Tattoosday (A Tattoo Blog): kanji

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Virginia Chase Sutton

Our next tattooed poet, <a href="http://www.virginiachasesutton.com/">Virginia Chase Sutton</a>, is no stranger to tattooed poets projects - she appeared in <a href="http://www.kimaddonizio.com/Site/Site/_welcome.html">Kim Addonizio's</a> wonderful anthology <a href="http://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0446679046/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0446679046&linkCode=as2&tag=bill03-20%22%3EDorothy%20Parker's%20Elbow:%20Tattoos%20on%20Writers,%20Writers%20on%20Tattoos%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0446679046%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E">Dorothy Parker's Elbow: Tattoos on Writers, Writers on Tattoos<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0446679046" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></a>.<br /><br />She sent us this photo of one of her tattoos:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitzJGPn9E-f2I1SW0jKlEP3E0mpdW1qfSClSlmTqJ3HwDUfMfEWX0X4W0b3VeVlI_6pdfhlGTdBV7kgvsnHtqhnCUklPhBnpx_2THil3RJfQEmjX6Rz0nJLISAOE9SlbszKIDNYLOuLEA/s615/Sutton+Tattoo+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitzJGPn9E-f2I1SW0jKlEP3E0mpdW1qfSClSlmTqJ3HwDUfMfEWX0X4W0b3VeVlI_6pdfhlGTdBV7kgvsnHtqhnCUklPhBnpx_2THil3RJfQEmjX6Rz0nJLISAOE9SlbszKIDNYLOuLEA/s400/Sutton+Tattoo+2.JPG" width="298" /></a></div><br />Virginia offered up this story about the birth of this tattoo:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">"It may sound silly, but the symbols came to me in a dream.  I was lightly dozing one afternoon and the symbols were behind my eyelids.  I opened my eyes and knew what I had to do---get the symbols for Suffering, Ecstasy, and Death tattooed on my back.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">The shop is called <a href="https://www.facebook.com/RisingPhoenixTattoo">Rising Phoenix Tattoo</a> in Addison, IL and the artist is Dave.  I have been to Dave several times, even though I live in Arizona. This particular time, I was at a writers’ retreat in Illinois and knew I had to get the tattoo.  I went with my god-son, Josh, who is in his late twenties.  It is a long wait there as only Dave was there to manage the shop (we arrived at opening, noon).  He had to answer the phone in mid-tattoo, pull off a glove, say 'Tattoo' and answer some basic question about hours, etc. then re-glove. If someone came in and wanted a piercing, he stopped the tattoo and did the piercing.  So it took many hours to each get a tattoo.  But it is worth it because Dave is a true artist."</blockquote>She also sent along a poem related to this particular tattoo:<br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>TATTOO AFTER KAWABATA’S <i>SNOW COUNTRY</i></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Out of town, on a new medication, a spill</div><div class="MsoNormal">down a flight of stairs,  strange bird</div><div class="MsoNormal">not quite flying. Limitless space. Off</div><div class="MsoNormal">to the ER. <i>Careful,</i> I tell the doc listening</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">to my lungs,<i> here is a fresh tattoo.</i> He steps</div><div class="MsoNormal">to the counter, back to me, says <i>Do you have<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>any medical conditions?</i> He already knows</div><div class="MsoNormal">from my forms but I reply <i>I am bipolar.</i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">He asks <i>Do those lines mean anything?</i> Three</div><div class="MsoNormal">symbols in Japanese are stacked on my back</div><div class="MsoNormal">in black lines with pink and purple wisps.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Suffering. Ecstasy. Death,</i> I tell him. He turns,</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">startled. <i>Why,</i> he asks. <i>What else is there, </i>I say.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">Bored with this discussion, I am thinking of Kawabata’s </div><div class="MsoNormal">poetic fiction, emblems I now have engraved </div><div class="MsoNormal">on my back. Influence for decades. <i>What<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>is your psychiatrist’s phone number back home?<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>I bet you know it by heart.</i> And I do. He pulls out</div><div class="MsoNormal">a cell phone, moves to the hall where I listen to</div><div class="MsoNormal">his take on my new tattoo. It is not a rave review.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">I am miserable, wondering why so many docs</div><div class="MsoNormal">reject beauty, reject art. I think of the novel’s</div><div class="MsoNormal">main female character---there are only three--- </div><div class="MsoNormal">a geisha and prostitute, Komoko. Of her traditional</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">loveliness, her isolation, her pain in a land of dense </div><div class="MsoNormal">and white-out snow, a forever landscape.</div><div class="MsoNormal">The ER doc hands the phone to me---my shrink</div><div class="MsoNormal">has a few words. <i>You are on a long road, with<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>nothing but trouble ahead,</i> he warns me, and changes</div><div class="MsoNormal">my med. He does not require a response.</div><div class="MsoNormal">The ER doc takes back the phone and there is more</div><div class="MsoNormal">chit-chat between them. Shimamura, the male character,</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">a dilettante, wants pure beauty and finds it in Yukio’s </div><div class="MsoNormal">reflection. In his brain, she is perfection. My back</div><div class="MsoNormal">burns, blurry as gathering rain. I am dismissed. </div><div class="MsoNormal">Standing outside the hospital, waiting for a ride<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6058251288236499429" name="_GoBack"></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">this winter night, I look up at the cluttered sky. Stars flare,</div><div class="MsoNormal">popping their skins. In the book, the Milky Way is</div><div class="MsoNormal">a living thing. Shimamura becomes incandescent </div><div class="MsoNormal">as he observes Komoko rescuing Yukio from a fire. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Komoko staggers; Yukio’s leg is burned by flames. </div><div class="MsoNormal">In the last image, the Milky Way slides down </div><div class="MsoNormal">Shimamura’s throat. It is what I look for in tonight’s skies.</div><div class="MsoNormal">Constellations rise, gleam, illusion I am able to capture.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">I know it is not the Milky Way, but it will do as part</div><div class="MsoNormal">of my own mythology, the puzzle of existence:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Suffering. Ecstasy. Death.</i> <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i><br /></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="text-align: center;"><i>~ ~ ~ </i></div></div><br />Virginia Chase Sutton tells us:<br /><br />"My first book is <a href="http://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0966145259/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0966145259&linkCode=as2&tag=bill03-20%22%3EEmbellishments%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0966145259%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E">Embellishments</a> (<a href="http://www.chatoyant.com/">Chatoyant</a>) and my second is <a href="http://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1555536891/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1555536891&linkCode=as2&tag=bill03-20%22%3EWhat%20Brings%20You%20to%20Del%20Amo%20(Samuel%20French%20Morse%20Poetry%20Prize)%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1555536891%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E">What Brings You to Del Amo</a> (<a href="http://www.upne.com/index_new.html">University of New England Press</a>). I’ve been published in <a href="http://www.theparisreview.org/">The Paris Review</a>, <a href="http://www.pshares.org/">Ploughshares</a>,<a href="http://antiochcollege.org/antioch_review/"> the Antioch Review</a>, <a href="http://www.quarterlywest.utah.edu/">Quarterly West</a>, among other magazines, journals and anthologies. I won the Louis Untermeyer Scholarship in Poetry at <a href="http://www.middlebury.edu/blwc">Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference</a>, the <a href="http://www.pccc.edu/home/cultural-affairs/poetry-center/prizes">Allen Ginsberg Poetry Award</a>, <a href="http://www.writersatwork.org/wp/">Writers at Work</a>, and others. Six times nominated for the <a href="http://www.pushcartprize.com/">Pushcart Prize</a>, I have also received three grants from <a href="http://www.pw.org/magazine">Poets & Writers magazine</a>."<br /><br />Thanks to Virginia for sharing her tattoo and poem with us here on the Tattooed Poets Project on Tattoosday! For more of her poetry, head over to <a href="http://www.virginiachasesutton.com/poems.html">her website</a>.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" 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=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=0966145259" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" 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=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=1555536891" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span> <b id="internal-source-marker_0.42663157382048666" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This entry is ©2013 Tattoosday. The poem and tattoo are reprinted with the poet's permission.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit </span><a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">http://tattoosday.blogspot.com</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.</span></span></b>

The Tattooed Poets Project: Virginia Chase Sutton

Our next tattooed poet, Virginia Chase Sutton , is no stranger to tattooed poets projects - she appeared in Kim Addonizio's wonderful a...

