Michael J. Cargill Photography

So the reason I actually went to Coney Island was to check out the Mermaid Parade. My friend Yvonne had always told me about it, but I'd never gone.

It's another one of those New York rituals that gives New Yorkers an excuse to act a fool and let there freak flags fly. And let's face it if there's one thing New Yorkers have - it's the ability to act a fool, and wave a freak flag.