... with a new picture on my body.
As an old guy I'm doing a lot of things that I had put off for many years for many reasons.
As I get older, I find many of the excuses are no longer operational.



One of the things I did last year was get my ear pierced.
This year I'm getting my first tattoo. Many of my friends have expressed distain at the idea. But, then, those with tattoos think it's cool that I'm joining their ranks.

I put the tattoo on my right arm. That pesky smallpox vaccination scar got in the way on the left arm.

The biggest problem with getting a tattoo aside from trying to justify it to your friends is finding someone you trust to do the work. Sure you can look at his portfolio and see what he/she's done in the past. But really, how is he going to render the piece of art that you've picked for your new tattoo?

It's sort of like commissioning a painting. You know the guy is a good artist. Otherwise you wouldn't have hired him. But with a painting, if you don't like the way it turns out you can just put it up in the attic and never see it again. A tattoo on the other hand is going to be right there, whether you like the finished product or not.

This is the drawing:


The picture was drawn by my wife and is just bold enough to say something without pissing off too many people.

For a 'first tattoo' I like what I got. Now the ice is broken. Now there's no more need to justify "getting a tattoo." Just a matter of what else do I want and where. After all, I have a tattooist now.

Let's see, what can I put on the other arm?