12:00 AM

The Tattooed Poets Project: Michael Henry Lee

Beginning in the second year of the Tattooed Poets Project, we experienced the thrill of having poets from previous years return to share more ink.<br /><br />This year is no exception, and the first of two repeat contributors is Michael Henry Lee.<br /><br />Last year, he contributed "work inspired by his spiritual convictions, with work spanning three decades by three artists in three very distinct parts of the country."<br /><br />"This year" he informs us, "reveals a more earthy side; with work again spanning three decades by two artists from the heart of America and the sunshine state."<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7bKf-yQkxyo0Mj-5BpaN9dMvu6QG3c0j8_dGylYlrzufvYTyIwmLrN4gW-x_b16KQoY5_YKXEcGFDums7ET8uNE8dDYkknwdN4G3slyGzyAXx2yxpD293LZuunX4p8Te-5ZkyD5iwq54/s1600/mhl+tattoo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7bKf-yQkxyo0Mj-5BpaN9dMvu6QG3c0j8_dGylYlrzufvYTyIwmLrN4gW-x_b16KQoY5_YKXEcGFDums7ET8uNE8dDYkknwdN4G3slyGzyAXx2yxpD293LZuunX4p8Te-5ZkyD5iwq54/s640/mhl+tattoo.jpg" width="428" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Photo by Chris Bodor </span></td></tr></tbody></table>Michael Henry Lee explains:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">"The piece began with the oh so typical heart and initials by [his] then girlfriend and now wife of over thirty years. Gradually several butterflies, stars, comets, clouds, and lightning were all added by a Kansas City Missouri artist named John. Fast forward to Saint Augustine, Florida, and a great shop called <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tattoo-Garden/123643334358516">Tattoo Garden</a>, owned and operated by a super artist Tattoo Mike. He re-colored and revitalized the original piece on [my] last birthday and soon after the kanji for <i>poet </i>and the cherry blossoms were added."</blockquote>Mr. Lee got the kanji to remind him "of the gift he has been given to pursue and ... the cherry blossoms celebrate the beauty and brevity of the life  in which he has to pursue it."<br /><br />Mr. Lee provided us with the following poems, which originally appeared in <i><a href="http://www.wayfarergallery.net/haikunews/">Haiku News</a></i> in response to various news stories. They are the sole property of Mr. Lee and may not be used without his explicit permission.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">~ ~ ~</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>sobriety checkpoint<br />the nation’s oldest city<br />comes of age<br /><br />buyer’s market-<br />the realtor kept insisting<br />till the bitter end<br /><br />in less time than it took<br />to say we’re sorry<br />you were gone<br /><br />consulting the stars<br />all the laws of probability<br />contained on a pinhead<br /><br />parent teacher day-<br />the class turtle<br />fends for itself<br /><br />mother’s day<br />something inside us<br />can’t let go<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">~ ~ ~</div><br />Michael lives in the nation's oldest city with his wife,  two cats ,and numerous bonsai trees. His work has appeared in <i>The Heron's Nest</i>, <i>Icebox</i>. <i>Berry Blue Haiku</i>, <i>The Mainichi Daily News</i>, and <i>Haiku News</i>. His most recent award was a first place in  the traditional category and  runner up in the contemporary category for the 2012 Haiku Now National Haiku Foundation contest. <br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Thanks to Michael Henry Lee for contributing again to the Tattooed Poets Project! Be sure to check out his <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2011/04/tattooed-poets-project-michael-henry.html">contribution from last year</a>, as well, in case you missed it.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">This entry is ©2012 Tattoosday. The poems and tattoo are reprinted with the poet's explicit permission. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.</span></div>

The Tattooed Poets Project: Michael Henry Lee

Beginning in the second year of the Tattooed Poets Project, we experienced the thrill of having poets from previous years return to share mo...

4:52 AM

The Tattooed Poets Project: Amy Rafferty

<div class="tr_bq">Today's tattooed poet is Amy Rafferty.</div><br />Amy narrates her history of getting tattooed:<br /><blockquote> "I've never been that sure why I got my tattoos and to be honest I'd probably put it down to poor impulse control.</blockquote><blockquote>I got my first when I was seventeen. Me and my friend Suzy were wondering around bored one day and we found ourselves looking in the window at Terry's Tattoo Studio. We could see all the big, hard men in there, grimacing and posing, with their arms covered in thistles and doves and black panthers.</blockquote><blockquote>To us it looked dead exciting and grown up and 'cool'  and so we snuck in for a closer look.<br />An hour later we came out, all red-faced and tearfuI, me with a butterfly on my stomach and Suzy with a flaming heart on her shoulder.</blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmH3xbPzEMFcic8q_Ft75spyQ7kHqyRnQOGH4rc97tBkuYb5YYb8KuhCM2Tz_8dA0pNwzrRNu3lbAIjWYtDJqDdD3Twgmmm3yysbPlFsVeE4x_zgZzlXL3DBp1EYUUnIWQvl4OyZmhZyE/s1600/rafferty+back.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmH3xbPzEMFcic8q_Ft75spyQ7kHqyRnQOGH4rc97tBkuYb5YYb8KuhCM2Tz_8dA0pNwzrRNu3lbAIjWYtDJqDdD3Twgmmm3yysbPlFsVeE4x_zgZzlXL3DBp1EYUUnIWQvl4OyZmhZyE/s320/rafferty+back.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><blockquote>We thought we were pure rock 'n' roll but we were too scared to tell our parents what we'd done.  We both left it at that but then, ten years later, I got a Chinese good luck symbol on my back, ostensibly to bring me good luck but mostly it was to impress a sailor I was keen on.<br /><br />My dragon was next and that was to show I was brave (or getting braver) and the flowers on my leg started off as a single bud from when my friend Polly and I went to get tattoos together and over the years the bud has grown. I think there's some meaning in that.</blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuENQnLewmjYkyP1lO8JJBdkTk1C-aL-D8Dbq_s4-mPEeYL80k_VKO_St2HYgP1xEuQMLlRWAd1fNjU068Hz3T15J41XikR4TNkoMPe-BTvO91gMw2m8I3WGnUCM8cYsoARR2O4quq03c/s1600/rafferty+tattoo+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuENQnLewmjYkyP1lO8JJBdkTk1C-aL-D8Dbq_s4-mPEeYL80k_VKO_St2HYgP1xEuQMLlRWAd1fNjU068Hz3T15J41XikR4TNkoMPe-BTvO91gMw2m8I3WGnUCM8cYsoARR2O4quq03c/s320/rafferty+tattoo+1.jpg" width="310" /></a></div><blockquote></blockquote><blockquote>In 2007 my Dad died suddenly and I had this strange instinct to let him know that I was okay, that I was coping, and so I think that's why my flower grew as it did. </blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtg4c9QFTriuNuhfk4ZTMmCsBDT3IZR7-e841SOlPxSDlwFWxloYGd9vYPS9iVm5uKczFYLLCx8aFXvuhYrT4HljepLV-LI2cOSUioYQiJnqs_uuz_pWdOoewc87prb8dxhtdrJRAIk_o/s1600/rafferty+tattoo+mid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtg4c9QFTriuNuhfk4ZTMmCsBDT3IZR7-e841SOlPxSDlwFWxloYGd9vYPS9iVm5uKczFYLLCx8aFXvuhYrT4HljepLV-LI2cOSUioYQiJnqs_uuz_pWdOoewc87prb8dxhtdrJRAIk_o/s640/rafferty+tattoo+mid.jpg" width="334" /></a></div><blockquote>And if somehow my Dad was aware of all this? Well he'd probably be shaking his head and saying ruefully "daft lassie, what are ye up to now?"</blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeLcwNJCh4FecY7c4gC36pMC7AFK6N50Y85bedx-jJcrvNVJpaYOQWmdqg__TVy4xDZLff9TpJyKrovW2K_L0Tyeh4SYPg7wPaFFKaQjP4JFX9LqSD_3ucEQBAxFI8fHiyhWfxved8Od8/s1600/rafferty+tattoo+finish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeLcwNJCh4FecY7c4gC36pMC7AFK6N50Y85bedx-jJcrvNVJpaYOQWmdqg__TVy4xDZLff9TpJyKrovW2K_L0Tyeh4SYPg7wPaFFKaQjP4JFX9LqSD_3ucEQBAxFI8fHiyhWfxved8Od8/s640/rafferty+tattoo+finish.jpg" width="272" /></a></div><blockquote>I love the idea of that. He thought when it came to making big, life-changing decisions that I was an idiot and yes, he was probably right but he also showed a grudging and loving admiration for my impulsive side. </blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSBlApFqjitW09-LXzupZ7boJqN8YcVv7TFwRjqo4BdfWHFfdhawqbip-mR-2lD8iJowPsdjyRKMBsDbKPbXs3USeXA0OPdzRVgHhIMIpN7zqjVZ273Kc6OG-4UiORg5oHCGU59sbP6kg/s1600/rafferty+tattoo+finish+detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSBlApFqjitW09-LXzupZ7boJqN8YcVv7TFwRjqo4BdfWHFfdhawqbip-mR-2lD8iJowPsdjyRKMBsDbKPbXs3USeXA0OPdzRVgHhIMIpN7zqjVZ273Kc6OG-4UiORg5oHCGU59sbP6kg/s400/rafferty+tattoo+finish+detail.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><blockquote>For now, I think I'm done with tattoos, but you never can tell when I'll take a wee notion for another."</blockquote>It's cool seeing the evolution of this, Amy's floral tattoo, that has grown along with her.<br /><br />She sent us this lovely poem:<br /><br /><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Directions</span></b>.<br /><br />What you remember of them most is<br /><br />that they could not stop talking,<br />and that the road from Inverardran veered left,<br />and took you from the kirk by the Toll<br />of Atholl to the Shoulder’s Choke<br />where you heard them both,<br />heralding their own as the worst.<br /><br />Then by Stob Binnien,<br />shrouded in cloud and the eldest,<br />who sucked black mints,<br />black-tongued, bright-eyed and spry.<br />She picked at stitches and thought aloud<br />if it had been made in ‘Ehberdeen’<br />then it would have been made fitter<br />for its own purposes.<br /><br />And the younger, the witcher,<br />the one you loved,<br />all hook-eyed and pleasure driven,<br />passing the pretty lace between them.<br />She pulled it through but worse<br />this time, tighter, the threads biting.<br />She winked at you, slowly, dropping a lid<br />and said “it just depends who you know”<br /><br />And then Ben More and the great pools,<br />the flooded lights of Saint Fillan,<br />patron saint of the mad and the over-bound<br /><br />and between them, a circle of pretty white lace,<br />holding them both together.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">~ ~ ~</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Amy Rafferty is a Glaswegian living in the West Midlands. Her poetry and prose can be found in several anthologies and publications, both on-line and off.<br /><br />In 2009 she received a highly-commended mention for her poetry collection, <u>Pétursdóttir and the Land of Tiny Voices</u> and in 2010, two of her poems were short listed for the <a href="http://www.fishpublishing.com/poetry-contest-competition.php">international Fish poetry prize</a>. Amy is a postgraduate student of Creative Writing at <a href="http://www.gla.ac.uk/">Glasgow University</a> and sings with the cult, Glasgow band, <a href="http://www.myspace.com/therecoveryclub">The Recovery Club</a>. She is also the baby in the graveyard scene of the original <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070917/">Wicker Man</a> movie but she doesn't like to talk about it.  <br /><br />If you should wish, you can hear Amy singing <a href="http://www.myspace.com/therecoveryclub">here</a>.<br /><br />Thanks to Amy for sharing her words and ink with us here on Tattoosday!<br /><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">This entry is ©2012 Tattoosday. The poem and tattoos are reprinted with the poet's permission. </span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"> If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.</span>

The Tattooed Poets Project: Amy Rafferty

Today's tattooed poet is Amy Rafferty. Amy narrates her history of getting tattooed: "I've never been that sure why I got my t...

