Cogito Chuck Robbins (Literary Ink)

Sometimes I abbreviate post titles and they seem nonsensical, like one of those <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAPTCHA">captcha</a> messages, or a subject line in a morsel of spam.<br /><br />So I'm sticking with this title "Cogito Chuck Robbins" because I like the way it sounds. So there. It will all make sense eventually.<br /><br />I met Chris outside of Penn Station one Friday afternoon, intrigued by his forearm tattoo:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpm99dWqN37zsg39oE3pc03cCWtE2YmZoWbMJVqdnmLIv3OAKnWe5u4j7GTT90SrcCD81ZWdcJMfYceCiipZys_vTadN_mH7l4iHA-8jSLxWqpE3PoZfosAymzALNK_EaV2ASqwPVqNTE/s1600-h/Cogito+Ergo+Sum.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385766032772704722" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpm99dWqN37zsg39oE3pc03cCWtE2YmZoWbMJVqdnmLIv3OAKnWe5u4j7GTT90SrcCD81ZWdcJMfYceCiipZys_vTadN_mH7l4iHA-8jSLxWqpE3PoZfosAymzALNK_EaV2ASqwPVqNTE/s400/Cogito+Ergo+Sum.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 266px; height: 400px;" /></a><br />"<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cogito_ergo_sum">Cogito ergo sum</a>" is a Latin phrase that means, in English, "I think, therefore, I am." It is attributed to the 17th Century French philosopher <span lang="fr"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ren%C3%A9_Descartes" title="René Descartes">René Descartes</a></span>.<br /><br />This was the first of Chris' three tattoos. He is a philosophy and creative writing major at <a href="http://www.newpaltz.edu/">SUNY New Paltz</a>. This phrase is the "missing link in a belief system," or, in his words, "what I always knew, but never knew".<br /><br />The tattoo was done at a shop in <a href="http://local.yahoo.com/NY/East+Meadow/Health+Beauty/Tattoos+Piercings">East Meadow, New York</a>.<br /><br />Chris also has this dead bird near his right elbow:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhktPF6FXQSOT3BgJl_uQs8YZMCWpqoqfClNJ1Uzxywk4v73Nz91EcyPZhavxmbUMTiMlne0JRqlOY3e6Y6OvOXEhaLk2bE1VMl4aInMtPion962Kqm_8-fNmiOcq48AGpqrcT42zy8g28/s1600-h/Palahniuk+Dead+Bird.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385762431395699138" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhktPF6FXQSOT3BgJl_uQs8YZMCWpqoqfClNJ1Uzxywk4v73Nz91EcyPZhavxmbUMTiMlne0JRqlOY3e6Y6OvOXEhaLk2bE1VMl4aInMtPion962Kqm_8-fNmiOcq48AGpqrcT42zy8g28/s400/Palahniuk+Dead+Bird.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 349px;" /></a><br />Inked at <a href="http://www.myspace.com/skindeepny">Skin Deep Tattoo</a> in Levittown, this is inspired by the art on the cover of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuck_Palahniuk">Chuck Palahniuk's</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Lullaby-Chuck-Palahniuk/dp/0385722192/ref=ed_oe_p">Lullaby</a>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZmekJ-xq1yD0OD4q540TPe4SR3KTcWQYiKQ0-v4x5kiGEJPDE3ZzCN0sdLuPlWtZmipvAba17eXXfgs5yYbdxMRsgXeD-QePTGswT2JcRy9GP9FcMgKxqb9x7xcZ26UbYJg62Wdt7Jjc/s1600-h/lullaby.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385763656859786626" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZmekJ-xq1yD0OD4q540TPe4SR3KTcWQYiKQ0-v4x5kiGEJPDE3ZzCN0sdLuPlWtZmipvAba17eXXfgs5yYbdxMRsgXeD-QePTGswT2JcRy9GP9FcMgKxqb9x7xcZ26UbYJg62Wdt7Jjc/s400/lullaby.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 257px; height: 400px;" /></a>Work from Skin Deep has appeared previously on Tattoosday <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/search/label/Skin%20Deep%20Tattoo%20%28Levittown%29">here</a>. Palahniuk also has quite a cult following, and his work is the most often represented in ink here on Tattoosday. Check out other Palahniuk tattoos <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/search/label/Chuck%20Palahniuk">here</a>.<br /><br />And Chris' third tattoo is based on the cover art from one of my favorite authors, <a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/author/results.pperl?authorid=25708">Tom Robbins</a>:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM8GjuF_ViFoFElAluC_UGHLRtproqO4rPvOqMtK6G6ov0y292ss1bI9hl3Bio6MNqnHyM8TWzGChxCKVwbKpGw9d3_KdRPK8v8FSPV8kbgIEDKmmSFKO9UgpjYA7Pot_gA9750mWdFMY/s1600-h/still+life+woodpecker.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385761861980644834" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM8GjuF_ViFoFElAluC_UGHLRtproqO4rPvOqMtK6G6ov0y292ss1bI9hl3Bio6MNqnHyM8TWzGChxCKVwbKpGw9d3_KdRPK8v8FSPV8kbgIEDKmmSFKO9UgpjYA7Pot_gA9750mWdFMY/s400/still+life+woodpecker.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 301px;" /></a><br />This echoes the front of the great book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Still-Life-Woodpecker-Tom-Robbins/dp/0553348973">Still Life With Woodpecker</a>, which has made many people a fan of the writer.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqe2v7BWcDOBCPNqALj4mdPSoOYJv6-_Wk3njhczuhgn7t5tNTkjuYpJtfPiVPh3tkJJcCnkDT1vEPtRaLygijYN3O4fO-jDoFIhzp7vvS3fPYda4zUPE4y-eo1Y9FjDPB8vdr37QTG28/s1600-h/Woodpeckerslw.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385764748686703394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqe2v7BWcDOBCPNqALj4mdPSoOYJv6-_Wk3njhczuhgn7t5tNTkjuYpJtfPiVPh3tkJJcCnkDT1vEPtRaLygijYN3O4fO-jDoFIhzp7vvS3fPYda4zUPE4y-eo1Y9FjDPB8vdr37QTG28/s400/Woodpeckerslw.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 291px;" /></a><br />The piece, which was inked by <a href="http://www.myspace.com/mikeyvlad">Mike Vlad</a> at <a href="http://www.triplextattoo.com/">Triple X Tattoo</a> in Manhattan, is a subtle nod in appreciation of Robbins and his great book. Work from Triple X has appeared previously on Tattoosday <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/search/label/Triple%20X%20Tattoo">here</a>.<br /><br />If you like these pieces, and are a fan of literary tattoos, you should certainly check out <a href="http://www.contrariwise.org/">Contrariwise</a>, a site dedicated solely to contributors' literary ink.<br /><br />A hearty thanks to Chris for sharing his tattoos with us here on our site!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=bill03-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&m=amazon&f=ifr&md=10FE9736YVPPT7A0FBG2&asins=0553348973" style="width: 120px; height: 240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=bill03-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&m=amazon&f=ifr&md=10FE9736YVPPT7A0FBG2&asins=0385504470" style="width: 120px; height: 240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe><br /></div>

Cogito Chuck Robbins (Literary Ink)

Sometimes I abbreviate post titles and they seem nonsensical, like one of those captcha messages, or a subject line in a morsel of spam. S...

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