So time for a totally new plan on the tattoo front. I discovered yesterday that my tax refund won't be here until much later. So the new plan is to cancel my appointment with Phil so I can still afford to go to Roanoke. I also want to go ahead and get my foot cover up started. Since Mark doesn't charge nearly as much as Russ or Phil, I can afford to get that moving at least. I also have to get Kurt to finish Lucius. I'll know more about that tomorrow. I don't think there's really that much work left, which is fortunate.
Ideally, I'll get Lucius finished in the next few weeks, then start on my foot cover up, then get tattooed at the convention in Roanoke. Then I'll see if I have the money to pay Phil to work on Alice. I definitely don't want to miss out on my trip to Roanoke, not just because of the convention, but because I haven't seen my BFF since last June.
Lucy is peeling like crazy. She looks pretty gross. I hope she'll look better tomorrow when I go to show her off to everyone.
So now for the real post that everyone has been waiting for.
Tuesday night was the drop dead date for Lucy's second session. I called Mark the night before to remind him that I was going to be there and he should show up. I got there right at 7 and Russ was setting up for me. There was another chick getting tattooed on her hip and she went way overboard with privacy IMO. They had the room sealed off and a screen up inside the room. Seriously? Honey it's not like your cooter is hanging out. But whatever. Maybe I'm just immodest.
We got to tattooing around 7:40 and I was starting to get a bit miffed that Mark hadn't showed up yet. Of course, I forgot that his concept of time is very different from most peoples'. He's on tattooist time, which I think is somewhat like being on GMT or something. Russ wasn't happy that I "ratted him out" for his singing/humming/making noise along with the music last time. We bickered about that all night it seems. Every time he would hum/sing/make noise along with music he'd go "Not singing!". (Sorry Russ, the story was just too good not to share!).
Mark rolled in about 8:30 when Russ was bantering with a flash seller. I admit, I was glad to see the cranky Brit. He kept me distracted for a good hour. I'd forgotten how nice it is to have someone there to distract you. Russ had a lot of work left to do all over my arm, so I was getting work done in some pretty tender places. Him laughing at me or observing habits he's never noticed before were a welcome distraction. It was at some point during this time that we were introduced to the "tittie skull". I remember Mark was still there because he was laughing along with the rest of us. He ran off before Russ finished, so he hasn't gotten to see what she looks like in all her glory.
After a little under 2.5 hours of tattooing and almost 3 hours of being there, Lucy was done. He bandaged me up and then we launched into the antics mentioned in the previous entry. For those waiting with bated breath, he is 100% real. I call him "Ol' Blue Balls" for short, like a pirate. I actually want to see if Russ will give him a pirate hat. I mean, how much more ridiculous can you get than a dick skull? Not much, methinks.
Oh and Mommums said that Lucy looked creepy. I was like "That's the point" and she was like "I didn't think she'd be that creepy". Score!
And for fun, a few quotes taken out of context that made me laugh:
Me-"As you can see, my legs are wide open" (I was wearing a skirt)
Russ-"It's like tattooing on a Goddamn trampoline!"
Mark-"You need to stop wiggling" Me-"He's fine" Mark-"Yeah, because he's leaning on you"
And that's pretty much what I look like in all my inked glory. There were some of my foot and ankle, but they're not that great. I don't really much feel the need to show them off. I think I'll feel more confident when I've got a good cover up going on my foot and my calf piece.
Hopefully that's a good enough size for everyone. I'm still futzing with Blogger's image uploader. I is not computer savvy.
So yesterday was the big day. I got there early, as I am wont to do, and Russ was still in sketching mode. So I just hung out and was privy to the now infamous Russ Abbott "Hunky Male" calendar. ;) Once the obligatory paperwork, stenciling, and readying was done, it was time to put needle to skin.
It HURT. Not like the usual "this is unpleasant, but I can live with it". It was like slowly wiggle away kind of pain. I managed to keep it together pretty well. I forgot to breathe at some points and then had to refocus. My elbow and the ditch (inside of your elbow) were probably the worst. That's when I started making faces. We took two breaks, which for once I was actually grateful for. I'm still too stubborn to ask for one outright unless I honestly believe I'm going to die. And that's only happened once to date. I think this may win for second most painful after my sides. Goodie.
Russ was great. He would occasionally sing along with the music, which provided a nice momentary distraction. Everything you see in the picture was done in less than 3 hours (it was timed). There's only an hour and a half to two hours of work left, which made me happy. I'm not so much a fan of running around with unfinished tattoos, especially in visible places. However, I don't think it's that obvious that she's incomplete (much like Lucius). Also probably not easily visible in the picture is the amount of detail. Her braids have a ton of detail. Parts of her skirt actually look like fabric. Her nose and mouth also have a lot of soft details that also are probably hard to see. If you see me in person, I'll be more than happy to point them all out. Talent like that doesn't grow on trees, kids.
My second session is at the end of the month (March 31), probably just enough time for me to work up the emotional energy to do it again. I'm sleeping with saran wrap on my arm (per Mark and Shane's suggestion) to help the ditch heal better. It's uncomfortable, but if it means better healing in the long run, I'll suck it up. I only have to do it two more nights. Haven't broken it to the parents yet, but I figure I'll do it soon. They can't exactly talk me out of it. What's done is done. Plus, when I have my arms down by my sides you can only see her hand from the front and part of her skirt from the back. It's not like *BAM* giant tattoo!!
Overall, it was a really positive experience. The whole I&D crew is great and that's probably a reflection on their esteemed leader and proprietor.