2:51 AM

The Tattooed Poets Project: Gary McDowell

Our next tattooed poet is <a href="http://www.garylmcdowell.com/">Gary McDowell</a>. Here's what Gary had to say about his ink:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">"I remember thinking as a teenager that I’d never get a tattoo.  It wasn’t because I didn’t like them.  I did.  It wasn’t because I was afraid of the pain.  I wasn’t.  I think it had something to do with the fact that I had no idea what I would ever want permanently etched into my skin.  But as I grew older and my obsessions and faiths and vocations started to align, I reconsidered, and now I don’t ever want to stop.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Both of my tattoos come from an artist, Blaine, at <a href="http://www.babybluestattoo.com/">Baby Blues Tattoos</a> in Bradenton, FL.  My wife’s family has a condo on Anna Maria Island, FL, and so we visit every summer.  In the summer of 2006 I got my first tattoo (the kanji for “poet/poetry” on my right wrist).</blockquote><div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5am2Aaw3Zh2BkrTV1VpQp5D_US21Qw4Q1XG4DQAFLRfCbY1k8BIoAfx2xD3YwEa9pI-DOXZSqh8m9ZH6SAZigVtJRBasHvATK0oLH2p_oBLrpTn2RKGV5TPMAOMP7nhiLE-Kt954MDrk/s1600/McDowell_wrist_tattoo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5am2Aaw3Zh2BkrTV1VpQp5D_US21Qw4Q1XG4DQAFLRfCbY1k8BIoAfx2xD3YwEa9pI-DOXZSqh8m9ZH6SAZigVtJRBasHvATK0oLH2p_oBLrpTn2RKGV5TPMAOMP7nhiLE-Kt954MDrk/s400/McDowell_wrist_tattoo.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><blockquote class="tr_bq">The impetus for it was simple: I’m right-handed and a poet, and so the thought of having poetry on my wrist appealed greatly to me.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Blaine did such a good job that in the summer of 2008, I went back and got my left calf worked on.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaA-AvRkZI1PGv6LsxVTIUNLhyTmKPBxJNyiEPifqalWvvlPL6sJ6lDok9dhMcJxtzI8i5e1BBFJhCshJZW4w_0mDO5vWTXNOdEOq1DM1cCqQ1J9YpcnmrCnhXL9VxHOxHny9jEeSZYt4/s1600/McDowell_calf_tattoo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaA-AvRkZI1PGv6LsxVTIUNLhyTmKPBxJNyiEPifqalWvvlPL6sJ6lDok9dhMcJxtzI8i5e1BBFJhCshJZW4w_0mDO5vWTXNOdEOq1DM1cCqQ1J9YpcnmrCnhXL9VxHOxHny9jEeSZYt4/s400/McDowell_calf_tattoo.JPG" width="313" /></a></div></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">At the time, my wife was pregnant with our first son, and we planned to name him Auden; though his name was not totally derived from the poet <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._H._Auden">W.H. Auden</a>—my wife found the name in a baby book and dug it before she even knew it was a famous poet’s surname—I wanted to do something to commemorate my Auden’s impending arrival, and so I decided on two of my favorite lines from Auden’s 'The Question': 'And ghosts must do again / What gives them pain.' It’s a gorgeous reminder that we must conquer our fears, take a stance against what haunts us."</blockquote>Gary sent us the following poem which, in his words, "exemplifies my work best":<br /><br /><br />THIS SUMMER WITH FISCHL<br /><br />                                                       <i>Waukegan, IL, June-July 2009</i><br /><br />I must repent for this summer I’ve spent beyond creatures,<br /><br />for the mysteries I’ve seen in a world<br /><br />that thinks there are none, a world where we’ve named things—<br /><br />garage, fence, robin, poem—so that we can feel<br /><br />something when we destroy them.<br /><br />I must repent for the chlorophyll in the leaves,<br /><br />the time I’ve spent in the pool, no raft,<br /><br />just my convexed back keeping me afloat,<br /><br />for the hours wasted hoping the clouds above me<br /><br />would form into something recognizable, something real<br /><br />and weighted, so that I could be touched by something<br /><br />other than a man begging for change outside the library.<br /><br />I must repent for the sunflower, its aching, arcing<br /><br />reach for light, for staring at the woman next-door,<br /><br />her meticulous morning routine: compact the trash<br /><br />in the can with a snow shovel, add a full bag from the kitchen,<br /><br />return the lid to the can, and weight it with a ham-tin filled<br /><br />with pennies. I too wouldn’t have believed it.<br /><br />Every time I turn my head to look out the window,<br /><br />I see a harsh light through the blinds, striping everyone with shadows,<br /><br />I see Bad Boy: a teenaged boy, a purse full of money,<br /><br />a nude woman (his mother?) on her bed, her leg bent, arched<br /><br />toward her mouth—is she hungry, dreaming, bored?<br /><br />John Yau says it’s the tiger stripes of light and dark<br /><br />splayed across the woman that make her an animal, but I’m glad<br /><br />she’s uncaged. What it must feel like to be stitched together, <br /><br />thefted-after like a bowl of apples and bananas in a Freudian dream?<br /><br />In another painting, a woman crawls naked through a backyard,<br /><br />huddles against a row of hedges.  While I haven’t seen that,<br /><br />I must repent for the squirrel that fell from the tree,<br /><br />for my dog who wouldn’t let go of its neck.<br /><br />The hours I spent looking at beach scenes: I repent.<br /><br />The incest, the drinking, the affairs, the nudity: I repent.<br /><br />The thinking beyond line, beyond shape: I repent.<br /><br />I repent: the patio tomato plants, watercolors, prints,<br /><br />maquettes of the neighbor’s new garage, king crab legs<br /><br />for dinner, a nude sunbather on her belly, her back damp, <br /><br />her boombox sweating Shakira, Marc Anthony, and then silence.<br /><br />The eavesdropping, the baseball on the radio, sweet peas and carrots.<br /><br />For the old man across the street, his bad hips, his garbage can<br /><br />that I move to the curb, his cane, too short for his arms: I repent.<br /><br />In many of the paintings, I imagine a dialogue between<br /><br />two quarreling lovers—or is it a monologue, a palette of yellows and reds<br /><br />through the kitchen window each morning, their cups of coffee<br /><br />barely settled on the counter before they begin. I must repent <br /><br />for the unneighborly innuendos, the pile of dog shit<br /><br />on the driveway that someone will surely step in, unaware that they have<br /><br />until later, much later.  I must repent for repenting, for repeating<br /><br />myself, but this summer of recycling bins and large paper bags full<br /><br />of lawn clippings has named me differently, and Fischl, his naked<br /><br />eyes, have given me a hard-on for all things domestic:<br /><br />gossiping, love-making, dog-walking, putting myself ahead<br /><br />of myself only to find myself lost in myself, lost because<br /><br />nothing is what it seems here. I must repent for spending so much <br /><br />time with the mysteries of texture, with a book that weighs more <br /><br />than my son, with my neighbors as if my neighbors were paintings, <br /><br />as if their lives were canvassed, colored, hung on my eyelids.  <br /><br />The streets, the beaches, the neighbors: all starkly lit scenes,<br /><br />a robust sense of everything having been played and replayed, <br /><br />rehearsed like Sleepwalker, that skinny boy in the porch light, cock in hand.  <br /><br />The lawn chairs empty, and we watch him like we want to help him, <br /><br />like we can touch him ourselves and make him stop, but he won’t stop,<br /><br />not until the lights go out or the sun rises or we fall asleep watching.<br /><br />I must repent for not watching more closely the bagpipe-lined<br /><br />streets, for the way the doves peck at the window when they’re angry<br /><br />or confused or cold or hungry. Perhaps I haven’t been<br /><br />completely beyond creatures.  Perhaps my creatures, destroyed, <br /><br />I thought, before I started here, are merely lost in the lines, <br /><br />the colors, the textures of a painting I have yet to encounter.<br /><br /><br />--originally appeared in <i>Indiana Review</i>, Vol 32, No 1<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">~ ~ ~</div><br />Gary L. McDowell's first full-length collection of poems, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1935716042/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=bill03-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1935716042">American Amen</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1935716042" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> (<a href="http://home.comcast.net/~jpdancingbear/dhp.html">Dream Horse Press</a>, 2010), won the 2009 Orphic Prize for Poetry. He's also the author of two chapbooks, <a href="http://store.cooperdillon.com/product/they-speak-of-fruit">They Speak of Fruit</a> (Cooper Dillon, 2009) and <u>The Blueprint</u> (Pudding House, 2005), and he's the co-editor of <a href="http://www.rosemetalpress.com/Catalog/prose_poetry.html">The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Prose Poetry: Contemporary Poets in Discussion and Practice </a>(Rose Metal Press, 2010). His poems have appeared in dozens of literary journals, including <a href="http://www.bhreview.org/2011/03/01/spring-2011/">The Bellingham Review</a>, <a href="http://coloradoreview.colostate.edu/colorado-review/">Colorado Review</a>, The <a href="http://indianareview.org/">Indiana Review</a>, <a href="http://catpages.nwmissouri.edu/m/tlr/">The Laurel Review</a>, <a href="http://www.nereview.com/">New England Review</a>, <a href="http://www.ninthletter.com/">Ninth Letter</a>, and <a href="http://www.quarterlywest.utah.edu/">Quarterly West</a>. He lives in Nashville, TN where he is an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at <a href="http://www.belmont.edu/">Belmont University</a>.<br /><br />Thanks to Gary for his contribution to this year's Tattooed Poets Project on Tattoosday!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" 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=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=1935716042" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">This entry is ©2012 Tattoosday. The poem and tattoo are reprinted with the poet's permission.</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.</span>

The Tattooed Poets Project: Gary McDowell

Our next tattooed poet is Gary McDowell . Here's what Gary had to say about his ink: "I remember thinking as a teenager that I’d ne...

