Stories Written In Ink: Intro

Posted by Kevin on Aug 8, 2011 in RSD's Tattoos | 4 comments

I have always been in love with tattoos. My love for tattoos started in 6th grade when I first got into music. Back in 1986 bands like Motley Crue, Poison, Metallica, and Iron Maiden were my cup of tea. (and still are today.)

I think I love tattoos and shows about tattooing(like Miami Ink and L.A. Ink) because drawing is something I am not good at. I can play guitar, piano, I can keep a beat on the drums, I can write and sing, cook and be goofy, but I can’t draw. It’s funny too, because my mom and grandmother could draw very well.

Can you imagine me trying to tattoo?

“What’s that you want to get? A dragon you say? Sorry, I can’t do that…but I can do stick men!” Yeah, my dream of becoming a tattoo artist is not gonna happen.

I have a great deal of respect and admiration for tattoo artists. Drawing is hard, but drawing on the human body is something different all together. The human body is not flat like a piece of paper. It has curves and dips. It is soft and it bleeds.

Each skin tone is different, not like a white piece of paper. The artist has to be careful of what color he or she chooses, so that the skins pigment will blend in.

These folks sit hunched over all day, not standing at an easel, or sitting on a comfy stool.  But in the end, their art is displayed forever in the gallery of the human canvas.

Anyway…sixth grade was a big change for me. Sometime during the summer between 5th and 6th grade, playing with toys was no longer cool. However, that void was quickly filled with Rock n’ Roll.

I remember spending Saturdays at my grandparents house, cutting their grass and watching MTV. (My parents did not have cable.) It was here that I saw the rock gods sporting their tattoos. And this squeaky, chubby kid wanted one.

I always new I would get one. “But you can’t stop at just one”, I was told. And they were right.

First, I will admit to you that the thing I love most about tattoos is that they just look cool and I love how they look on me. There is a certain vanity that goes with getting a tat.

There is also a certain family atmosphere for those of us with tattoos. Those of us who have gotten inked tend to stick together. We roll up our sleeves, share our war stories, the pain that was involved in the actual tattoo and the pain in which that tattoo represents.

There is also a vulnerability as well. You are trusting a complete stranger to draw something on your skin. Permanently. You inflict yourself with pain. Then, you show it to all the world. Family, friends, and strangers will either think you are cool, or you’re an idiot.  And when asked what your tats mean, you recount your story over and over again to complete strangers.

We are a weird bunch.

My quest for my first tattoo began in 1986. I knew what I wanted but I did not know what “it” looked like. So I kept waiting, and thinking.

Tattoos are permanent, and I wanted to make sure that I would never regret what I got. I am not the type of guy who walks into a tattoo shop and picks something out of a book. Not me. I want something that is going to be original, something that is unique.

That’s the first thing I tell people who are thinking about getting their first tattoo. If it lasts forever then you need to spend time thinking about it. Make sure you get what you want.  Take your time. Picking out a tattoo is like a courtship, and just like with love, when the right design comes along, you will just know it.

So from 1986 to 2009, I spent a lot of time here and there, thinking and looking up tattoos.  I would look at so many tattoos that I would literally freeze up. I would get “paralysis by analysis”. Sometimes I would go months without looking up or even thinking about tattoos. My brain was like a slow cooker. I would throw a bunch of ideas in and then let it simmer for a good long time.

I talked myself out of many tattoos this way.

Over the next few days, I will take you on the path I walked in getting inked. You will hear the stories of each tattoo and the pain involved in getting each one. So I invite you to come along on this journey, and listen to the stories written in ink.