Do You Have, Or Would You Ever Get, A Tattoo?

[THUNDER HANDS]

Poll question: Do You Have, Or Would You Ever Get, A Tattoo?

I'm thinking about it, I just wish I had really buff arms to put one on.

:)

[ixion]

1. if you decide to get one...

make sure it's something you can live with. I thought about the ones I have (well, the large one at least) for a couple months before I got it. I have two, one large and one small. I still like the small one, so it's okay, but just make sure you don't get something that you'll get tired of, because they don't go away. ;-)

[notadmblnd]

3. No, I would never get a tatoo..

I just don't think they look nice on women.

[ixion]

8. understood.... that's not a problem for me, though...

since I'm a guy. ;-)

[ScreamingMeemie]

2. I don't want my grandchildren someday to ask,"what's that

smeary yellowish, purpley, bluelike thing that looks like a squashed slug, Grams?"

[THUNDER HANDS]

5. you could always

Get a tattoo of a squashed bug - then you'd never have to worry about it confusing people.

:)

[vi5]

4. I am getting another this weekend in fact....

I have about 5. 3 of them are smaller ones and 2 are larger ones. I love them. Luckily though I waited until I was in my 20's to start to be sure I wouldn't regret anything.

The way I handle each one is to take a copy of what I am thinking about getting done and carry it in my wallet every day for at least a year. Then if at the end of the year I still like the image then it's a pretty safe bet I won't regret it.

I love the entire process and everything about it. And if I ever become independently wealthy and not have to work for a living I plan on getting full sleeves of tattoos.

[Book Lover]

26. I did the same thing

I designed my tattoo in Illustrator, printed it and stuck it on my monitor screen. After a year, I still liked it so I went through with it.

[VOX]

35. This is the way to do it. Going into a joint and just picking out flash..

Of, say, the woodpecker-with-cigar, or the top-hatted skull, etc., is just the wrong way to go about a ritual that should have some significance, as should the image.

If you participate in the process, it transcends the whole "sailor on a bender who got an anchor on his chest" experience.

[sirshack]

6. yup

I have one, considering another.

[Skittles]

7. HELL F***ING NO

PERMANENT BODY ART? NO F***ING THANKS.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

32. Me neither

Nothing like a saggy faded tattoo when you're 80. Blech.

[ozymandius]

9. An act of rebellion?

In my neighborhood it is more an act of rebellion not to have a tattoo. There are so many people walking around with arms and legs looking like comic book pages. Occasionally I see someone who looks as though a tattoo artist threw up on them, or used their sleeping body for practice.

As it is so rare to see someone in my area with a harmoniously stylized tattoo (without the clutter) that is also well crafted, I will often compliment them on their good taste.

[MissMillie]

10. I would get one

if I felt strong enough about something that I wouldn't mind having it permanently etched on my body.

[Richardo]

11. This from the culture that agonizes over what shoes are "in" this week

Moe Sizlak: "Call this a unfair generalization if you will..."

Why on earth would you want something permanent engraved on your body? To show your individuality exactly like millions of other "individuals"? Go the henna route then you won't have to pay (with money and pain) to have it removed when (not if) the day comes that you regret it.

Richardo <-- Going for his "curmudgeon" license.

[vi5]

12. Personally mine don't have to do with individuality...

That's not a concern or a reason to get a tattoo. If it is then that's the wrong reason to be doing it.

I appreciate it as an art form. I am not someone who can draw on paper let alone on a maleable section of skin with needles. It's a fascinating process with a long and rich history. In fact in it's earliest days it was mostly the rich aristocracy who were tattooed or tribal leaders. It wasn't until America in the 20th century where the stereotype was reversed.

Each tattoo I have was done to mark a specific occasion or even of importance in my life and they will always hold a special place because of that.

[ixion]

13. yep, marking an event in my life

has been my reasons thus far for getting them.