12:00 AM

Never Say Never, and Never, Ever Give Up

<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b id="internal-source-marker_0.0711973188444972"><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Readers of Tattoosday first encountered my friend Brooke's tattoos </span><a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2007/12/tattoos-i-know-brookes-courage.html"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">here</span></a><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (in 2007) and </span><a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2008/03/tattoos-i-know-brookes-back.html"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">here</span></a><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (in 2008).</span><br /><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br /><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I work with Brooke, as well, and we often chat about tattoos. A year or two ago, she had told me she was done getting inked. But, you know what they say, never say never.</span><br /><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br /><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So I was not terribly surprised a few months back when she and I talked about new work she was thinking about.</span><br /><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br /><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Then, out of nowhere it seemed, Brooke returned from a trip to San Francisco with a fresh tattoo, She provided me with this photo, which added </span><span style="font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">kanji</span><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> vertically on her back:</span></b> </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-z4YrEbtuc8vYP1TWY4-awrNGFD6K-KNGXMfQBJFZxOEyt9gPF2WreAAZNViaJOJXVIfgY-FQCjhgIt70w7av5KX-sTE79rvmUZaZTc00Zwu1fG0CinMNASQ8Ys2hwtyrjrHS-IQ1Hwc/s1600/brooke+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-z4YrEbtuc8vYP1TWY4-awrNGFD6K-KNGXMfQBJFZxOEyt9gPF2WreAAZNViaJOJXVIfgY-FQCjhgIt70w7av5KX-sTE79rvmUZaZTc00Zwu1fG0CinMNASQ8Ys2hwtyrjrHS-IQ1Hwc/s400/brooke+1.jpg" width="300" /></span></a></div><b id="internal-source-marker_0.0711973188444972"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I sat down with Brooke last week and asked her to tell me how this new ink came to fruition. Here's the story, in her words:</span></b><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"My grandfather and I decided about six-plus years ago that we were both going to get tattoos. And he doesn’t have any tattoos. So, we thought it would be cool - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/We_shall_fight_on_the_beaches">one quote</a> that he’s always said to me over and over again was Winston Churchill's 'Never, never never give up.' So, we thought, all right,  it would be really cool  to get this tattooed on us, but let’s do it in Japanese, or Chinese, or something, so we both started doing some research and trying to find someone we trusted ... neither one of us could really come up with anything that we felt comfortable with. So, we just never did it and then he got sick … he’s been in and out of hospitals for five years now. He ended up in the hospital in the beginning of December, so I went and saw him at the beginning of January - they weren’t sure if he was going to make it or not.</span><br /><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I wanted to try and get the tattoo before I went out there, so I scrambled - you know, something to kind of cheer him up and make him happy and I couldn’t really pull it together, so I just didn’t do it.</span></span></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One night [in San Francisco] when I left the hospital, I went looking for something to eat and found myself in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haight-Ashbury">Haight-Ashbury</a> and decided to pull over and just go walking around and I walked past a tattoo shop [<a href="http://soulpatchtattoo.com/">Soul Patch Tattoo</a>] and I just went in to browse - I didn’t go in thinking I was going to do anything. I just started looking through the artists’ work and the guy asked me if I needed help and I said, 'Naw, I’m okay,'  then like, 'You know what, actually...do you have anyone who can do Japanese kanji?' He’s like, 'Yeah,' and points to the girl next to me and he said, 'she can'." </span></blockquote><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fortunately for Brooke, she had found <a href="http://www.wkkproject.com/">Wakako</a>, a Tokyo-born tattooist whose specialty is Japanese art. If you're going to have someone give you a kanji tattoo, and you want to feel 100% comfortable that what you're getting is proper and correct, she certainly fits the bill. Brooke continued:</span><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"I told her the story that I was doing this for my grandpa and the hope was one day he’d get better and he’d get one, as well. So I asked her how long it would take her to draw it up and she said, 'ten seconds' ... She had her coat and she was getting ready to go out the door ... so we started talking about, 'all right, I’m in town for a few more days, when can you do it?' [and] when [I was] available and the next thing you know she [said] 'well, what about we just do this now?' </span></blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So the next thing you know she goes in the back and draws it up and I’m grtting a tattoo. I mean, it happened so quickly and so I was really happy … the next day I was able to go back and show my grandpa in the hospital ... </span><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">he was really happy with it and loved it. </span><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The cool part is that I got it done, I got it done by someone I trusted and he was able to see it and he loved it."</span></span></blockquote><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">And how does Churchill's famous speech translate into Japanese? </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Brooke told me it had to be simplified, "It’s just </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">never give up</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">," which was the essence of "his favorite quote that he used to say to me all the time.”</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Unfortunately, Brooke's grandfather, Bill Rhodes,  passed away a few weeks ago on February 8, just weeks after seeing his granddaughter's tattoo, which had made him so happy to see. You can read his obituary <a href="http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/petaluma360/obituary.aspx?n=william-r-rhodes-bill&pid=156035955">here</a>. His spirit lives on in the lives of many, one manifestation being the line of kanji  running dow</span><span style="font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">n Brooke's back. </span></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Brooke summed it up best: 'it kind of was kismet, it worked out perfectly that I was there. He got to see it right then and there, fresh.”</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Thanks again to Brooke for sharing her tattoo and the wonderful story behind it here on Tattoosday! And thanks to Bill Rhodes, for helping inspire this tattoo. </span><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">This entry is ©2012 Tattoosday. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br />If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">http://tattoosday.blogspot.com</a> and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div>

Never Say Never, and Never, Ever Give Up

Readers of Tattoosday first encountered my friend Brooke's tattoos here (in 2007) and here (in 2008). I work with Brooke, as well, and...

5:55 AM

Juliana's Hibiscus

I met Juliana last month and, although there's a section of her tattoo that is "in progress," she agreed to share it here:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDFkmQdadwZEQfLo3KRKSaD4i_w3x3aUeixJE0ws4bijhghR6ggP_gCagcBI2IOUs81TgSfIyjmZ-nYpmYKd48_xS0SIg7DbM83Q-ItwoXQFbiu_QKUrSylSXFx6iIMCmdFNX5lQwKQuU/s1600/Hibiscus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDFkmQdadwZEQfLo3KRKSaD4i_w3x3aUeixJE0ws4bijhghR6ggP_gCagcBI2IOUs81TgSfIyjmZ-nYpmYKd48_xS0SIg7DbM83Q-ItwoXQFbiu_QKUrSylSXFx6iIMCmdFNX5lQwKQuU/s640/Hibiscus.jpg" width="400" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Juliana explained:</div><blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">"I took the picture of the flower myself. The hibiscus means eternal beauty, which I though was really cool. And the symbols [kanji] are respect, love, strength and energy ... so I call it my <i>Keep Truckin'</i> tattoo."</div></blockquote>The artist  is <a href="http://www.myspace.com/tattoosbyed">Ed Knowles</a>, who is currently at <a href="http://www.12tattoos.com/index2.html">12 Tattoos</a> in Groton, Connecticut. Work by Ed has appeared previously <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2010/06/jolies-cupcake.html">here</a> on Tattoosday.<br /><br />The <i>kanji  </i>are, on the left side strength above energy and on the right side, respect above love:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3rzoNKjwhCO5CQUvgYRlwZfmPYPLlw005wZNOnUXtQSPdefxw_1N9S3oLXcii2KTsOqS8w0mQK9HguMpuTtv0T8Bby4DFRGAFLSHMJoTAj15ue9AJt_d4f7HaD11USI3FEBVL1QeAXg0/s1600/Hibiscus+detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3rzoNKjwhCO5CQUvgYRlwZfmPYPLlw005wZNOnUXtQSPdefxw_1N9S3oLXcii2KTsOqS8w0mQK9HguMpuTtv0T8Bby4DFRGAFLSHMJoTAj15ue9AJt_d4f7HaD11USI3FEBVL1QeAXg0/s400/Hibiscus+detail.jpg" width="361" /></a></div><br />Thanks to Juliana for sharing her tattoo-in-progress with us here on Tattoosday! Keep truckin', Juliana!<br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br /><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;">This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;">If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">http://tattoosday.blogspot.com</a> and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.</span></div>

Juliana's Hibiscus

I met Juliana last month and, although there's a section of her tattoo that is "in progress," she agreed to share it here: J...

