Should i get another tat?

[Itchy]

Should i endure the excrueating, flesh-on-fire pain, or getting another tattoo? Been wanting another one for a long time... thinking of a black and white dragon crawling up my upper back purched on my right shoulder blade. Dragons are protectors you know, plus they\'re just dang cool. My first, and currently only, tat was the family crest on my chest. Nice, respectable, wont regret that one when i\'m 80... unless i\'m disowned or something. But what about the dragon? Kind of mixed on that one. Any older (NOT a slam... i\'m only 20!) members have words of wisedom?

Oh, and here\'s the current ink

 

[Frustrated Father]

Tats are a personal thing and personal something that I enjoy and have quite a bit of ink time setup here in the near future (about 20 hours worth .. ugh).

That being said, it is going to be on your body for the rest of your life unless you want to pay through the nose to get it taken off and if you are \'kinda mixed\' you might want to sit on it for a bit longer.

Myself, I\'m 30, not that much older, but certainly not too old to enjoy them either. Take your time with it and think on it a bit.

Whatever it is, make certain it is tasteful and I have always preached, especially early in life, to make certain that it can be hidden by clothing if need be. You never know where life will land you ... don\'t want it to stop the fact that you would of gotten that VIP job ya know.

 

[Itchy]

Yeah, that\'s rule number one. The ink\'s gotta be hidden by an undershirt.

i\'ve been thinking about it for a while... had this tat for 2 years, the dragon in the plans for almost a year. Guess my biggest thing is how others would see a dragon on me... but like you said, it\'s a personal thing for me... i\'m not getting it for them. Hmmm... i\'ll give it another month, then see where it sits and if i have any concept art done yet. Not the best drawer in the world

 

[Joshua]

im a big fan of tattoos with the minor drawback that i cannot afford them
i always thought a bout two tattoos on my forarms, one saying \"Manowar\" and the other one \"Kills\" so that if you press your fists together it would read ... yea you guessed it:\"Manowar Kills\"
to be honest i absolutely despise any kind of hidden tattoos like most of these 14 year old girlies have on theis shoulders or ankles.
in my opinion a tattoo should be used to flaunt, not to hide. why get it in the first place if it will be hidden?
if you dont feel comfortable with other people seeing i: dont do it!
neither other people nor you in most cases can see it so what would be the purpose of it?

just my 2 cents

 

[Duende]

Originally posted by Joshua

to be honest i absolutely despise any kind of hidden tattoos like most of these 14 year old girlies have on theis shoulders or ankles.
in my opinion a tattoo should be used to flaunt, not to hide. why get it in the first place if it will be hidden?

neither other people nor you in most cases can see it so what would be the purpose of it?

I wonder the same thing about people who tattoo their \"naughty\" parts. Who\'s seeing those?? (nudge, nudge, wink, wink)

 

[TAB Studio]

Todd\'s birthday was yesterday and the yearly ink gift certificate was given, needless to say he is up for it. He loves them and designs them himself
My wedding band is a tat and a finger to me was enough to totally convince me no more although it is said to be a bad part to close to the bone i do not believe I will find out.

 

[darthfoley]

Mine on the bicep didn\'t hurt much at all.

I can imagine that finger-bone area probably didn\'t feel all that great though. Ouchie.

 

[BloodiedFangs]

i\'m all for the \"if you\'re not sure, wait it out a little\"...i already have my first tat done (celtic dragon, nothing extravagant, just outline up on my shoulder blade), and now i\'ve found a design i really like, and i\'m thinking about whether i should shell out another 100 ozzie bucks to have it done as well. i\'m not totally sure tho, so i\'m giving it some rest time (hell, i\'ve got the rest of my life to think about it )

as for regretting it...well, i\'m only 19, so i\'m not an older member, however, i will say this: i really doubt you\'ll regret it (especially if it can be covered up). it\'ll just be a reminder of when you were young, stupid, and having the time of you life . i got my last one done with one of my best mates, and i\'ll get the next done with him as well, so at the very least, i\'ll have some good memories to carry through

oh, and joshua: just a few things about getting easily hidden tattoos. firstly, if you have tattoos that show easily, some places won\'t be willing to hire you. makes job-hunting just that little bit harder. next, i don\'t know about the rest of you tattooed folks, but i got my tat largely for myself. i don\'t need others to see it

 

[Broke n English]

Yes...

.....
*Edit*-- Get a Gobbo on yer Dragon!

 

[supervike]

not a single drop of ink...

I have no tat\'s but my Dad does. He is 57 now and has them all over his forearm. They are all faded and discolored, and you cannot even tell what they are.

