dear :eek:

[Kaila Mermaid]

Aaahhhh!!! Gorgeous! I shall live vicariously through this thread

[Mer-gal]

Aaahhhh!!! Gorgeous! I shall live vicariously through this thread

Me too!

[Mermaid Enora]

Me three!

[Mermaid Neri Elvina]

Me four! Oh my gosh Raina! Your new tail is soo gorgeous!! ❤❤❤

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[Miyu]

That tail is so YOU, Raina! :swoon:Oh no, blood spurting bad!!! :(

[Zirconmermaid]

I love the picture! Gorgeous!

[*Celine*]

Your tail looks AMAZING! And I love that you named them after Pokémon! It,s so cool and nostalgic! I wish I could have gone to Merfest but it's na expensive trip for me, although I'm soooo grateful you've put up this thread, I'm so stalking it! :-p have a great time and post A LOT of pic's please!!!!!

[AniaR]

I'm sorry I can't post photos here til I get back to Canada :(

[QueenZero]

Oh my gawwwd, that tail! The fluke is as big as me! (I am tiny.) It's so pretty! (Psssssst, what are you reading in that photo Mermaid Lorelei took? Looks good!)
I'll probably never go to MerFest (which is fine! I'm terrified of planes [live in CA] and I don't do great with water either :p ) so I'll live vicariously through this thread. Hope everyone there is having fun!

[Mermaid Wesley]

Well us California mers are looking into a bigger mermaid festival next time on the pacific coast


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[Mermaid Sirenia]

Well us California mers are looking into a bigger mermaid festival next time on the pacific coast


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If you guys do let me know! I have family in CA and will be moving out there this summer for college!

[AniaR]

So I have been stuck in airport limbo. They took my tail it took a while to get back. Missed our flight home. None for us til wed so they put us in a hotel that had ice inside on the window and wall and one wall mega water damaged. I've missed paid work and a doc app I waited 3 months for. Just wanna get home and then I'll make a huge photo dump post

[Seraphina Suds]

What even! D8 why did they take your tail? And such a crap hotel... can you complain to die kind of management? They should at least bump you up to first class return seats for the trouble.

[Sherielle]

Thinking about you, Raina. Sending positive thoughts to help you deal with the bs.

[Carolina Mermaid]

Hope you get home safe Raina! And looking forward to all of the photos

[MerShellly]

So sorry about all that you've been having to deal with :( Just remember all bad things will pass! A bad day only lasts 24 hours! :)

[Mermaid Aika]

I hope things get better for you, Raina!

[Mer-gal]

Judging by what you said about the condition of the hotel, maybe you should check for bed bugs. (I am always paranoid about bed bugs)

I hope you have a safe trip home. Good luck!

[AniaR]

WARNING GIANT RECAP AND PHOTO POST AHEAD (it's 10 pages in word!)


Okay everyone! I’m sorry I wasn’t able to dump photos the whole time. But here’s some of my merfest journey and some of my photos. Over the upcoming week I’ll be dumping more photos, videos, and I’m sure remembering funny things…



THURSDAY

Newyears Day Sean and I flew out at 5:30am. We were picked up at the airport by one of the hotel MANAGERS who was SUPER EXCITED for merfest. It was so awesome! He was so into it! So welcoming.
We got to the hotel and I went for lunch with merman Christian (Poseidon on here). We met last year and really hit it off. I adopted him as my mer-brother. I gave him a signed copy of one of my books and while he and I went to lunch at Ruby Tuesdays (we don’t have those here!), Sean and Christomer had a business lunch. So we ate our really good food and both of us crashed hard.


I went back to the hotel met up with Sean and met a few people, but I was really feeling sick. Everyone wanted to go to the pool but I didn’t have my tail yet- John Jay would be delivering it to me. So I decided to have a nap. Christomer rented a rental car and just gave it to Sean, so Sean decided he’d drive people around and help them get places. I went for my nap- having not slept in almost 2 days- and Sean took the crew to the pool. I did manage to wander around the hotel. It was astounding. It was huge and luxurious, had this like- jungle- in the centre. There were two waterfalls and a koi pond. Sadly one of the first things they told us is we couldn’t go in the koi pond lol. Giant koi! So relaxing to watch. We found out that for two hours every night the hotel gave free food and drinks (alcoholic and non!) Sean filmed some unboxing videos and hung out with people taking photos.
The room was amazing. Big, two rooms. The bed was heavenly. You wanna talk about things merfest did right? This hotel was right. Perfect location, amazing staff, incredibly reasonable rate (99$/night) when you saw how much we were getting (had pull out couches you could easily split a room with 3-5 people).


I woke up 4 hours later. I was a little upset. I couldn’t get ahold of Sean as our phones wouldn’t work in America yet for some reason. I had no idea where he was and no one else did. I might have pitched a fit lol. When he finally came back he told me I had dead bolted the door and he couldn’t get in and because I was in the second room sleeping I didn’t hear him knock. I was POed because I knew I hadn’t done that. We might of argued for an hour… lol and then it turned out both our cards reset so we were both actually locked out and it had nothing to do with either of us. Thankfully Marla (week wachee) showed up and things difused.