3:27 AM

The Tattooed Poets Project: Nescher Pyscher

<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Today's tattooed poet is named Nescher Pyscher and hails from Cambridge, Ohio.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Nescher offered  up his right wrist for us here at Tattoosday:</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXZEdYEbSaSZs4s49STaHP8o966TzBj_Ei5cgb3wDDMFJbcfeFoauMWxWh37a7vYibC6KS8Rhg2IWCzVU1k2Z80egXixjpAniXggjbF8KEcYp_4FrfKs84xY_B7EYq1pDEM5Mj1H5MhDk/s1600/Geir.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXZEdYEbSaSZs4s49STaHP8o966TzBj_Ei5cgb3wDDMFJbcfeFoauMWxWh37a7vYibC6KS8Rhg2IWCzVU1k2Z80egXixjpAniXggjbF8KEcYp_4FrfKs84xY_B7EYq1pDEM5Mj1H5MhDk/s400/Geir.jpg" width="351" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo courtesy of Nescher Pyscher</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">Nescher explains:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt;">"The tattoo was done in two parts. The first part was my wife's name in Chinese, surrounded by an infinity symbol. It was my wedding present for her. I designed the tattoo myself, and I was inspired to do so by a ink-stamper-thing-y my wife's father brought home for her from </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt;">China</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt;">. The second part, my son's name, was my wife's Christmas present to me when our son was born. I do not remember the name of the tattoo studios or the artists, but both tats were procured in the </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt;">Akron</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt;">, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt;">Ohio</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt;"> area."</span></div></blockquote>As a matter of clarification, I asked Nescher about the kanji representing his wife's name. He told me that the "three symbols mean--so I've been told--'Mother,' 'Earth' and 'Love.' " He added that she is a geologist, by occupation. <br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjky0sUN-r5-5uz2achYVHMDyl3hQTeph1qqMXvk4n4E60dCEgv9jtVz78rBgyNb84lJWyOjWTPUiKbZhGQxyvJCzpKd4GhGsS1opfygeaVk2Nao9ujyIyyv8TkILbwjEonjTyRJd69ksU/s1600/Geir+detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjky0sUN-r5-5uz2achYVHMDyl3hQTeph1qqMXvk4n4E60dCEgv9jtVz78rBgyNb84lJWyOjWTPUiKbZhGQxyvJCzpKd4GhGsS1opfygeaVk2Nao9ujyIyyv8TkILbwjEonjTyRJd69ksU/s400/Geir+detail.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo courtesy of Nescher Pyscher</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">As for his son's name, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geir">Geir</a>, he clarified that his name means Spear, which is Icelandic or Norwegian, in origin. Nescher added that "names with value and freighted with meaning are important in my family. He is the strong weapon in my right hand, the spear we cast into the future."</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">As for a poem, Nescher, offered up this piece:</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"></div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 14pt;">dustbitten</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i plant the seed of myself within myself-- </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">mutated, cloned, half-life-whole that</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">gropes toward darkening life-- </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">and watch the poisoned weed of me grow.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am the frozen feathers of a bird in flight, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">locked to dead tree, dying in estrous, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">decayed in birth, and forgotten before the wind</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">could sweep through feathers.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am eye, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am face, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am ear</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am the frozen corpse at the bottom of the well</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">leaking into life; oozing into being;</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">draining into dream and desire</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am fist</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am nail</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am bent, broken finger</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i water the tumors of me with the salt of my tears</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">the iron tang of my blood, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">the sweet toxin of my urine.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am teeth</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am tongue</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am busily working lips</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i eat my flesh, taken straight from crippled vine</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">and wince at the taste of my self-inflicted pain,</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">juices running unchecked down my pocked and hairless</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">chin</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am blister</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am burn</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am wounded, weeping sore</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">my madness drives me, sings inside me</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">and keeps me warm</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">the feel of meeting teeth on my broken skin feels</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">like warm rain in the evening;  </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">sun setting on life forever</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am stone</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am flesh</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">i am dust</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"> ~ ~ ~</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivDUGH2YaQcB0xeh0YoasKGovn1h3-hW94Gz4QQ_ZJxpBgVt2HxP-hL-giCvwDzj_y2WSGvpsKVMVwAIqc09xE8i_ubGExGFBnXVGEFBqLI8IR45PQEMnuZBYteL1zbXR7K4dgRPBiHlA/s1600/nescher.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivDUGH2YaQcB0xeh0YoasKGovn1h3-hW94Gz4QQ_ZJxpBgVt2HxP-hL-giCvwDzj_y2WSGvpsKVMVwAIqc09xE8i_ubGExGFBnXVGEFBqLI8IR45PQEMnuZBYteL1zbXR7K4dgRPBiHlA/s320/nescher.gif" width="236" /></a><span style="color: black;">Nescher Pyscher--his real name. Honest!--is a happily married, thirty-five year old author and poet living, writing and staying at home with his son in the Cambridge, Ohio area. His writing can be found at <a href="http://nescherpyscher.weebly.com/check-it-out.html">Weebly.com</a>, <a href="http://www.helium.com/users/607400/show_articles">Helium.com</a>, <i>Pablo Lennis</i>, and his book of short stories, <i><a href="http://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1425118097/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=bill03-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1425118097%22%3EItchy%20Whispers%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=&l=as2&o=1&a=1425118097%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20%21important;%20margin:0px%20%21important;%22%20/%3E">Itchy Whispers</a>,</i> is now available from Trafford or Amazon.com. His adventures in ineptitude with his son, The Pants, can be read twice weekly at <i><a href="http://www.daily-jeff.com/">The Daily Jeffersonian</a>.  </i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;">Thanks to Nescher for sharing his tattoos and his poetry with us here on Tattoosday!</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><br /><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" 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=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=1425118097" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;">This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday. The poem is reprinted here with the permission of the author.<br /><br />If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit </span> <span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">http://tattoosday.blogspot.com</a> and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.</span></div>

The Tattooed Poets Project: Nescher Pyscher

Today's tattooed poet is named Nescher Pyscher and hails from Cambridge, Ohio. Nescher offered up his right wrist for us here at Tattoo...

3:01 AM

Tattoos I Know: A Medley from Maida

It's safe to say that Maida has been a fan of Tattoosday from its earliest days.<br /><br />Over the last three years, a day generally doesn't go by without our discussing ink. As a co-worker, and a friend, she's a regular visitor to  the site.<br /><br />Which is why one might wonder why her tattoos have taken this long to  appear on Tattoosday. I even recall discussing with her potential  designs as she researched new ideas.<br /><br />We always talked about me taking pictures, but it never came to fruition.<br /><br />However, yesterday the stars aligned and we got our collective acts together. Let's take a look, shall we?<br /><br />I'm starting with my favorite pair of the three she is sharing (out of four, in all):<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpzgrpC5u6GG86NCXlscPzVxCNZzmWJgD-WKPm8Xzt334tjmV8TGUueJyZrHWV3eAf-3Ee_HLsXqitsCGoK-_Ib_L2BD6gEa-4Dzb7lcry7rk9i087ZD80OV2E3PC-OiIMsiU8OC5DnDc/s1600/Maida+two.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpzgrpC5u6GG86NCXlscPzVxCNZzmWJgD-WKPm8Xzt334tjmV8TGUueJyZrHWV3eAf-3Ee_HLsXqitsCGoK-_Ib_L2BD6gEa-4Dzb7lcry7rk9i087ZD80OV2E3PC-OiIMsiU8OC5DnDc/s400/Maida+two.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br />These two are pretty cool, and the top one. a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triquetra">triquetra</a>, I remember her spending a lot of time thinking about.<br />She feels that it also acts as protection, warding off the evil eye:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheFXiD0KOUVA-3vVtDbgc0ivS709RrbzWSw7erwJ4clPR2mdUpSAC89G9ES5ucgNFH3pGn2y-7jpwu3VeQhjx8Oxl1fx6D9ScoIWig37vY65btToeETHbCqHp2jdAKxZhbs5P9HYrgc2Y/s1600/triquetra+detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheFXiD0KOUVA-3vVtDbgc0ivS709RrbzWSw7erwJ4clPR2mdUpSAC89G9ES5ucgNFH3pGn2y-7jpwu3VeQhjx8Oxl1fx6D9ScoIWig37vY65btToeETHbCqHp2jdAKxZhbs5P9HYrgc2Y/s320/triquetra+detail.jpg" width="249" /></a></div><br />Below that is a butterfly that is not your standard design. The wings' patterns resemble skulls:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXobI_S2JC1YBr9CnqPp5_L-DJWJo_nw5ZH6e-I24ZOtY5MW43Sb8j46_fmed4HbqOQkhW5puDoRLtMYyDj-Z7sBcWkiXyLfwKugUHtANoH7aKO6R9bCU1hMnTxnToaSdvNqoqRGkmck4/s1600/butterfly+detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXobI_S2JC1YBr9CnqPp5_L-DJWJo_nw5ZH6e-I24ZOtY5MW43Sb8j46_fmed4HbqOQkhW5puDoRLtMYyDj-Z7sBcWkiXyLfwKugUHtANoH7aKO6R9bCU1hMnTxnToaSdvNqoqRGkmck4/s320/butterfly+detail.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Maida says this dual image, the softness of the butterfly and the roughness of the skulls, represents the two sides of life, and is a double-edged sword. The kanji represent the symbols for power (top) and strength (bottom).<br /><br />Maida also shared this tattoo on the outside of her right calf, above the ankle:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwBa7vntoLs6SYu4kh-jMTHf9dszAt_GwBeRdJ3W2siKDVb_zLpSAbKFdxoLa1KJRYXBzSG1mODm7EF7lTxJRnvt42IDe9sr3nxh7AgtnOJneh7R9wfy0egFG0IL4e2oI1-NM67UepBCk/s1600/friends+for+life.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwBa7vntoLs6SYu4kh-jMTHf9dszAt_GwBeRdJ3W2siKDVb_zLpSAbKFdxoLa1KJRYXBzSG1mODm7EF7lTxJRnvt42IDe9sr3nxh7AgtnOJneh7R9wfy0egFG0IL4e2oI1-NM67UepBCk/s400/friends+for+life.jpg" width="317" /></a></div><br />Maida got this, along with her friend Kathy, as a testament to "the strong bond and love between two best friends". They each have it on the same spot, although Kathy's butterfly has lavender wings, whereas Maida's are turquoise.<br /><br />All of Maida's tattoos above were inked by an artist named JStar, whose website is <a href="http://www.jstarink.webs.com/">here</a>. The site includes photos of more of her work and is well worth a look.<br /><br />Thanks to Maida for sharing her tattoos with us here, finally, on Tattoosday! We look forward to seeing more in the future!

Tattoos I Know: A Medley from Maida

It's safe to say that Maida has been a fan of Tattoosday from its earliest days. Over the last three years, a day generally doesn't ...