He has told me before they were one of the \'stupidest\' things he had ever done.

His are just meaningless cartoonish characters (like a impish devil) and some black panthers.

But having something that truly has significance seems kind of cool.

 

[Joshua]

Originally posted by BloodiedFangs
oh, and joshua: just a few things about getting easily hidden tattoos. firstly, if you have tattoos that show easily, some places won\'t be willing to hire you. makes job-hunting just that little bit harder. next, i don\'t know about the rest of you tattooed folks, but i got my tat largely for myself. i don\'t need others to see it

this might sound really stereotyped but: if people wont accept the tattoo i would never want to work for them in the first place.
it could be hard for \"older\" people but nowadays almost 30% or perhaps even more of the 16-24 year olds (im 19 1/2) i know have a tattoo and they are not just goths, metalheads, gangsterrapper or crackjunkees.
so in a few years, whem im 30 or 40 there will be a lot more people, even in \"higher ranked\" jobs with tattoos, maybe my boss will have a little rose tattooed on his willy.
the point is, you can hardly \"discriminate\" one person that\'s showing it when there are 5 other people that are hiding it.

as to the whole \"for myself\" thing, it has probably discussed to death everywhere but this is my opinion and its, of course biased and not objective in any way:
if you would be the only person left on this planet, would you cut your hair on a regular basis (assuming you do, i dont but what the heck )? would you keep in shape to attract the opposite gender? would you use perfume? would you wear fancy cloths? i guess not, so why would you like to have a tattoo \"just for youself\". i consider my whole outward appearance as something like an expression or exhibition of what i am and what i feel like.
i certainly dont walk around with a mirror infront of me to remind myself of my expressions so i guess its the other people being affected by my looks.

 

[Nelson]

Originally posted by supervike
I have no tat\'s but my Dad does. He is 57 now and has them all over his forearm. They are all faded and discolored, and you cannot even tell what they are.

Wow!! [useless trivia] My dad is only one year younger than yours, while you\'re about 20 years older than me! [/useless trivia]

Anyways, Itchy, I think you should get the tat! Our brains aren\'t supposed to be fully developed in the area that controls our ability to look ahead in time, or plan for the future.

In other words, you\'re not only allowed, but you\'re supposed to do foolish and stupid things, with no regard for what a dragon will look like on a 70 year-olds saggy skin.

lol

Really, though, I\'m serious....I think a dragon would be neat, and as long as you\'re excited about it, then go for it! In the big scheme of things, it\'s just a little bit of ink.

 

[BloodiedFangs]

while tattooed people are becoming more common, and yes, in like 10 years time or so, i fully expect that there will be plenty of tattooed folks in high positions, right now there is a bias against tattoos. this bias isn\'t upheld by everyone (i know a lot of cafes and record stores, and similar places don\'t have this kind of bias quite often). however, the employers with the larger employee turnovers (or at least the ones i\'m willing to work at) often have anti-tat policies. and these are the places that its easiest to get a job at (and until i\'ve got my degree under my belt, its most likely the only places i\'m gonna be working at). and lthough at my current job, my boss has several tats, we\'re still not allowed to have them in places that will be seen (especially considering its one of the higher class depatment stores)

as for the for myself bit...yes, i would keep my hair trimmed, and i would keep in shape...as for fancy clothes, i don\'t wear \'em now, so that\'s irrelevant. and the perfume bit is the same. and while i see what you\'re getting at, and i admit there\'s a good chance i wouldn\'t have a tat, right now, it is almost purely for myself. yes, i show it around, but not a huge amount, but as opposed to you, i don\'t feel so much that outwards me is an expression of myself. obviously it means something to me, or else i\'d just walk around in jocks and sandals in summer, but not enough that i\'m willing to devote lots of time and money into aking my self-image perfect. and i laregely assume that the people around me are looking at someone else . so that helps

 

[MarkusTay]

My father and brother have tattoos, and both of them regret it. I have two brothers-in law that do tatooing, one even has his own shop. They would give me whatever I want for FREE! Alot of my wife\'s family are bikers, so they\'re all about the tats. Funny thing, they\'re all Jewish. Before I met them I didn\'t know there were Jewish bikers! Talk about un-orthodox! I told them once they should form their own gang called \"Satan\'s Dredles\", for some reason they didn\'t find that at all funny. Anyway, I don\'t have any tats. I won\'t get any tats. My wife wanted one, and for the one and only time in our marriage I threatened to leave! My sixteen year old asked me how I would feel about him getting one, I told him you can do whatever you want after you move out. Once he is an adult I do not have any say over what he does. I do not dislike people who have them, that is their choice. To me Tattooing is a form of self-mutilation, and I can\'t do that. I do have many friends and plenty of family with them, and thats fine by me. I just don\'t like them, its a personal thing.