Iara had landed, and Sean and I picked her, Luma, and a few others up to take Iara to caroline’s house for a surprise birthday party they were throwing her. It was mostly a staff thing but once we dropped everyone off they invited us to stay. Christomer surprised me with a fantastic mermaid onesie that I happily paraded around in. I was given a guitar and set to making tunes. While there I reconnected with old friends and spent some time with Bob Short. He turned out to be a pretty great guy. I was nervous because of all the drama between him and I last year but I think he realized we were both being pitted against each other. He welcomed me with a big hug and chatted a lot. It was honestly a relief. He was great. We had a birthday cake for Iara, she was given some gifts including an adorable fuzzy little mermaid onesie, and eventually someone pushed her head in the cake. I got to meet Susan Knight who I’d be shooting with on Saturday and she was lovely too.
I’ll admit, I enjoyed some drinks. I was just getting ready to pack it in when John Jay texted and said he was showing up with my tail!!! I was totally not prepared. I wanted to open my box sober so I could use the video for youtube, LOL. But I was not exactly that when it got there.


John brought it and everyone crowded around and cheered me on and I opened it up. I was floored and I will MAKE AN ENTIRE THREAD DEDICATED TO IT with more photos and videos and of course a review. So hold off on the questions ;) The funny thing is in the video you can hear people scream for a good 30 seconds. Eden took video, I have the link here but unless you have her on FB you wont be able to see it. I will post my own link up when I have time.
I was euphoric but also still tired. There was this pretty girl there with glasses that everyone seemed to know and I could not figure out who it was. I later learned it was Twig out of costume. LOL
So I headed back and went to bed. Of course, after I tried on the tail for the first time ;)



FRIDAY

I was eager to get up and try my new tail. I got myself all ready but left behind some of the more fragile accessories to save them for my photoshoot. We had a big breakfast, met more amazing merfolks and made friends. (breakfast was free and giant). We piled everyone into the car and went to register.


When we got there there were technical issues with John Jay’s workshop so Sean went into fill on IT mode. We found out the venue had closed the kid’s pool and that they weren’t prepared with the correct materials for the presentations so Sean went to work. We got registered at a desk at the front. We were given a package that contained a schedule, inserts for the vendors, a free finis foil monofin key chain (so freaking cute) complimentary tail raffle tickets, ball tickets, merfest rules, and our rubber bracelets. While Sean finished the IT stuff so John could get cracking, I said hello to vendors. I still saw twig wandering around and still had no idea It was her hahaha.
Finally it came the moment to put my tail on. Raven had extra reinforced the waist because it was a problem area on my old tail. When it’s on, it’s amazing. But that first time getting it on wasn’t easy. I did manage it though. I got to see Finley’s stunning tail and grab some pics with her too.


An author was there named Arthur who is visiting conventions all over the world and writing a book called Conventional Wisdom. He’d been to places like Santa conventions, Abe Lincoln Conventions… lol we were next on the list. I arranged to interview with him later and he asked to take photos of me once I got my tail on. So I hopped in the water, swam a little bit, and started posing for him. At this point someone needed Sean’s help. Most people did NOT have assistance and Sean became EVERYONE’S metender. So he left. There were two documentary film makers who visited from Canada to film me and get some footage of everyone else. One was waiting in the water for when I was done with Arthur to get some footage.
I was just hanging onto the side getting ready to pose, feeling a bit overwhelmed by how amazing everything was, when I felt a horrible pain in my finger. I am not a person who faints at the site of blood, but when you aren’t expecting to see it and you see a lot of it, well I started to go into shock. I looked down and the water was red red red. I pulled my hand out of the water and somehow I had knocked a vein in my finger on something on the side of the pool and it was OBNOXIOUSLY spurting blood like something you see in a movie.


I kinda treaded water for a moment in total shock. Then I screamed for the lifeguards who didn’t even look at me. Then I screamed for my friends to go get help. I tried as hard as I could one handed to pull myself up out of the side of the very deep pool but could only just hang there. I was profusely bleeding all over the pool deck and Christian went and grabbed a towel and wrapped my hand. I am a first aid instructor, I recognized I was going into shock, that I needed to get out of the cold water, and that I needed a first aid kit.


Well damn those lifeguards they sent Merman Dan C over with I think a bandaid or something? Someone finally got Sean who pulled me out of the water and ran back to lifeguards. They still didn’t come over, and didn’t give Sean the kit. Dan C had to mop up all my blood and Sean wrapped my hand and let me tell you I am missing a really deep chunk of my finger. Not wide enough for stitches but deep enough it looks like something bit me. And it really really hurt. The amount it hurt seemed disproportioned to what it looked like. Dan and Christian knew I was in a bad way but I’m not sure anyone else quite realized how messed up I was. The adrenaline from the tail, then the shock of the blood , and the shock of not getting appropriate help kinda put my brain in a weird mode.


I sat on the pool deck apologizing to the film makers who decided to go film others while I recovered. I felt totally numb and couldn’t really enjoy my tail. After 30 minutes even though my finger was all bandaged and throbbing I decided to get back on the water. I had had a tetanus shot right before I was coming and I just wasn’t thinking straight.
I did have a mostly good swim and pose for filming and work on tricks but I was a bit numb. I felt bad, all these awesome people were coming up to me to talk to me and I just wasn’t all there. Everyone wanted to know about my tail and all I could talk about was my finger. Lol There were underwater cameras synced to a TV people could watch, and underwater speakers blasting music. It was cool. I just found I couldn’t do many group shots because I couldn’t lift myself out of the pool without Sean, and he was always off helping someone.