5:37 PM

The Tattooed Poets Project: Alexandra Teague

Someone recently asked me where I find all of these tattooed poets. A great question, and I owe thanks to many people, for most individuals come by way of word-of-mouth from other poets. But I also reach out on my own, often sending dozens of e-mails to writers around the country, and the world. It's like shooting an arrow into the dark, one can only hope the missive strikes a target.<br /><br />I was recently poring over a copy of the anthology <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Poetry-Daily-Essentials-2007-Selby/dp/1402209274">Poetry Daily Essentials 2007</a> and picking poets to e-mail. I stumbled across <a href="http://www.alexandrateague.com/">Alexandra Teague's</a> "<a href="http://www.cstone.net/%7Epoems/housetea.htm">House Guest</a>" and sent her my standard "ink-query." And sure enough, she became one of the few poets I wrote to out of the blue who replied because, not only is Ms. Teague tattooed, one of them is poetry-related. As she so aptly put it, "I sort of had to reply to you."<br /><br />Without further ado, here are Alexandra's tattoos:<br /><blockquote  style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">I was inspired to get the Japanese kanji for "poetry" after seeing a pin at the </span><a href="http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/index.html" style="font-style: italic;">Poetry Magazine</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> table at the </span><a href="http://www.awpwriter.org/" style="font-style: italic;">Association of Writers and Writing Programs</a><span style="text-decoration: underline; font-style: italic;"></span><span style="font-style: italic;"> conference in 1999.<br /><br /></span><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDkPvlGls1w1a9KBVUGMct0v0rR4Ujj-qJEhaIWj-m7LjHYsqpZrUEbb7l3WtZfGSLAW_apsGmao7YwCAnCFF4h6IXJt33jP9K5BXwjJrjuRDJNxCgeYOY4OeknPDFtBRCZtPrZO9v/s1600/TeagueTattoo1.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461473164575534914" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDkPvlGls1w1a9KBVUGMct0v0rR4Ujj-qJEhaIWj-m7LjHYsqpZrUEbb7l3WtZfGSLAW_apsGmao7YwCAnCFF4h6IXJt33jP9K5BXwjJrjuRDJNxCgeYOY4OeknPDFtBRCZtPrZO9v/s400/TeagueTattoo1.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 303px;" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">I'd been thinking about getting a tattoo and couldn't decide on a design, but as soon as I saw the kanji, I knew it was exactly right. I see it not only as a symbol of the art of poetry but also as a reminder to live poetically. I got the tattoo at a shop in Miami (I don't remember the name). I did a bit of research to confirm that the kanji was correct (since I don't know any Japanese), but I didn't have it really confirmed until several years later when a new friend, from Japan, said, "Do you know what your tattoo says?" And I said, "I hope so." Fortunately, according to her, it really does mean "poem" or "poetry."</span></span></blockquote><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"  >She also shared this lovely tattoo:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt6DMlFNzthyCThAdCH0ZtAPJaPaTPR5-kDi6il9_0NB7bZewblzs87Kvb_k8czezKulmJQiZEee0JplPzxkyS-ILonl-ikSEXSVrrOSz1jtKH1POGK4sKfSuMITbgsIKCoM4fu-Uy/s1600/TeagueTattoo2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461472786990702018" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt6DMlFNzthyCThAdCH0ZtAPJaPaTPR5-kDi6il9_0NB7bZewblzs87Kvb_k8czezKulmJQiZEee0JplPzxkyS-ILonl-ikSEXSVrrOSz1jtKH1POGK4sKfSuMITbgsIKCoM4fu-Uy/s400/TeagueTattoo2.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 377px;" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span><blockquote  style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The other tattoo is a couple of years old. It was done by Amy Justen</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> at <a href="http://sacredrosetattoo.wordpress.com/">Sacred Rose Tattoo</a> in Berkeley, California. I've always loved the ocean</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> and wanted to live by the coast, so the California seagull is symbolic</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> for me of my migration out West. Amy Justen has a background in fine</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> art and does some really interesting, painterly work with white and</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> grey, which I love, but which made some people think the tattoo was a</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> decal when I first got it!</span><br /></span></blockquote><span style="font-size:100%;">  <span style="font-family:times new roman;"><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"  >Be sure to head over to BillyBlog to read one of Alexandra's poems <a href="http://oxypoet.blogspot.com/2010/04/tattooed-poets-project-alexandra-teague.html">here</a>.<br /><br /></span> </span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461479208451064802" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN4-FG1CObhQXvU6mkhlEpmffNis8j9vyoD1aMnKVfxEmdWwOmTrKrrmYYLeLo9M4CZwxpADsGBr-pGiCSWlgiUFiYUNkvlvNq7ONryzWn7nwiIY3L5JW-LKAhgJlDLukfY3WpZryc/s200/mortalGeographyCover.jpg" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 138px; height: 200px;" /></a></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">Alexandra Teague’s first book of poetry, </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mortal-Geography-Alexandra-Teague/dp/0892553588"><i style="font-family: times new roman;">Mortal  Geography</i></a><span style="font-family:times new roman;">, won the <a href="http://www.perseabooks.com/poetryprize.php">Lexi Rudnitsky </a></span></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><a href="http://www.perseabooks.com/poetryprize.php">Prize</a> and has just been published (April  2010) by Persea Books. Her work has also appeared in </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Best-New-Poets-2008-Emerging/dp/0976629631"><i style="font-family: times new roman;">Best New Poets 2008</i></a><span style="font-family:times new roman;">,  </span><a href="http://www.bestamericanpoetry.com/archive/?id=23"><i style="font-family: times new roman;">Best American Poetry 2009</i></a><span style="font-family:times new roman;">, and </span><a href="http://yalepress.yale.edu/yupbooks/book.asp?isbn=9780300074734"><i style="font-family: times new roman;">The Yale Anthology of Younger American  Poetry</i></a><span style="font-family:times new roman;">, as well as journals including </span><a href="http://www.missourireview.com/"><i style="font-family: times new roman;">The Missouri Review</i></a><span style="font-family:times new roman;">, </span><a href="http://www.uiowa.edu/%7Eiareview/mainpages/tirweb.html"><i style="font-family: times new roman;">The  Iowa Review</i></a><span style="font-family:times new roman;">, and </span><a href="http://www.nereview.com/"><i style="font-family: times new roman;">New England Review</i></a><span style="font-family:times new roman;">. She was born in Fort Worth,  Texas, and has since lived in Arkansas, Missouri, Florida, Montana, Hawaii, and  California. She currently teaches English at <a href="http://www.ccsf.edu/NEW/en.html">City College of San Francisco</a> and  lives in Oakland. For more information about upcoming readings and publications,  visit </span><a href="http://www.alexandrateague.com/" style="font-family: times new roman;" target="_blank">www.alexandrateague.com</a><span style="font-family:times new roman;">.</span>  <span style="font-family:times new roman;"><br /><br />Thanks to Alexandra for sharing her tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!<br /><br /></span>  </span><div  style="text-align: center;font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><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=0892553588" style="width: 120px; height: 240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span></div></span>

The Tattooed Poets Project: Alexandra Teague

Someone recently asked me where I find all of these tattooed poets. A great question, and I owe thanks to many people, for most individuals ...

6:23 AM

Rebecca's Reiki Symbols of Healing

Last week I met Rebecca, who was waiting for an Amtrak train in Penn Station.<br /><br />She had these tattoos on her inner wrists:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIJCwxSOK6YDxVWZDBb_E5ap0em98yMhacfA5ucitkbGKW8mqIJDdowbQeomHr1Zh4TVlRbfvF0UQquRtkw3Ym8D1c_ZmpQIgQJJVJ-jBzbegUswynjnSNnrRHarMtIxz2pzefTdRh/s1600/Reiki.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405026839419460258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIJCwxSOK6YDxVWZDBb_E5ap0em98yMhacfA5ucitkbGKW8mqIJDdowbQeomHr1Zh4TVlRbfvF0UQquRtkw3Ym8D1c_ZmpQIgQJJVJ-jBzbegUswynjnSNnrRHarMtIxz2pzefTdRh/s400/Reiki.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 327px;" /></a><br />I recognized that they were <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanji"><span style="font-style: italic;">kanji</span></a>, but I didn't know that they were <span style="font-style: italic;">reiki</span> symbols.<br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reiki"><span style="font-style: italic;">Reiki</span></a> is a Japanese healing art, and Rebecca is a certified reiki practitioner.<br /><br />As part of her certification and training, she studied enough to know that these symbols are accurate and refer to graphic representations of healing. Her right wrist speaks to long distance healing, and her left wrist refers to balance and healing.<br /><br />Since <span style="font-style: italic;">reiki</span> practitioners work with their hands, it seemed fitting that she had these symbols on her wrists.<br /><br />She noted, as my wife has told me about her wrist tattoo, that the pain was very intense on this part of her body and that she passed out not once, but twice, in the course of having these tattoos inked over two sittings.<br /><br />The tattoos were done at <a href="http://www.gothictattoo.com/1_Gothic_Tattoo.html">Gothic Tattoo & Body Piercing</a> in New Hampshire.<br /><br />Thanks to Rebecca for sharing her healing tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Rebecca's Reiki Symbols of Healing

Last week I met Rebecca, who was waiting for an Amtrak train in Penn Station. She had these tattoos on her inner wrists: I recognized that t...

