Actually, don’t mention those things around my mother.
Oh! I did walk on volcanic rock barefoot, once. Once.
↓ Transcript
Iola
It’s important to stay near water. We dry out very easily. Fresh or salt doesn’t matter, since we don’t use gills. Sea water is more buoyant, though. Remember to come up for air until you get the hang of using magic. And always keep in mind that as soon as you’re in deep water, or even over it in a boat or plane, you won’t be able to resist changing forms. You’ll eventually learn how to maintain your human shape, but it’s exhausting.
Iona
And I found out the hard way why we never wear knickers under our skirts.
Hellena
Tail wedgie. Yikes.
Shaed
What about shoes. Though?
Iola
Personally, only for fashion, and never near the beach. We don’t need them. We can dive deeper than most humans and we heal instantly. Not even volcanic rock will cut our feet. I do dislike hot pavement, but it still can’t hurt me. But the real reason is that when people see a pair of shoes left out near open water, some panic and assume there’s been a suicide. The resultant search makes things . . . complicated.
Ione
And nobody likes losing a nice pair of shoes.
Hellena
What about those cheap little rubber clogs?
Iola
We don’t speak of those.
Narration
Seriously, don’t mention rubber clogs around a mermaid.
It’s important to stay near water. We dry out very easily. Fresh or salt doesn’t matter, since we don’t use gills. Sea water is more buoyant, though. Remember to come up for air until you get the hang of using magic. And always keep in mind that as soon as you’re in deep water, or even over it in a boat or plane, you won’t be able to resist changing forms. You’ll eventually learn how to maintain your human shape, but it’s exhausting.
Iona
And I found out the hard way why we never wear knickers under our skirts.
Hellena
Tail wedgie. Yikes.
Shaed
What about shoes. Though?
Iola
Personally, only for fashion, and never near the beach. We don’t need them. We can dive deeper than most humans and we heal instantly. Not even volcanic rock will cut our feet. I do dislike hot pavement, but it still can’t hurt me. But the real reason is that when people see a pair of shoes left out near open water, some panic and assume there’s been a suicide. The resultant search makes things . . . complicated.
Ione
And nobody likes losing a nice pair of shoes.
Hellena
What about those cheap little rubber clogs?
Iola
We don’t speak of those.
Narration
Seriously, don’t mention rubber clogs around a mermaid.
Somebody always has to be hating on Crocs. Even my wife. Let me live my life, dammit!
Rubber clogs float. I can see why they’d be annoying for a few reasons.
On another note… is leaving behind shoes when you suicide really a thing anywhere but Japan?
Even there, it seems oddly nonsensical for them. Changing shoes at the entrance to a home or bathroom has rational reasons behind the “tradition”. Leaving a pair of pumps on the ledge of the building? Isn’t that basically just littering? (Alright, you’re about to make a much bigger mess at the BOTTOM of the building, so consideration for others isn’t that high on the priority list, but still, what’s the thinking behind removing your shoes there?)
… Well, I went looking for answers on my own for why JAPANESE people take off their shoes to suicide, https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2006/01/17/reference/suicide/#.XJb3baR7ncd
…but the question of how universal a tradition it is, or if it would even be a thing at their location, is still valid, I think.
It’s not just Japan. It’s common in S.Korea and, I was once told, China. Probably other Asian countries, too. So, I assume, even in Oz, someone would get freaked out. Not always, but enough for it to be a pain for Iola.
Hawaii does not think much of finding clothing and shoes on the beach, since most of them have cement or asphalt leading up to the sand, or something uncomfortable to walk upon , so it is not uncommon to find a beach towel, cover clothing and flip flops waiting on the shore while someone enjoys playing in the waves for a while before resting and air drying in the sun.
I will add that given the nasty riptides around the islands, it is not uncommon when you see shoes to look out to see and worry if you don’t see a swimmer. Which would possibly create the same problem as someone fearing suicides.
Do THESE mermaids stab women n the heart to bathe their feet in her blood? What? It was a fairy tale, right? For kids?
That’s an Old World tradition.
Most “Fairy tales” weren’t originally intended to be entertainment for children, but adults.
For that matter, neither were the earliest cartoons.
Going even farther, “Barbie” was created by an American woman, who stole the idea from a German doll named Lilli, who did not exactly have a dream house, pink convertible, and a horse. She was a high-end call-girl with a saucy personality, who was first made very popular as a newspaper comic strip character (though in terms of the jokes, more the kind of comics you’d find in men’s magazines like Playboy, shall we say) to the point that someone had the idea to merchandise her, and Lilli dolls were sold to grown men who displayed her on their dashboards and rear windows of their car, like an American might show off logos of their favourite sports team.
It’s very strange how many things that are looked down on as “just for kids” started out as “definitely not for kids” before getting dumbed down and sanitized in the name of protecting “innocence”. >_>
(I usually “quote” innocence because it’s a ridiculous concept: “Innocence” is nothing more than what we call ignorance when adults find it cute. I’d argue that in many cases it’s not in a child’s benefit to have it forcefully “preserved”.)
Heh, Hellena has experienced the dreaded “Tail-wedgie”, bet she’s glad that that memory is gone 😛
Hmm, how did they go from the restaurant scene to the beach so quickly? o_O
Legs?
There is a lot of information to impart, and it is rude to take up tables in a restaurant for too long. Thus the conversation got moved to the beach once they finished eating and paid.