I got out of the pool and decided to get changed and go to Robert shorts talk. I wrote the onesie, a towel on my head, and had planned to get food from the food trucks. Well guess what? Through no fault of the merfest organizers… the food trucks bailed! So I stumbled into Robert’s talk and sat in the back really out of it. Mertailor arrived, Kariel arrived, everyone talked to me but I was crashing hard, feeling woozie, had no food, and hadn’t thought to bring the right kind of stuff to get clean and changed. Susan Knight saw I was out of it and said something that resonated with me later. She told me that when we allow ourself to get pulled into a spiral of negative thinking it actually lowers our immune system and she knew I’d been sick. I didn’t know how to not feel bad so I tried to distract myself with Roberts talk.


For what I watched it was really cool. There were IT issues again and Sean helped. I realized though halfway I was starting to sway and rock. Finally I asked Sean to take me back to the hotel so I could just reset. Pick up some liquid bandaid for me finger (it had been 4 hours now and it was still bleeding profusely) pain killers, have a bath, and just reset my emotional state. We left the classroom and christomer asked if someone else could drive me home and Sean could stay incase of other IT issues but honestly I was feeling very vulnerable and I admit I just broke down and cried. I was starving, tired, emotionally
drained from the day, didn’t want to meet people like that, and I was in a startling amount of pain. I just wanted the comfort of having Sean to help me properly clean and dress my finger and help me get food and make sure I was safe. So off we went.

John Jay warned me liquid bandaid would hurt like a bitch and he was right. We picked up Kat along the way and brought her back with us. I had some choice 4 letter words she witnessed when I put that stuff on my finger and it didn’t even work. Lol. We bought our own dressings for it and omg changing it was so incredibly painful. I just kept going into shock because my brain coudlnt make sense of seeing so much blood pouring out and the pain over a little nick.
Sean got my all changed, settled in the tub, with food. We decided he’d go back and pick up more people, then we’d get ready for the mixer. I really needed to just reset I AM SO GLAD I DID. I felt so much better after making a conscious effort to reset. I could of let it ruin everything, afterall how in the hell was I going to keep up with everyone if I was so worried about my finger? But I was determined.


A few people came to visit me in my room. Christian gave me a gift, a doll someone made of me. It was so cute. I forget exactly what time it was but I finally found my love Pearlie Mae. I poured over her tail and amazing tentacle and just genuinely loved her instantly. Mermaid Glimmer and Marla (weeki) hung out with us too. Marla gave me a bday gift of a book from Weeki. So awesome. And a card with me playing guitar as a mermaid on it.
I put on a pretty dress, did my hair and makeup, donned a shark necklace raven sent me that I adore, and headed down in heels!


Sean and I got there first and found Martin aka Joy&Raptors, we sat together with Dan C occasionally and John Jay. People sorta meandered around. We got some great food and then Mermaid Marla’s husband Steve got up and started up the music. After a bit, Martin got up and killed karaoke. He gave me the courage to get up so I did too and we rocked the night away.
Hannah and Kariel showed up. I apologized to Kariel for missing her earlier, and I was greeted by a warm hug from Hannah who knew exactly who I was and thanked me for all the kind things I say about her online. I gave her a copy of my book. She posed for photos with me, so did Kariel, and we sorta prompted everyone to start running around getting photos.


Steve and I sang “Don’t you want me baby” together it was great. Hannah and Kariel got up and sang I love rock and roll. Anita, Ed, and so many other awesome mers got up to sing.
I got up and did No Doubt and Hannah and Kariel rushed the stage and became my back up dancers. Easily one of my favourite merfest moments. Rocking out on stage, singing, dancing, with two of my all time favourite mermaids.
Hannah was in big demand. So was Kariel. Kariel was very shy and adorable. Both their husbands were omg lovely men, great singers, funny guys, and the women were def fauning over them. ;) I got a few compliments from them it was great.
I met Mermaid Paige’s new baby sister and enjoyed spending time with her. Mertailor made his appearance, (I had only briefly gotten to see him as I ran out of the workshop earlier) and brought the lobster tail and the vagina tail. Lol the only thing he said to me all weekend was “I swear I’m not ignoring you.” LOL though I did get to chat a bit with Matty and have some fun, and apparently Sean chatted with both guys.
Sean gets uncomfortable in crowds without a job so he stole the camera and went off taking photos of everyone. I had a blast. Steve the karaoke guy had a bit to drink so I took over karaoke and became the karaoke master. It was fun. Everyone was so talented.


Finally karaoke ended and we all went to the pool and the hot tub! I chased mermaid glimmer around with my camera as she was in an LED tail. IT WAS AMAZING. Then I hopped in the tub with everyone including Hannah and Kariel. My mermaids (Mutiny, Mimi, and Nessie) all have birthdays within the same two weeks so Hannah and Kariel and the whole group wished them a happy birthday and I got it on tape. So cool. I also forgot but they gave mermaid Marla her finfolk tail she’d won last year!!
The hot tub went until 3am for me, then I ran up to my hotel room and proceeded to drunk skype Iona hahaha. She was very nice about it. ;)
SATURDAY
Keeping up with me?


The morning started with my photoshoot with Susan knight in a different lane pool. It was super overchlorinated. The film makers came over and shot footage of me while I modelled, and interviewed Sean and I. I did one session alone which I found tricky because I don’t sink even with weights lol. But I think we got some good images. Susan was great. Then I did a session with Sean and I’m sure the results will be great. The pool however killed my eyes beyond belief and it was the one day I forgot my eye gel at home.