3:03 AM

Ben's Amazing Back Piece

With the Tattooed Poets Series under way last month, I was a bit remiss in posting about the "regular" tattoo encounters.<br /><br />With apologies to the following volunteer, I am presenting some amazing work on a gentleman named Ben, who I spotted back on April 2 while walking through Penn Station.<br /><br />Ben was wearing a short-sleeve shirt and had tattoos covering his arms. When I approached him and explained Tattoosday, he enthusiastically agreed to participate. In fact, he removed his shirt to reveal an incredible back piece:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzHvW-Xlu-jaQf1TkcEdyeXJPfS7Us3Gof904fGxYvcY1bc1wPbyiM7Q0clbQECi4lcFNxHPA0O2Q8BcQdByaCd8emx93F8BYzgCAfdyQZImXB7R2rr4LorjtU9lFig6CljITVftbfMtc/s1600-h/bens+back.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330634686971212402" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzHvW-Xlu-jaQf1TkcEdyeXJPfS7Us3Gof904fGxYvcY1bc1wPbyiM7Q0clbQECi4lcFNxHPA0O2Q8BcQdByaCd8emx93F8BYzgCAfdyQZImXB7R2rr4LorjtU9lFig6CljITVftbfMtc/s400/bens+back.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 358px; height: 400px;" /></a><br /><br />The one problem with featuring huge tattoos like this is not getting all the details in. What follows are some of the finer points of the tattoo.<br /><br />At the bottom of the back is an hourglass design, within which is, Ben said, <span style="font-style: italic;">kanji </span>representing the word "redemption":<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggZBiH6UEp3sKD-XklQPOA7q5jS_pGa8rqk3YfWtDAYdAAmi1xjTFO6kcz1kmZfnm58jQmPYzaZGTjSr6mHqsvGuaLXR7jnagLE5vF0tXUx2B_Z64tpw7DLLkVm-n624fONEe5pnoPTTA/s1600-h/bens+hourglass.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330635231787903554" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggZBiH6UEp3sKD-XklQPOA7q5jS_pGa8rqk3YfWtDAYdAAmi1xjTFO6kcz1kmZfnm58jQmPYzaZGTjSr6mHqsvGuaLXR7jnagLE5vF0tXUx2B_Z64tpw7DLLkVm-n624fONEe5pnoPTTA/s400/bens+hourglass.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 295px; height: 400px;" /></a><br />The piece represents that he has "only so much time to redeem himself".<br /><br />The main set of Chinese text in the center of the back was loosely translated by Ben as "I have trust in no man except for the trust I save for myself":<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgaBNgYgWRWvl9dWqfCN8mGlexzcShilTmyCvQPSnDHR0EDb4tqeaAMXgZ-baDVausZdfVDnWba7Q2N5AZp5UyafMJyJfTK4zOyQ8QydPmkn6rRvwaiQh9LEIn5S53cI9M2RHVO5Z6rMM/s1600-h/bens+central+quote.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330636258718809394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgaBNgYgWRWvl9dWqfCN8mGlexzcShilTmyCvQPSnDHR0EDb4tqeaAMXgZ-baDVausZdfVDnWba7Q2N5AZp5UyafMJyJfTK4zOyQ8QydPmkn6rRvwaiQh9LEIn5S53cI9M2RHVO5Z6rMM/s400/bens+central+quote.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 360px; height: 400px;" /></a><br />Also of note on the back are the two kanji representing "father" (the right side) and "forgive me" (the left side). These characters are in disks on either side at the top of the back.<br /><br />The back was done by an artist no longer practicing at <a href="http://www.myspace.com/skindeepny">Skin Deep Tattoo</a> on Long Island.<br /><br />Imagine busy Penn Station, a guy standing there talking to a bespectacled blogger, camera in hand, beholding a subject covered in ink. Where to even begin?<br /><br />It's like taking someone to the world's largest buffet and telling them they can only fill one small plate with food.<br /><br />The back as a whole was impressive, but Ben was willing to share more, and we settled on this view, with a dragon and a geisha:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyfk0cmhh1X9iNJoBu7eJtjKzi-rjQjqQagmVuDOW72O5q5DXZDEIq57p1sAV4gaVXOxv8_r26uZLJXKQLtRGGpGEz4-TUgARw_hSq1Cl8Qxqfx5JU8M1vbvu2GEBJ2k5MEKzrCeFt4Ss/s1600-h/bens+front.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330638418783081826" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyfk0cmhh1X9iNJoBu7eJtjKzi-rjQjqQagmVuDOW72O5q5DXZDEIq57p1sAV4gaVXOxv8_r26uZLJXKQLtRGGpGEz4-TUgARw_hSq1Cl8Qxqfx5JU8M1vbvu2GEBJ2k5MEKzrCeFt4Ss/s400/bens+front.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 346px; height: 400px;" /></a><br />Ben credits this part of his body's tapestry to an artist named <a href="http://www.dharmatattoo.com/loco.html">Loco</a> working out of <a href="http://www.dharmatattoo.com/">Dharma Tattoo</a> in Miami Springs, Florida.<br /><br />Thanks to Ben for sharing his amazing tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Ben's Amazing Back Piece

With the Tattooed Poets Series under way last month, I was a bit remiss in posting about the "regular" tattoo encounters. With apo...

2:50 AM

Tattoo Posts That Go Bad: Peeping Kanji

Last October, I posted a a tattoo belonging to a guy named John <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2007/10/anger-management.html">here</a>. His friend Donna also had tattoos and tried to show them to me on her lower back/waistline, but she understandably couldn't successfully reveal them fully without lowering her pants to an uncomfortable level. She said she would send me better pictures. She never did. But I kept the post in my drafts folder under the title "Peeping Kanji". Unfortunately, the Kilroy-was-here-esque tattoos could not be deciphered by Kwok, my subject matter expert on the Chinese language.<br /><br />So is there any value to these pictures? Maybe, maybe not. But I want to wish them <span style="font-style: italic;">adieu</span> and maybe their inclusion here will prompt Donna to finally getting around to send me the photos.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw0V1IRfYPgvx6bu5qMbTIb4SyND-jKVbvcN9Q2T-PgOsReaU4epu3RdJecoRWoLeYeXyKq9tdsTOgMpc9KQp3koaPJEXEC4YzacgGTvpD3T1piD063ZZYve-M15VyYKzf7cAcmAN-V5Cv/s1600-h/100_5427.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5119931304070814466" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw0V1IRfYPgvx6bu5qMbTIb4SyND-jKVbvcN9Q2T-PgOsReaU4epu3RdJecoRWoLeYeXyKq9tdsTOgMpc9KQp3koaPJEXEC4YzacgGTvpD3T1piD063ZZYve-M15VyYKzf7cAcmAN-V5Cv/s400/100_5427.JPG" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLqyBzpJcvLtVsOvjZYsLpm7azHwfxkhpoO0-YogN0I_Xshn7XgpXUGVI-w4WTYPN3OWAz4k59njuIZdY9y9Cm2f07Ymxo5ISX8azYS9yN36D6mU6n3VxGK9sZD5Aka5cvgITiWbATaryy/s1600-h/100_5426.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5119931218171468530" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLqyBzpJcvLtVsOvjZYsLpm7azHwfxkhpoO0-YogN0I_Xshn7XgpXUGVI-w4WTYPN3OWAz4k59njuIZdY9y9Cm2f07Ymxo5ISX8azYS9yN36D6mU6n3VxGK9sZD5Aka5cvgITiWbATaryy/s400/100_5426.JPG" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" /></a><br />I'd love to know what these <span style="font-style: italic;">kanji </span>mean. Guesses anyone?

Tattoo Posts That Go Bad: Peeping Kanji

Last October, I posted a a tattoo belonging to a guy named John here . His friend Donna also had tattoos and tried to show them to me on her...

10:27 AM

Jackie Wears Words of Wisdom

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGsPGxRHQH2LJNv8V64l7NOvzGBzK3u5v7OXQsC1jlrx9Fn0CSNKxJa5KYwt7VyYkks5R2y3uIleU9i-CbFg1Nyph369_a1yumeedKjf60BQ4J_VMEb8rdC6_Mur0P8GByqOy_Suffy6cg/s1600-h/PICT0664.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247313890684833058" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGsPGxRHQH2LJNv8V64l7NOvzGBzK3u5v7OXQsC1jlrx9Fn0CSNKxJa5KYwt7VyYkks5R2y3uIleU9i-CbFg1Nyph369_a1yumeedKjf60BQ4J_VMEb8rdC6_Mur0P8GByqOy_Suffy6cg/s400/PICT0664.JPG" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" /></a><br />Last week I had just left the house when a woman passed me on the street. She had the words "live & learn" tattooed on her <del>left</del> right foot. I caught up to her and introduced myself. Jackie had just moved into the building on the corner two days earlier, and I wished her a Tattoosday welcome to the neighborhood.<br /><br />She explained her tattoo by acknowledging that, like most people, she makes mistakes in life and that the motto "live and learn" are words  to help guide her through life. Being on her foot is significant, as she believes that the lessons she has learned have helped her understand the importance of taking life "one step at a time".<br /><br />Jackie, in fact, has five tattoos, including one on her waistline and on her inner right arm, but she has this pair on the back of her neck:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbB9I5odmzzXqeWwgL4aF4EMuEpj1IY5GT3l9ltIt7-ccVbobVCnejDmqLeA4iM6DAAXRj2yX4AcvQFfc_KsfP_vUvpLfEMpiq-rR0xzL3Gk_fzV3iVObyk2rNfOysaIlTyd4RagS9EUZV/s1600-h/PICT0667.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247313613566414626" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbB9I5odmzzXqeWwgL4aF4EMuEpj1IY5GT3l9ltIt7-ccVbobVCnejDmqLeA4iM6DAAXRj2yX4AcvQFfc_KsfP_vUvpLfEMpiq-rR0xzL3Gk_fzV3iVObyk2rNfOysaIlTyd4RagS9EUZV/s400/PICT0667.JPG" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" /></a><br />The <span style="font-style: italic;">kanji</span> is the word for <a href="http://japanese.about.com/bl50kanji_bi.htm">beauty</a> and, unlike many unfortunate folks who don't research their tattoos properly, it is correct.<br /><br />The popular proverb "All is fair in Love and War" dates back to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Lyly">John Lyly's</a> 'Euphues' (1578). The original quote was "The rules of fair play do not apply in love and war. " John Lyly was a Renaissance English poet and playwright.<br /><br />Jackie likes this quote because, as she said, "I'm a very passionate about things and if I believe in it, I will fight until the end".<br /><br />All of Jackie's tattoos were inked at <a href="http://www.myspace.com/bodytechtattoo">Bodytech Tattoo & Piercing</a> in Gainesville, Florida. Jackie went to college at the University of Florida.<br /><br />Thanks to Jackie for sharing her tattoos here with us on Tattoosday!

Jackie Wears Words of Wisdom

Last week I had just left the house when a woman passed me on the street. She had the words "live & learn" tattooed on her lef...

