Post #260945 by Tiki Bree on Sun, Oct 15, 2006 6:19 PM

Confessions of a mermaid......

When Kiliki first expressed the idea of having a mermaid swim at the Yankee Clipper, I was extremely intrigued. As a little girl growing up on the space coast, my dad would frequently take us on "Florida drives," where we explored countless kitschy Florida treasures, most gone now.
Weeki Wachee mermaids imprinted into my psyche so strongly that I repeatedly declared that I wanted to be one when I grew up.

In April of 2005, Annette of Hula-Hula productions hired me to model in mermaid garb as a tribute to the Weeki Wachee maidens at her acclaimed Floridana Antique Show in St Petersburg.
Many of the original mermaids of the 50's and 60's appeared at the show to promote a documentary film of the Weeki Wachee phenomena. This little Florida gal felt extremely honored to pay homage to the amazing women of Weeki Wachee; and to make a great day even better, the Mer-Tailor gifted me with the costume I modeled.

I never thought my childhood dream would ever manifest , and then came Kiliki's request...
I asked her to hold the thought until I could test swim the "tail" to see if I could even maneuver underwater. It took about 20 minutes in the YMCA pool to figure out the technique, and when I did it was incredible! It felt so natural to propel underwater and I resented having to come up for air. I excitedly emailed Kiliki that the mermaid was a "GO" for the event.

When the day came & I was getting into costume for the swim, I was so nervous that my hands were shaking. I didn't know if anybody would come see the swim, and I was concerned that my jitters would affect my underwater stamina. I had no idea that so many people were collecting in the Wreck Bar. Well I found out as soon as I made the first pass by the windows. Although I could not see into the windows, I heard a roar of voices as I swam by--and I was wearing ear plugs!!! Your cheers and claps were unbelievably exciting. I only wish that I could breath underwater so I didn't have to go up for air so often. (I'll have to work on that.)

Thank you Kiliki, thank you Hukilau-ers, for making a little girl's dream come true.