Tattoos & Piercings...

[Drip Curl Magic]

When I was in 7th grade, my mom talked me into getting my ear pierced.

 

Coincidental.

 

My mother talked me into getting my ear pierced while I was in 3rd grade. Kept it for a little over half a decade.

 

Then I took it out. hole closed up. No big deal.

[CraigD]

What's the deal with tattoos and piercings?

…

Somebody care to explain the other side to me?

There are lots of sides to tattooing, piercing, scarification, and other forms of body modification.

 

A lot of tattoos have their origins in US prisons. Barbed wire, thorns, Celtic knots – most of these have their modern origins in prison. A lot of them are gang signs – unlike clothing emblems like bandanas, prison officials can force inmates to have tattoos removed or keep them covered.

 

Some – spiders, tears, etc – have specific coded meanings. Many people who have such tattoos are unaware of these meanings – I once asked a 17-year-old if he knew the traditional meaning of his tear tattoo. He told me it represented sadness. It’s traditionally meaning is that one has killed another inmate – a warning.

 

I frequently get an inward chuckle when I see a lot of people sporting barbed wire tattoos. The prison meaning is that you’re serving a life sentence – another warning.

 

I’ve read that some gangs, particularly eastern European ones, use tattoos to assure that members can’t join other gangs.

 

Personally, I think tattoos that don’t indicate membership in some sort of group are a bit silly, but harmless, and sometimes pretty to look at. I know a several old folk with faded old tattoos, and find them interesting and subtly beautiful – they say something about these folks pasts, and about being human.

[Buffy]

Tattoos: Before you get one, just imagine what its gonna look like when you're 70... That's been enough to keep me from getting one...

 

Mentally branded,

Buffy

[Racoon]

There are lots of sides to tattooing, piercing, scarification, and other forms of body modification.

 

Personally, I think tattoos that don’t indicate membership in some sort of group are a bit silly, but harmless, and sometimes pretty to look at. I know a several old folk with faded old tattoos, and find them interesting and subtly beautiful – they say something about these folks pasts, and about being human.

 

If I were to get a tattoo, it wouldn't be on the side of my neck. I think thats a warning.

So are spiderwebs on the elbow.. :hihi:

And Skulls with flames and guns are some serious red flags too!!

 

Grandpa had some Naval Tats on his forearm Like Popeye.

said he wished he had 'm higher up, so you couldn't see 'em with short-sleeved shirt...

 

Tattoos can be signficant and meaningful.

I like the Samoan Culture of Tattooing.

Isn't that the roots of Tattooing??

 

But I have never been under the needle.

Needles scare me...:hihi:

[Turtle]

I saw a movie called the Pillow Book. People were tattooing love stories on other people to send to their secret lovers. They skinned some of the 'books' to keep them!:hihi:

Any tattoo on me would cover up some scar or another anyway.:hihi:

[GAHD]

I like belly button and other peircings on females, gives me something extra to play with. That lets me understand why they would like them on men. But my temple is still OEM only; no accesories or paintjobs.

 

I've thought about it but never came up with a design I liked enough (been working on the left shoulder alpha and right shoulder omerga designs for years now, and I'm still not satisfied). I get peirced enough at work, what with the splinters and nails and wires hat littler most construction sites. After cutting or ripping them out, I don't really need to keep anything permanent to remind me of my flesh or give me an endorphine rush(the reson a lot of peircers or cutters do it, I'm told).

 

I can think of two peircings that would be the tie-breakers in a contest between twins, and they're both below the neck-line. Some tattoos are good looking too.

 

It's when there's 10+ in one location that things start to look weird or even grotesque.

 

Nice one on the Dali!