[jonnyblitz]

14. I have 8 tats (2 big ones) with no regrets and want many more. n/t

[pink_poodle]

15. I have several discreet tattoos - Celtic runes and other pagan...........

Celtic tattoos but they are not "out there" and if saw me - you would see a very girly-girl, femme type and you'd never guess in a million years. HA! Go for it!!!! It does not hurt as much these days as it did say 20+ years ago.

[displacedtexan]

16. closes too many doors

you can't work in the white house or for the state dept. if you have a tattoo or multiple piercings. there are probably more gov't. jobs with the same rules, but i can't think of them offhand. and that's not just under a republican admin, either.

[THUNDER HANDS]

17. where did you read that?

I've never heard of a no-tat's rule for the White House?

[rppper]

25. any of mine can be covered with a shirt.....

i have 2 on my right shoulder, 3 on my left and 4 big works on my back as well as a small clover on my left calf. i i want to show them, i wear a tank top or go shirtless. the military does have some limits now about tattoes and peircings...like none above the neck-line and no peircings worn on duty(men), but that is the extent of it to my knowledge.....

[ixion]

19. I would question that... given that many military folks get tattoos.

nm

[PapaClay]

18. Yes

Why?

Because it pleases me.

[manderley]

20. Not in this lifetime!

There's no way in hell. I be afraid I'd get tired of the design and want to have it removed. As it is I have enough scars in my body, don;'t need more

[skippysmom]

21. no thanks!

I hate needles, plus I don't want to be one of the many members of my generation who are going to have major tattoo-related regrets in their old age...

[Character Assassin]

22. I have three, all of them small and not visible with clothes on.

Love 'em.

[geniph]

23. I have six, all meaningful to me, all very pretty

and I want many more. And only one shows in normal business clothes - the Celtic band that I and my husband each got on our left wrists for our 4th anniversary.

Everyone chooses different ways to adorn themselves. These designs are mine. Placing moral judgements on how people decorate their persons is just childish.

[rppper]

24. i have 10 so far, planning about 10 more....

...before it's all said and done.....

me......

[Boudicea]

27. 'Nuff said.

[indigo32]

28. I've got 2

have NO regrets and am musing on more. They ARE addictive LOL

[tridim]

29. I'd only get a tattoo if I could do it myself

but that'll probably never happen since it's almost impossible. I have nothing against tattoos that are tasteful and an of original design. I cringe when I see people with poorly done 'out of the book' designs. I had a friend who had some of the most beautiful large tattoos I've ever seen, very artfully done and brilliantly inked with strikingly vivid colors. It was her decision and she is very proud to show them off. Only a few people got to see the hidden ones. :)

[VelmaD]

30. I have 2...

and am planning on a 3rd as soon as I can afford it. I really like mine but took years to make sure I knew exactly what I wanted. I got them to mark moments in my life. Same with the body piercings of which I also have 2.

[gyopsy]

31. I'll never get one...

I think they're just not for me. And I'm only 19 years old. There's not too many people my age that feel the same way. For those who do like tatoos, I think that's awsome. They're for some people but not me.

[scarlet_owl]

33. I want an owl of Athena tattoo

but I'm too scared to get one. There is something off-putting about buzzing needles.

[VOX]

34. Don't do it just to *do* it, but do it if it really has significance...

If you want to mark (literally) some rite of passage, or if you feel a soul kinship with, say, a special pet, etc., then of course it's a nice thing to commemorate that.

The four most important questions: Do you really want a permanent image on your body? What image do you want? Where do you want this image on your body? Who will put this image on you?

-Really know if you want it -- there's no going back;
-Be sure of the image you've chosen -- it's there for life;
-Know exactly where you want it on your body -- you can't move it;
-Have a true artist do it, not some kid who just purchased inks and a machine. Ask around. Get referrals. A cheap and amateur tattoo will look like a cheap and amateur tattoo; there are blood-borne disease risks (artists should use new needles and autoclave everything else); you also don't want to go later on to another place to have them clean up somebody else's mess. *Know* who's going to do your work.

Unless you feel confident and have strong convictions about all four of these questions, I would say hold off for now.