Deep Thoughts: 19 with a Nemo tat

Saturday, August 22, 2009

19 with a Nemo tat

When I was 19 and in the service, I remember standing in a tattoo parlor in Chanute, Illinois, with $50 in my hand. My long forgotten friends were taking turns under the needle. Each had selected the U.S. Air Force emblem to adorn their biceps. When it came time for my turn, I balked. I kept thinking about the future and it did not add up. No tattoo for me then, and none for me now.

This 19-year-old friend of my niece is proud of her Nemo tattoo. She has another tattoo on her bicep (second view here). I am of two minds on tattoos. While I will never get one myself, I enjoy tattoos on other people. I think it has something to do with the colors. It reminds me of human graffiti. When I see one I like, I walk right up and ask, “Do you mind if I shoot your tat?”. They always says yes. Of course I am a bit of a hypocrite, today I gave my niece some cash for her birthday while taking the opportunity to admonishing her to “not spend it on tattoos”. I’m still her uncle after all.

Technorati Tags: Photography,Tattoos

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Jack 119p · 812 weeks ago

I absolutely love them on others too, but like you, I've avoided getting any. I do think about it from time-to-time, but never quite seem to follow through. I suppose the main reason is that I've never had a particularly clear sense of what I would want, where I would want it, or that I'd still want it years from now. Truth be told, I'm also a bit nervous that I wouldn't be able to stop once I got over the initial barrier.

One idea I find somewhat appealing would be to use tattoos almost as a way to tell my life story. By deliberately selecting images that would have been very meaningful at certain points in my life, it would end up being a sort of evolution of images. I don't know if that makes any sense.

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2 replies · active 812 weeks ago

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Mojoey 107p · 812 weeks ago

I understand. It is like a puzzle that if decoded properly tells the
story of ones life. Except for barbed wire arm bands and tramp stamps.
Those just suck.

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guest · 812 weeks ago

Mojoey, I agree with you on the wire armbands and tramp stamps. They do suck.

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Mike aka MonolithTMA 58p · 812 weeks ago

She has some very nice tats. I have two, one on each bicep, the second one I got is the Kanji symbol for Tao and has the words "The Way, The Truth. The Life.", the first is of Kokopelli. When I de-converted I was troubled by the Tao tattoo, but it doesn't bother me any more. I have considered getting a third, but I'm not sure where I'd put it. I've thought about getting one of the FSM.

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dromedaryhump · 812 weeks ago

Nice tatoo, pretty girls. But I advised my sons to never mark their bodies. You can never regeret NOT having a tattoo, but may very well regeret having one.

When I was younger i had "America, Land of the Free Home of the Brave" tattooed on my, uh... "member".

Unfortunately, these days usually all I can read is "Free"
It's depressing as hell.

;)
Hump

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dromedaryhump · 812 weeks ago

re above: regeret= regret

if there were really a god, she'd have put spell check on these damn blog comment windows.

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mikespeir · 812 weeks ago

I do not understand the tattoo mentality.

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Missy · 812 weeks ago

My name is Missy & that is me in the pictures.
For myself, I am an artist--so tattoos have a deeper meaning.
Its more of a personal love of art and expression.
NOT to rebel against my parents or society..
Anyone that has tattoos will most likely tell you that there is a meaning behind them.
For myself, Mermaids are the ultimate example of "Dont judge a book by its cover". I wont get into it, but Google what 'Sirens' did to the sailors... although they were beautiful, they were capable of nasty things.
Now, my tattoo is not meant in that negative way, but for me I have been through a lot in my life. Do not judge me by how i look or act...because you have NO IDEA how much i have gone through. In my case, Something beautiful came from the negative.
My half sleeve is a constant work in progress, but for anyone that has tattoos or is considering getting one... THINK BEFORE YOU INK!
It MUST mean something to you.
They should all mean something to you.

Anyways, Thanks Joe for this! Its an awesome post! Was good to see you!

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1 reply · active 812 weeks ago

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