After that I started with Hannah’s Q n A while Sean did IT stuff. IT WAS SUPER INTERESTING. Things I learned from Hannah:
-She initially had no formal training and didn’t start officially being a mermaid until people saw her in her mid 20s in a tail and started hiring her for things.
-for the tiger shark shoot she paid 500$ per contact, and used 10 pair of contacts that were made for use underwater that gave her about 80% vision. She said she needed to use them because she HAD to be able to see, but everytime she moved they’d pop out.
-The first sharks she ever swam with were great whites, then she did the sunken ship shark shoot.
-She’s done a lot of protesting, even chained herself in her tail to a bridge
-I tried to figure out how she affords to do all this and if she gets money to do it, and I think the answer I was vaguely given is that she doesn’t receive any funding but everyone collaborates and her family “invests”. I sort of interpreted that as they help pay for some things.
-It takes her at least 3 months to make a tail
-She almost drowned modeling a wedding dress underwater lol


She was super approachable and It was easy to see the #1 reason why she does all of what she does is her intense love of the environment. It was the main message and amazing to see. She read some of my favourite quotes.
After the QnA the Lunch trucks actually arrived. Yay! I ate, and headed downstairs. The fashion show was happening. Last year I think the fashion show was amazing, this year I think it was just a bit hard being at the pool. On one end it was like a cool novelty but on another it was hard to see, hard to situate yourself, and very brief lol. Mertailor showed off his bikini stuff, and then Atlantis did her amazing underwater stuff but the cameras weren’t angled at them well enough underwater for everyone to see. Her designs rocked though.
After that I spun around and there was my MERLING. The little girl who had visited last year, that I made such a connection with. She had brought her dad and her best friend and all the stuff I gave her last year. She gave me an adorable card, a turtle, and a shell necklace. She hopped into the water, I tried to give her a ride after putting on my tail, and promptly realized mermaid rides with a foil and a heavy fluke are really freaking hard. The competitor did all the work. I practically drowned my way across the pool. Lol


This is where the conflict for me came in. Here I had this little girl aching to see me, only here for a short while, and then Hannah came out to do her thing. So the girl and I sat on the side and watched Hannah perform. There was supposed to be a “swim” but it was more 5 minutes of people jumping in trying to grab an underwater shot of Hannah. Then she was on the side posing for photos. I patiently waited for my turn to try and get up for a photo in tail with her, but it was taking forever. I will say, and not to be mean but just being honest I’m sure others will agree- some mermaids just stuck to her like glue the whole weekend and it made it really hard for anyone else to talk with her. One person was always shoving their way in between people and taking over and it just got tiresome overtime because we all wanted to see her. I tried to focus on the fact I’d met her in my legs and not be bummed about not getting into her group shot, but it was hard because we came so far I was hoping I’d at least be able to get one. Not her fault, nothing the organizers could of done. Some people were just not considerate of others is all.


They tried to do a group photo of everyone along the short side of the pool but IMO it got dangerous fast. We couldn’t all fit, and I was trying so hard to not damage my tail. I finally just gave up because my merling had been waiting like 45 minutes at this point to spend time with me. I managed to swim back later and get into a smaller group shot on the very end and after about 5 minutes they picked up Hannah so I couldn’t inch over lol.


I felt kinda bummed but my little merling was just so happy that well, you know, you kinda get over it. J I feel lucky to have seen Hannah in person, it would have been great to get a photo with her, but I got one with kariel and I made my merling happy. Sean scooped me over to the kid’s pool (the lane pool) and she and I swam for a good 2 hours. I ended up having to wear goggles because there were so many kids they were landing on me and bumping into me. With the goggles I could see.
While all this was going on, other workshops were happening that Sean was running around helping with. There was stuff going on in this pool for kids, and pirate stuff for kids in another area that was hilarious. They’d do em all up and teach em how to be pirates. I missed Cookie’s wedding. It happened back at the hotel at this time. There are news articles being shared about it, it was pretty adorable.


After the swim I let my merling and her friend drape my tail over their legs and pretend to be mermaids. We posed for some photos that way. Then we took her and her friend and Dad back to the hotel for some of that free food. We had a lovely visit. I gave her some presents and we laughed about physiotherapy and caught up on her health progress. I miss her all ready.


Then it was time to get ready for the ball. I had brought a dress and Eden had agreed to do my hair. ERMAGERD SHE MADE IT AMAZING AND WITH MY HEAD DRESS TOO I FELT LIKE APHRODITE. Just before the ball I gave a long interview to the documentary film makers and I made them tear up a little. It was really awesome



I made it down and sat at a table with them, Sean, Dan C, John Jay, and a few others- forgive me if I forget who! Everyone was dressed up, food was great, staff was great, room enough for everyone. (last year we ran out of food and tables) Then they started the dance and I danced my tail off. Hannah posed for formal photos with everyone and I was happy to get one of those. Kariel gave me one of her books. Anita drew me a pic. There was a mermaid sculpture made of ice. All the tails for the tail making competition were being turned in around this time I think.


If you didn’t know because of his ordeal with Jessie, I organized with christomer a fundraiser to buy Christian a finfolk. We earned enough in like a day, and then we hoped it would be ready in time for the festival but it wasn’t L however, they pulled him up on stage and told him and TEARS WERE SHED. J It was so lovely. I love that guy.