 

[Trevor]

I want to get a dragon that is wrapped around my arm head at the top of my arm, tail at my wrist, but my girlfriend won\'t let me. Alternatively I want a dragon covering most of my back, but again thats \"too big\".

 

[solaria2k]

The tattoo inks used these days are much more advanced and long lasting than the ones used 20 years ago.

I have three tattoos, all symbolic and very personal to me, as it has to do with my spirituality.
I have a red dragon over my stomach, curling around my belly button, with its claws holding my navel ring. This is fire, the core of my self.
Interestingly 2 years after having it done I got pregnant with my second child, the dragon stretched as he grew, encircling the baby inside, and I know some of you may think this TMI, but as I delivered my son, the dragon \'moved down\' with him. My son was named Aiden, which is coincidently the Celtic name for Firey one.
As I could afford more I got a another dragon on my back, from the nape of my neck to my waist, he\'s huge. But he\'s the colors of the wind and storm, greys, soft blues, purples and white. This is my strength, adaptability and flexibility. (He took about 10 hours in total).

I plan more, to finish the other elements in the appropriate parts of my body, and while they may not always be seen, this is how I have chosen to honor my faith and myself. Each is unique, designed by me, and moves with me when I dance or walk.

Some have asked if I worry that they will distort as I get older.
My answer - When I\'m 80 and my dragons have become long and thin, do you think I\'ll really care?
It doesnt matter what you chose to put on your body, nor what others think of it. They dont have to wear it every day. They dont have to look at it. Ultimately, pick something that reflects *you* and be proud of it, and never, never get a tattoo of another person\'s name.

 

[Tylith]

Originally posted by Joshua

Originally posted by BloodiedFangs
oh, and joshua: just a few things about getting easily hidden tattoos. firstly, if you have tattoos that show easily, some places won\'t be willing to hire you. makes job-hunting just that little bit harder. next, i don\'t know about the rest of you tattooed folks, but i got my tat largely for myself. i don\'t need others to see it

this might sound really stereotyped but: if people wont accept the tattoo i would never want to work for them in the first place.
it could be hard for \"older\" people but nowadays almost 30% or perhaps even more of the 16-24 year olds (im 19 1/2) i know have a tattoo and they are not just goths, metalheads, gangsterrapper or crackjunkees.
so in a few years, whem im 30 or 40 there will be a lot more people, even in \"higher ranked\" jobs with tattoos, maybe my boss will have a little rose tattooed on his willy.
the point is, you can hardly \"discriminate\" one person that\'s showing it when there are 5 other people that are hiding it.

as to the whole \"for myself\" thing, it has probably discussed to death everywhere but this is my opinion and its, of course biased and not objective in any way:
if you would be the only person left on this planet, would you cut your hair on a regular basis (assuming you do, i dont but what the heck )? would you keep in shape to attract the opposite gender? would you use perfume? would you wear fancy cloths? i guess not, so why would you like to have a tattoo \"just for youself\". i consider my whole outward appearance as something like an expression or exhibition of what i am and what i feel like.
i certainly dont walk around with a mirror infront of me to remind myself of my expressions so i guess its the other people being affected by my looks.

Would I cut my hair? Of course... I shave it every other week even though I get yelled at for it, I like it that way.
Would I keep in shape? Hell yeah... If I was the only one alive I\'d have to be in shape if I was going to be the last one for much longer!
Perfume? No I wouldn\'t wear perfume...
Fancy Clothes? Maybe not fancy... but I\'d dress up for the hell of it... seeing as being the only person alive might be a little boring...
lol

 

[Infidel Castro]

Itchy, how about having a Marilyn Monroe wrapped about your stomach, gazing wistfully at your bits and blowing a kiss?

Or a long, thin Michael Barrymore down your arm? That would get a giggle or two lol

How about a Tony Blair on both bum cheeks with his mouth aligned over your \'exit\' area?

Possibilities....

 

[Duende]

Originally posted by solaria2k
Ultimately, pick something that reflects *you* and be proud of it, and never, never get a tattoo of another person\'s name.

I\'ll agree with that statement. Of all the people I know with tattoos, the only ones who regret it are the ones who are trying to figure out what to do with their now ex\'s name on them.

 

[Margo]

Yep, I\'m thiking about getting one, too. Can\'t quite decide, though, if I really want it or no ...