Weddings and other Inkless Social Events

It had to happen eventually. It would appear that 2009 is the year of the marriage for my circle of friends. I'm in 3 and attending a 4th. For me, that means figuring out a way to cover my ink. I already have some makeup on hand, but for something the size of my peacock or the rose, I think it's going to end up being airbrushing. Fortunately one of my fellow bridesmaids is a model and has a visible tattoo, so she recommended a product to me. Once everything is healed, I'm going to have to start practicing covering it up. In my mind (though my brides may disagree) it really only needs to be covered for the pictures and ceremony itself. If I suffer makeup meltdown during the reception, it's no big. At least not to me. I love my friends and respect their wishes for their vision of their wedding days and photos for years to come.

Of course, it also makes me think about how there's still a long way to go before tattoos are a non-issue. It's pretty much expected that my tattoos be covered in a lot of situations. Work, weddings, and really any event that may result in my grandparents giving my parents hell about the fact I'm a walking art gallery. I'd like to think I'm slowly changing peoples' minds about what it means to be modded. I'm definitely not the kind of person to stand out on the street corner with a sign saying "Modded People are People, Too". I'm the kind of person who goes through life being confident and capable. I'll always be intimidating, but I was intimidating before I had any ink at all. ;) I like to spread the gospel of ink in my own way. I answer most questions people ask me, even if it's the dumbest thing I've heard all day. I make sure people know what they're getting into if they ask me for advice.

I was brought up to look past superficial differences among people. If I don't like you, odds are I don't like you because of who you are as a person, not because of your ethnicity or the fact you had a nose job. It becomes even more acute when you're on the receiving end of people judging you based solely on your looks. Most of the people I deal with on a daily basis either don't care or are supportive. I don't usually get people who are outright rude or judgmental. When it happens, I simply shame them on a public forum such as this one.

Lastly, a list of stupid questions that you shouldn't ask a modded person:

*Why would you do that to yourself?
This is probably the fastest way to get yourself slapped. It's implying the person is engaging in some sort of bizarre self mutilation.

*What do they mean?
Usually nothing. You're either going to be ignored or you're going to get some cock & bull story. I prefer the latter myself.

*Did it hurt?
Umm, yeah. There were needles involved.

*And for the love of God, DO NOT touch them without their permission.
I can't tell you how many times someone has grabbed me, poked me, or moved my clothing to get a better look at my ink. I don't care if you're my best friend or someone I just met. HANDS OFF! This is my biggest pet peeve. Unless I tell you it's okay to touch me, don't do it.

And that's all for my waxing philosophical and trying to help all the little people out there.

It's Official

I stopped by the shop this evening. They were surprisingly busy. Mark was about to start a tattoo and Shane was getting source material for one. Obviously the big, long discussion I had planned wasn't going to fly. Mark had me show him the bumps. He confirmed it was probably acne from having to use so much thick lotion during the healing process. Shane's advice: "loofah that shit". Only Shane, I swear. In short, she's fine and I shouldn't sweat it too much.

I gave Mark the cliff notes version of my dilemma with the swallows. I don't think it made much sense, but I tried. I didn't want to keep the girl waiting to get tattooed any longer than necessary. I know how much it bugs me to have to wait. End result, I'm going to go ahead and get them done on Sunday. Sundays are usually quiet so I can spend more time discussing my exact motivation rather than just babbling about tattoos and bridesmaids dresses. He had another girl coming in at 2 that day, but she seemed a bit weird so he wasn't too concerned if we took longer than 2 hours.

Pat was still there, which surprised me a bit. I heard him say he would be leaving on Monday. I hope he's not there on Sunday. Something about him just really doesn't sit right with me.