I met Kitty from France and practiced my French on her. She’s a sweety. Got loads of photos with loads of people, danced with Martin and both Dans. Mermaid glimmer did an epic performance. I hung out with Bob Short some more and got some pics.
After the Ball we all headed to an after party in the- you guessed it- hotel pool haha! John jay put on a swamp creature mask, came up from the depths, and scared the living daylights outta me. Someone brought some dry ice. Glimmer swam in her tail. I spent time with Caro a mermaid I’ve known for almost 7 years but never met. I hugged poor Martin a lot. I swam around with Hannah and Luma. It was so much fun. Someone had this weird wobble thing that felt so weird, had fun with that one too lol.
I’ll be honest, the hot tub nights kinda blend together so I may be mixing things up here haha. This may have been the night we went to bed at 4? I have no idea… hahaha

SUNDAY

Queue loads of sleepy mermaids. We slept in and there were loads of IT issues so Sean was off again helping fix workshops. I felt sick so I sat down for a good two hours just people watching and did an interview with Arthur. This was the crazy day when we ran out of wristbands and had more kids than we ever expected. Lots of things that could go wrong- did. Like the food trucks not showing up. Again. But the staff bought food for everyone (though I missed it) so that was good.
There were workshops for the kids going on and workshops for mermaids Sean helped out with so I went and got fairy hair put in, then I got into my tail and into the water and spent time with mah friends. I did my stint in the kid’s pool and then we decided to try the group photo again in a better place. Then the tail making competition happened though none of us expect the tail makers really knew it was happening. I’ll write more on how that could of gone better in a bit. Other people did their photoshoots and the tail winners were announced and we all got out of the water to get ready for the luau.


Too many people showed up and the venue didn’t close it to the public, so it was packed. They did the tail raffles, prize raffles, (some staff had organized so many prizes) and Sean was named mertender of the year for all his hard work! We had more karaoke and pearlie mae kicked ass. We had free face painting. We all got merfest posters and everyone signed them. It was a blast.
Back to the hot tub for one final after party and a few of us may have lost our tops briefly in the sauna ;) it was a good time. I crashed pretty hard and was thinking I had more time for my flight Monday but I didn’t. I had to rush out without saying goodbye to many. It sucked



And if you;ve been following on FB It took me almost 2 days to get home and that’s another horrible long story.
All in all I think Merfest was a huge success and so much better than last year. So much work went into it I can’t thank the staff enough.

Pros:
-dealt with issues as fast as they could when they popped up
-despite it not being their responsibility they did try to organize rides for people by giving out rental cars to people like Sean
-much more organized than last year by a long shot, we all had kits, schedules, access to everything online
-the hotel was freaking perfect and amazing. WeLL PRICED. For sure. Amazing staff.
- listened to the suggestions of last year and had workshops later in day
-staff were always on hand problem solving and helping
-Loads of photographers this year. Should be a lot of photos and videos popping up
-food was soooo much better than last year and there was enough of it and enough space at the ball
-having most of the activities either at the hotel or TAC was excellent
-put the pool up 2 degrees warmer after last years feedback, yay
-It accommodated more people and efforts were made for people with disabilities
-lots of space in both the hotel and the TAC
-It was nice to have the free breakfast, and the dinner time activities that brought everyone together
-staff in general were super friendly both merfest, TAC, and hotel
-having the QnA were so awesome
-lots of people inviting others and going out of their way to include others
-Having pirates was awesome, It drew a more diverse crowd and I think helped men feel more included
-Because they had kid events WE BROKE EVEN which means more merfest in the future
-more activities than last year to choose from
-super cool prizes procured by Daphne and others
-hello, a wedding? So awesome.
-free face painting!
-loads more SO and husbands/wifes etc and families because the event accommodated that
-registration was done really well and the staff handling it were awesome and helpful
-Having karaoke was awesome
-Susan knight rocked
-the workshop topics were really awesome and helped many a mer I believe. Diverse and interesting.


Cons/Suggestions
-Nametags/badges need to make a comeback it was hard to figure out who everyone was
-the food truck suck- not their fault of the staff but man, jerks! Lol
-Tail making contest despite best efforts of staff could have been done better. I know a lot of work went into it on all ends. But it just sorta was hard to follow
-I personally missed the more traditional fashion show but I think this one was a learning experience and hard to predict the technical difficulties
-not a “true” con, but it wasn’t as intimate as the last one. Not complaining, just bringing up the fast we probably quadrupled so it’s hard to spend time with everyone and cliques form. I don’t think the cliques were anything rude either though, just people sticking with who they knew. Mixers helped a bit
-Sean needs to be hired for IT next time, and people should be encouraged to either bring a person/arrange for a person to help them (only because he honestly cant be everyone’s mertender) OR it would be great if the event had volunteer mertenders/ dollies/wheelchairs so people can get around
-Schedule overlap was tricky. I couldn’t get back to cookie’s wedding. I’m not sure what else could be done for that.
-signs pointing people in directions of kids areas to make it easier next time maybe? Post the schedule of events on doors/walls too maybe?
-It would be nice if we could schedule photos next time with Hannah (or whoever the special guest is) in her tail. Like we did with her in legs. Hehe. I know it’s hard to cram it all in but it would have been nice.
-I did chat with christomer at length about the lifeguards not doing their job IMO when I got hurt. Not something he could of controlled, but he did follow up on it thankfully. That is more just my own personal issue that has nothing to do with merfest as a whole but come on lifeguards, screaming and bleeding and needing your help lol.
-It sucked not having the kids pool, nothing could have been done about it. Also one pool was open to public who had swim meets/training etc and that was just weird. Probably because it was so expensive to rent out the whole entire place and I’m sure they gave christomer hell last year for bumping them all.
- next time I think we should stagger the amount of time kids get in the pool with us and the amount of kids. I found the kid pool pretty overwhelming considering the small space. Nothing anyone could of managed at the time. Just food for thought for next year. I had to wear goggles because I kept accidentally hitting the kids or they’d accidentally hit /jump on me. It felt a little claustrophobic and dangerous. In other events I’ve done like that kids get a coloured wrist band and when their colour is up it’s time to get out for a new colour to come in.
-Underwater streaming camera- great idea,- just didn’t work. Lol not sure how we could make it work in future.

