History and High Heels: Columbus' Mistaken Mermaid

Tomorrow, January 9 is the anniversary of the date that Christopher Columbus mistakes three manatees for mermaids in 1493. He was sailing near the present day Dominican Republic when he saw these creatures swimming amongst the fish and misidentified them as mermaids. While he may have been delirious at the time, to his credit it is noted that he commented that they were "not half as beautiful as they are painted." This description hardly comes as a surprise to us in the modern era, especially after googling manatee pictures.

I ran across this story on the History Channel's 'This Day in History' online segment and knew I had to share it with you all. It's because of stories like these that I was drawn to history in high school and college. These kinds of tales have a way of poignantly reminding us that the renown men and women of history were just like us, apt to make mistakes and say excessively silly things.

I was also pulled to this story because I think at this point in the winter we are all wishing to be merpeople. To laugh and bask in the sun's warm glow on the sandy beaches simply sounds divine right about now. However, unless you are just raking in the money and have the means to take a holiday to the shore, you cannot fulfill this fantasy directly. Yet, since spring is soon to come (and by soon I mean in a couple of months) try channeling a bit of their lifestyle by remembering to enjoy those calm, easy moments and wear some fun pastels items! This spring the color mint is all of the rage on the runway, it's the chartreuse of this season. So try that out! I just bought a mint cardigan at J.Crew outlet and it really works with almost anything! Just don't wear all pastels, because no one wants to think you are the Easter Bunny. The easy way to balance pastels are to wear them with darker neutrals like grey or chestnut brown. These aren't harsh against the pale colors like black would be, but rather blend to highlight the hue. This is a good way to start!