I'm Bad At Making Announcements

They say you'll end up back in the chair. That one is not enough. I didn't believe them, but they were right.

I got another tattoo last week.

About a month ago, the thought popped in my head that I may be ready for another tattoo. I've blogged about the one I got ten years ago. It's small, discreet, and most people don't even know that I have one.

I dismissed the thought as something whimsical and fleeting. But it came back.
Sure, I went through my own due diligence to make sure a second tattoo was something I would still want in ten, twenty, fifty years down the road.

I looked around for designs but was not impressed by anything at all. So, I started to think about what was important to me - themes, interests, symbols - anything that could be used for inspiration.

The motifs that were most recurring were books, maps, and Latin. Imagine the possibilities.

I looked through all of my books and I came across a design that I found rather interesting. It was a drawing taken from an atlas made by a Dutch cartographer in 1612. I bookmarked that page and would refer to it every couple of days, making sure I really liked the design - especially as a permanent fixture on my body.

I found that each time I looked at it, I discovered something new. It introduced new thoughts into my head and helped me discover new things about myself and my life.

Next, I had to find the place. Fortunately, I work about a mile outside of Deep Ellum. I called a few places and took some off the list based on the initial phone call.

A few weeks ago, I took the design to a place on Elm Street to see if the design was feasible. If it was too intricate, I would just put my idea on hold.

As it happened, I had a presentation to make at work that day. I dressed up a little more than usual, wearing a dress shirt and a tie. I stopped by this place on my way home after work (I did take my tie off, though). As I walked up, the three employees were outside on a smoke break. They looked at me with a bit of apprehension and mistrust. I'm guessing they don't see too many people like me roaming the streets of Deep Ellum.

After talking to them for a while, outward appearances mattered less. It wasn't a prep talking to a guy with every part of his flesh covered with a tattoo or a piercing. It became more than that - just two guys talking about how to create art. He was impressed with the design and the originality of it all. I was impressed with his feedback and his enthusiasm.

That was Tuesday. I told Melissa about it on Thursday. I got it done on Friday.

Here's what it looks like:

http://usm.maine.edu/maps/exhibit8/24b.jpeg

The circle is about 4 ½ inches in diameter. The words are not part of the final design and the sun is actually on the outside of the circle. Plus, the face and the cross-stick are larger in proportion (for detail purposes).

I'll say this: I pride myself on having a fairly high threshold of pain. I think I'm good at ignoring pain and not letting it show on my face.

Plus, I don't remember much pain from my experience ten years ago. I remember mild discomfort but not indescribable pain.

But last Friday evening, I felt like a little girl. Injecting ink into your lower back over your spinal column through a needle pulsating at hundreds of times per minute is not relaxing. Several times, I wanted to jump out of the chair and beg the guy to stop. Several times, I had to bite on my lip to get through it all.

But it was worth it.

I felt a little better about my decision when some of the workers came by after it was done and nodded their approval and muttered, "pretty cool, dude."

But when I showed Melissa that night, her jaw dropped several inches and she began to shake her head.

It's been 7 days since I got it. I haven't regretted it for a minute.

I've forgotten the pain and the discomfort. All of the peeling has come off and the image is now smooth on my back.

The only interruption I had in my daily routine was having to shower facing the shower head to keep from soaking my back.

Only a few people have seen it - Melissa, Brian, and Chris (brother-in-law). So far, nobody else knows about it.

Except for you.