-I personally don’t feel staff got enough time to enjoy themselves, so it would be great if we could wrestle up community volunteers to handle different shifts, maybe for a decreased ticket price? I know that happens a lot at other cons.
-Like last year the luau venue was a bit too small to accommodate us all. I'd be happy keeping it at the hotel :)

I'm sure I don't remember everything and I'll have more to say later... lol.


Here are some photos for now, just a few highlights. I’ll have more up on my page with a link soon

[AniaR]

A look at the hotel:

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Video of the koi and the meet area:

http://instagram.com/p/xcLLfSQP-0/

[AniaR]

lunch with christian when I arrived.

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playing guitar in the onezie

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[AniaR]

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[AniaR]

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[The Harlem Mermaid]

Oh my gosh you're new tail is gorgeous!Is it another Merbellas creation?
No one else could have worn that tail, it was meant for you only! omg how gorgeous you look in it second skin baby! what a lovely fun time we had <3 im still in awe of this Young mermaid we all love and call Raina Mer!! though we know each other for over 2 years, and met in person last year at NCMerfest, i will never stop to be impress and in awe of you, you are my hero!!!

[Miyu]

Thank you, Raina, for the awesome write-up! Definitely helping me experience it vicariously, LOL!

I would totally volunteer if I knew I was able to go! For definite! I absolutely love volunteering and helping things run more smoothly for everyone - I do it at every festival/con I go to, whenever possible!

Maybe get waterproof name badges? I know some places make waterproof business cards, so it couldn't be too much of a hassle if we knew for sure who was attending in advance enough to purchase all the badges with names already printed on them!

[AniaR]

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[Miyu]

OMFG so many pics to ogle when I get home from work!!!

Heeeeyyyyy I recognize that PearlieMae tentacle, heeheehee ;)

[AniaR]

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[MerEmma]

WOW. Looks absolutely incredible. SO amazing, what an event!! I don't even know where to start with the envy! :P

[Mermaid Galene]

What fun! Thanks, Raina!

[Mermaidmechanic]

Gah, sorry to hear about your wound Raina. Anyone with basic medical knowledge should have known that slight female+physical activity+cold water(+an assumed low blood sugar if you were there all day without eating!)+bleeding a lot=potential shock. I'm surprised the life guards didnt do anything. I'm surprised you didnt black out! I've seen full grown healthy men pass out from small nicks because of physical exertion in cold water. It's no surprise it took you a while to recover. Gosh, if I had been there I would have gone into first aid mode immediately and its kinda scary that you weren't treated correctly. It could have been pretty bad for you and your incorrect treatment probably caused your physical drain! I'm sorry you were neglected in such a way; they must not be very good life guards. At least there were some people there who tried to help you the best they could! Thank goodness for them.

[AniaR]

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[AniaR]

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[AniaR]

I'll have more photos later

A few videos from instagram! See more pics and videos by following me on instagram at HFXmermaid

Here's the adorable card my merling gave me!
http://instagram.com/p/xcDMezwP-G/

My first swim in my new tail (still getting used to foil)
http://instagram.com/p/xfpgWzQP5L/

Anita Rainbow dances underwater
http://instagram.com/p/xfp8QEwP5q/

[NerineArcticMermaid]

Icant see your instagram :(
Tried following you but it keeps undoing...

[AniaR]

No one else could have worn that tail, it was meant for you only! omg how gorgeous you look in it second skin baby! what a lovely fun time we had <3 im still in awe of this Young mermaid we all love and call Raina Mer!! though we know each other for over 2 years, and met in person last year at NCMerfest, i will never stop to be impress and in awe of you, you are my hero!!!

I am so sad I missed your wedding. I was scheduled in kid's pool and I did swap things around but couldnt make it work. I feel like I barely saw you it was so busy. So proud of you and happy for you,

[AniaR]

Gah, sorry to hear about your wound Raina. Anyone with basic medical knowledge should have known that slight female+physical activity+cold water(+an assumed low blood sugar if you were there all day without eating!)+bleeding a lot=potential shock. I'm surprised the life guards didnt do anything. I'm surprised you didnt black out! I've seen full grown healthy men pass out from small nicks because of physical exertion in cold water. It's no surprise it took you a while to recover. Gosh, if I had been there I would have gone into first aid mode immediately and its kinda scary that you weren't treated correctly. It could have been pretty bad for you and your incorrect treatment probably caused your physical drain! I'm sorry you were neglected in such a way; they must not be very good life guards. At least there were some people there who tried to help you the best they could! Thank goodness for them.

as a first aid instructor I was pissed. lol I made sure Chris talked to them.