4:12 AM

Crys Shares His Colorful Arm

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFRpyI9dW8YAG8DrO7u_6tj7T7Y_gOzup_ttflpY4JYGiPrLS1W0T8Lxlp0tP5V9FQ1UN-fDsEckCG3MZrKvFHChqPb2s5H0mtnc_8UD_usUTk0EdGvn6zHIOI4CuJKepb0KkZsWGT-cZm/s1600-h/buddha1.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235131250179386434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFRpyI9dW8YAG8DrO7u_6tj7T7Y_gOzup_ttflpY4JYGiPrLS1W0T8Lxlp0tP5V9FQ1UN-fDsEckCG3MZrKvFHChqPb2s5H0mtnc_8UD_usUTk0EdGvn6zHIOI4CuJKepb0KkZsWGT-cZm/s400/buddha1.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" /></a> When I passed Crys on Seventh Avenue last Friday, I knew I had to stop and ask about his arm.<br /><br />Aside from the matching ohms-within-nautical stars on both elbows, Crys has two main pieces on his left arm.<br /><br />Chronologically, the dragon came first:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4VOn009XgHqh-XUTDY6yM4498513An64zOl16BwlIuXwKEWbo0VyII7KAqXnTq5dmS52MC7j5aLhr6sk6fe9f0xK_lBJpGb4gv286JF4LYyux7HR1OMuPpEtxls7PmlPNEw2aeQTyuNY4/s1600-h/buddha111.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235130975827887570" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4VOn009XgHqh-XUTDY6yM4498513An64zOl16BwlIuXwKEWbo0VyII7KAqXnTq5dmS52MC7j5aLhr6sk6fe9f0xK_lBJpGb4gv286JF4LYyux7HR1OMuPpEtxls7PmlPNEw2aeQTyuNY4/s400/buddha111.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" /></a>He got it basically because he liked the design. It was inked by Nick at <a href="http://www.truebluetattoo.com/">True Blue Tattoo</a> in Austin, Texas.<br /><br />The kanji surrounding the dragon were added later at <a href="http://www.atomic-tattoo.com/wiki/ATO/Home">Atomic Tattoo & Body Piercing</a>, also in Austin. These were gifts from Crys' girlfriend. According to Chrys, going clockwise from the top, the kanji represnt love, honor, peace and life.<br /><br />After that, he went back later to Atomic Tattoo and added the fire around the dragon to give his arm more color.<br /><br />Finally, he added the Buddha at a shop in Houston:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6mlHYggpR1LHtH3U6F8Y0QAvGzxk-N-fXsODtWL3KA71WUu3-AdtiA2cyBy4Yex-Kwn3XOsu4EwLHuO1vCdWJ5SXQYuN_UGZHugYwNKjLbMrM0xxpO7gVYNquPlV9kYBsOzMPBDtoiC3t/s1600-h/buddha11.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235131106991959906" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6mlHYggpR1LHtH3U6F8Y0QAvGzxk-N-fXsODtWL3KA71WUu3-AdtiA2cyBy4Yex-Kwn3XOsu4EwLHuO1vCdWJ5SXQYuN_UGZHugYwNKjLbMrM0xxpO7gVYNquPlV9kYBsOzMPBDtoiC3t/s400/buddha11.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" /></a>Actually, a friend of his, Corey, from Austin, designed and drew up the initial sketch. Crys doesn't remember where it was inked.<br /><br />Thanks to Crys for sharing his arm with us here on Tattoosday!

Crys Shares His Colorful Arm

When I passed Crys on Seventh Avenue last Friday, I knew I had to stop and ask about his arm. Aside from the matching ohms-within-nautical ...

2:56 AM

Erica's Ink: A Tale of Two Tattoos

<div style="text-align: justify;">Last Saturday I was riding my bike on a gorgeous day (see this post <a href="http://oxypoet.blogspot.com/2008/08/thirty-eight.html">here</a>) when I passed Erica who was sitting on a bench along the Shore Promenade.<br /><br />I spotted a tattoo on her back as I rode by, so I circled around for a closer look:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXGeyw_7GEuFKUJU3L__oPEz2QPIuULWuVZPASmqnMNcHjgLbBdXpX62pPNiPcHvvNp8BtB22cizIlcZ02LrRsGwBIfLgDcUkBMU8DBYRF_d6HFRi2F5uscQB_sfd9aVpZZ-OX0ry4Irfr/s1600-h/PICT0422.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5232917027925108418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXGeyw_7GEuFKUJU3L__oPEz2QPIuULWuVZPASmqnMNcHjgLbBdXpX62pPNiPcHvvNp8BtB22cizIlcZ02LrRsGwBIfLgDcUkBMU8DBYRF_d6HFRi2F5uscQB_sfd9aVpZZ-OX0ry4Irfr/s400/PICT0422.JPG" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" /></a><br />It seemed interesting so I asked her about it. She said there really wasn't anything interesting about it but I told her to try me. Sometimes when you've lived with a tattoo for a while, the circumstances surrounding the piece seem ordinary. But to a fresh set of ears (and a blogosphere full of eyes), the story can be fascinating.<br /><br />About 12 years ago, and a year or two out of high school, Erica was dating a gang member. (See? Interesting already!) She was born in 1976, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_%28zodiac%29">Year of the Dragon</a> in the Chinese Zodiac. Her boyfriend's gang nickname was "Big Dog," and not wanting to have that written in English in the tattoo, she had the Chinese translation inked in the piece.<br /><br />When people asked, she would just tell them in stood for "Year of the Dragon". She notes, however, that she has received a negative reaction from the Chinese women who work at the nail salon. So, she  acknowledges, the inscription probably isn't very nice.<br /><br />I showed the picture to my local Chinese language expert, Kwok, who has helped me translate kanji before, and he shook his head and said that, technically, the characters are correct, but a person well-versed in Chinese would not have selected those characters to represent the name of<br />“Big Dog”. He acknowledged that the reaction that Erica has experienced is probably due to the elementary nature of the words. As written, it is a literal interpretation of the meanings, and not necessarily in a flattering way.<br /><br />To make this piece even more interesting, the tattoo was done at a defunct Bay Ridge shop called Ink Masters (their work has appeared previously <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/search/label/Ink%20Masters">here</a>). She noted that the guy that tattooed her was named Eric and that she knew he had been "featured" in a film called "Erica" (same spelling as her name, incidentally), which was, in fact, an adult film. Erica wanted me to reiterate, the tattoo artist had been the adult film star, not her.<br /><br />Finally, to make this tattoo's tale complete, two years after she had broken up with "Big Dog," she regretted the youthful folly that had caused her to get the tattoo. Rather than laser it off, or cover it up, she chose instead to improve it by adding flames to it to represent her anger over getting it in the first place.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqB_rnMpyQbqI2T7MWNK2RESQ4AePwJYWEevw3ci2-uNyxn3-hjpWsyBa2Bd7ZM5mii1awDOWfAaUowPDp_TS2C6zek2mctZZjYWjlZ6Em60z9-djG_7gYFA4_7n8S4yxCMcPgL_2i8JfL/s1600-h/flames.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5234198858321463010" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqB_rnMpyQbqI2T7MWNK2RESQ4AePwJYWEevw3ci2-uNyxn3-hjpWsyBa2Bd7ZM5mii1awDOWfAaUowPDp_TS2C6zek2mctZZjYWjlZ6Em60z9-djG_7gYFA4_7n8S4yxCMcPgL_2i8JfL/s400/flames.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" /></a><br />Erica then offered up a bonus: a tattoo that, to her, meant much more:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIBQSY7R6V7Jjy21GSDeU_p7Ai_EDXmKuf5eZ_ca37rwe_TeYCx9z-3d_HKZCS-48QDHmfAUOtAYgckA13nXTYkJHgoOtoOlwpqkEeEw9plLfZZCdNKCbKHY2hQzlva5E6pmLg4o4kZ8lQ/s1600-h/PICT0424.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5232916582018865474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIBQSY7R6V7Jjy21GSDeU_p7Ai_EDXmKuf5eZ_ca37rwe_TeYCx9z-3d_HKZCS-48QDHmfAUOtAYgckA13nXTYkJHgoOtoOlwpqkEeEw9plLfZZCdNKCbKHY2hQzlva5E6pmLg4o4kZ8lQ/s400/PICT0424.JPG" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" /></a><br />Often, asking someone about a visible tattoo is rewarded by the unveiling of a much more significant piece (see <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2008/03/whole-lotta-rosary.html">here</a> and <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2008/06/syndys-windjammer-in-honor-of-nanny.html">here</a> for two of the best examples on Tattoosday).<br /><br />The new piece above, a pattern of fifteen dots, was inked by <a href="http://www.asylumtattoos.com/gallery/index.php/page/welcomeFrame/action/viewArtist/userId/1046">Erick Diaz</a> at <a href="http://www.asylumtattoos.com/index.php">Asylum Studios</a> in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn.<br /><br />Erica entered the shop not with the intention to get tattooed, but to accompany her cousin Samantha when she went in for a tattoo.<br /><br />Samantha has an interesting story. Many years ago, she had been a passenger in a vehicle that was involved in a drunk driving accident. She was ejected from the vehicle and hospitalized in critical condition. In a coma, Samantha faced life-threatening circumstances when her brain underwent significant swelling, so much that part of her skull needed to be removed to accommodate the condition. Ultimately though, Samantha recovered and was none the worse for wear. She currently is residing in South Africa and working as a photographer.<br /><br />So Samantha was visiting her cousin Erica who took her to get a tattoo. When Samantha was getting the phrase “the sky is my only witness” inked, Erica was watching, knowing that she needed to get a new tattoo that honored her cousin’s miraculous recovery.<br /><br />Which brings us back to the fifteen dots. Erica explained the code to me. She used dice as a metaphor and four rolls run together. A four and a three, along with a two and a six. The pattern is symmetrical and if you add the four and three, you get a value for 7. The two and six represent<br />the number 26. Erica wanted a representation of a magical date, July 26, the day when Samantha opened her eyes and emerged from her coma.<br /><br />The piece is inked on the lower right side of Erica’s stomach, along the waistline. It serves to remind her about the value of life and mark the date that is so important in the lives of her family.<br /><br />I want to thank Erica for her taking the time to talk with me, and for sharing her interesting stories about her ink here on Tattoosday.</div>

Erica's Ink: A Tale of Two Tattoos

Last Saturday I was riding my bike on a gorgeous day (see this post here ) when I passed Erica who was sitting on a bench along the Shore Pr...

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Tattoosday (A Tattoo Blog)

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