[Seraphina Suds]

I love love love your hair and gown combo! You look like a cross between a Greek goddess and something out of sailor moon! <3 so lovely~

[AniaR]

I was aphrodite lady, sea shell bikini... garden panty... VENUS! lol sorry. I love Gaga.

[AniaR]

seriously though that's pretty much the best compliment ever!!!

[PearlieMae]

Awesome thread, Raina! So much fun! I'm so glad we got to meet finally!

I have a bunch of photos, too...should I upload them here or start my own thread?

I HAD THE BESTEST F'ING TIME!

[Merman Chatfish]

I kinda treaded water for a moment in total shock. Then I screamed for the lifeguards who didn’t even look at me. Then I screamed for my friends to go get help. I tried as hard as I could one handed to pull myself up out of the side of the very deep pool but could only just hang there. I was profusely bleeding all over the pool deck and Christian went and grabbed a towel and wrapped my hand. I am a first aid instructor, I recognized I was going into shock, that I needed to get out of the cold water, and that I needed a first aid kit.


Well damn those lifeguards they sent Merman Dan C over with I think a bandaid or something? Someone finally got Sean who pulled me out of the water and ran back to lifeguards. They still didn’t come over, and didn’t give Sean the kit. Dan C had to mop up all my blood and Sean wrapped my hand and let me tell you I am missing a really deep chunk of my finger. Not wide enough for stitches but deep enough it looks like something bit me. And it really really hurt. The amount it hurt seemed disproportioned to what it looked like. Dan and Christian knew I was in a bad way but I’m not sure anyone else quite realized how messed up I was. The adrenaline from the tail, then the shock of the blood , and the shock of not getting appropriate help kinda put my brain in a weird mode.


I saw a few images of the lifeguards in the background, and they did not look ready to jump in and do a rescue. If they were working at my pool I would have been chewing them out. If anything they should have been scared poopless not knowing how if your tails would make it easier or harder to rescue you.

[Merman Chatfish]

Thank you, Raina, for the awesome write-up! Definitely helping me experience it vicariously, LOL!

I would totally volunteer if I knew I was able to go! For definite! I absolutely love volunteering and helping things run more smoothly for everyone - I do it at every festival/con I go to, whenever possible!

Maybe get waterproof name badges? I know some places make waterproof business cards, so it couldn't be too much of a hassle if we knew for sure who was attending in advance enough to purchase all the badges with names already printed on them!

I would want to swim too but I would love to also volunteer and help out, even serve as extra lifeguard.

Raina: Who is the one with the light up tail? I would love to pick her brain on how they set up the electronics.

[AniaR]

I have a bunch of photos, too...should I upload them here or start my own thread?

you can put em here if you want :D


Raina: Who is the one with the light up tail? I would love to pick her brain on how they set up the electronics

mermaid glimmer

[courtneymermaid]

Thanks for posting all of those fabulous photos Raina! I almost feel like I was there! I've commented on your new tail in a few spots, but from one huge Pokemon fan to another, your new tail is freaking fantastic! It totally looks like a badass mega evolution!! I dig! ^_^

[Mermaid Wesley]

I see me in a few of those!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[AniaR]

here's my unboxing video (I've posted it in a few places but I wanted to keep with continuity)


http://youtu.be/OUkfKMWGxKI

Also you can see more photos here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1537080306570347.1073741842.100008051770372&type=1

Wes- you were so much freaking fun girl. Feel free to tag yourself.

Court- thanks so much!

[courtneymermaid]

Eee!! Unboxing the pure awesome! I love it!! Looks like so much fun! ^_^

[Joy&RaptorsUnrestrained!]

Awww, thanks for the karaoke compliments, Raina! Though I am pretty sure you were all prepared to go first when someone or other distracted you or called you away or wanted to take a picture and I just happened to submit my first song while you were doing that... you were circling the karaoke table like a hungry shark :)

Dancing was a lot of fun, and by the by, I LOVE hugs, so bring them on (seriously, when I was born, the nurse handed me to my parents and said "This one's a hugger")!

The Wubble was MermanDan H's (octopus top hat, green tail), and it was a lot of fun to play with. He'd been looking for just the right time to toss it to the merfolk :)

[Merman Dan]

I HAD THE BESTEST F'ING TIME!

Seconded!!

[Vrindavana Starfish]

Wow that looks amazing. Thanks so much for sharing! Maybe someday I can get to one of these. :)
And that tail!!!

[maressa]

Holy balls that LED tail is AMAZING! Great photos Raina, looks like everyone had a GREAT time!!! So cute

[PearlieMae]

Here are some of mine...

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[AniaR]

Haha lol

[Mermaid Leira]

Wow! I hadn't seen this, awesome thread Raina, so many beautiful pics mer and tails, oh my!

[Mermaid Ciela]

Wow, Raina, thank you for sharing all this!! While I'm bummed that you nicked your finger so badly and it took so long for you to get home, you seem to have made the most of it, and I'm more excited than ever to start saving up to come next year! I would totally volunteer to help out for a bit in exchange for a discounted ticket price or something. And I could help out with IT stuff as well! :)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[MermaidCora]

SO going next year!! All my mermaid role models were there!!!!! Raina, Kariel, Hannah!!! Always wanted to meet them!!!!!!
Mer-fest looks like SO MUCH FUN!!!!!!!

[Mermaid Dottie]

After that I spun around and there was my MERLING. The little girl who had visited last year, that I made such a connection with. She had brought her dad and her best friend and all the stuff I gave her last year. She gave me an adorable card, a turtle, and a shell necklace. She hopped into the water, I tried to give her a ride after putting on my tail, and promptly realized mermaid rides with a foil and a heavy fluke are really freaking hard. The competitor did all the work. I practically drowned my way across the pool. Lol



I am fairly certain that I have video of this moment from my go pro.

[Mermaid Dottie]

Oh hey! THERE'S The photo of twigs wings in my face! That was fun!

[Mermaid Wesley]

Lol there seem to be only pics of me as a seal and... Having fun... In the hot tub! Thanks pearlie!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[PearlieMae]

I'm beginning to doubt I was there at all! Technical problems with my tail kept me from swimming very much, and I somehow managed to avoid everyone's cameras...but I wasn't TRYING to!

[Mermaid Enora]

Love hearing about everything!!
question: did twig ever wear her mermaid tail or just her fairy wings?

[Mermaid Sirenia]

Love hearing about everything!!
question: did twig ever wear her mermaid tail or just her fairy wings?
She wore her tail! There are several pictures of her wearing it:)

[PearlieMae]

She was the model for Finfolk's leafy sea dragon tail, their entry into the competition...she's awesome!

[Mermaid Enora]

Ah ok just haven't found those yet. Trying to do everything on my phone driving back from Florida. I'll look around for it when I get home. I used to see her a lot at Scarborough Faire but she quit it years ago and I've missed getting fairy pics with her.

[AniaR]

Chris has all the photos we took there are whole cards he hasn't posted yet

[NerineArcticMermaid]

Dottie! Dying to see the gopro footage from last day!

Also anyone knot who the diver was in Sunday taking pictures? He beckoned to me and got pictures but I couldn't tell who he was.. would lovetosee those shots.

[AniaR]

There were two divers. One was John Jay- Chris has all those photos. The other was the guy selling gopro stuff and I have no idea his deal.

People should know that even though there were loads of photogs around that Chris has most of the photos so I expect he'll continue posting them as he finds the cards and has time. (he's travelling right now for his Bday). Sean spent a whole day chasing people underwater getting amazing shots on Chris's camera but those images have yet to surface.

Dottie- you were so amazing and just as sweet in person. Anyone who doesn't know Dottie saved my butt when I got real bad motion sickness!

[PearlieMae]

Dottie is sweet as honey! :mermaid kiss:

[Mermaid Gipsy]

GREAT pics! :D
I gotta attend next year's. Looks like it was wonderful and everybody had a great time! :)


I gotta ask, though: Raina, WHERE did you get that magnificent onesie?
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[Mermaid Enora]

i think it was a gift

[Mermaid Lorelei]

It was a gift from Christomer.

[Mermaid Gipsy]

Ahh, well it looks adorable on her! ^.^

[Mary Marine]

Raina thank you for posting this and letting us living vicariously though the photos, videos, and stories.

[AniaR]

Here's some more videos


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHKeXew5FLU


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O0MDmPtohio

And a great article:

http://www.coolhunting.com/culture/conventional-wisdom-merfest

[Mermaid Alea]

It looks like it was very amazing and that koi pond...WOW. It is too bad that you were not feeling so well sometimes, but it looks like in spite of that you had an amazing time! I think the Q & A sounds really interesting thanks for sharing some info from Hannah Frasser's Q & A. :)

[Mer-gal]

https://scontent-b-lga.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/10612759_10155096788025425_5181873896311620469_n.j pg?oh=4a9271b9ba4d6a9a9c7d020bce4608ce&oe=556D31DD
Is this the top people were getting their fins in a twist over? I so it is gorgeous and they really had no reason to call her a ex porn star.

[Mermaid Cascada]

Wow seriously? She's covered. Even if she wasn't oh well, for Pete's sake she's a mermaid. It's only natural lol Man boobs in public aren't shamed... Pffft!

[AniaR]

A few of us made it into an MTV online article, yay! http://www.mtv.co.uk/wtf/news/these-photos-of-a-mermaid-convention-will-make-you-question-the-nature-of-humanity

Bad thing? an ex community member who is quite hateful and resentful to the community, made a bunch of fake accounts (that I can tie directly to IPs I have on record for the person, so yes I am sure I know exactly who it is) in order to hate on me specifically, but also the community as a whole. It's a shame he's trying to put the community down when we are getting a chance to spotlight.

I invite everyone, not to argue with him or defend me, but to post their own comments on the article explaining what being a mermaid means to you and why you love it :D share the love of mermaiding. That way when people read the artcile they'll see a bunch of awesome mers instead of one lonely obsessed and hateful man. ;)

[Kaila Mermaid]

... Can I make a guess at who that might be? [emoji57]

[Mer-gal]

I think everyone knows who it is. I am sorry he was so mean to you aniaR.

[michellerobison]

https://scontent-b-lga.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/10612759_10155096788025425_5181873896311620469_n.j pg?oh=4a9271b9ba4d6a9a9c7d020bce4608ce&oe=556D31DD
Is this the top people were getting their fins in a twist over? I so it is gorgeous and they really had no reason to call her a ex porn star.

This top is soo freaking cool,I'd make one myself! Heck I see less coverage on daytime tv...sheesh!