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Since October last year I have put a lot of effort into eating more healthy foods and looking after myself, happy to say it really is well worth the effort as I have lost 30 pounds or more. Problem is just about all my clothes are way to big now Ha Ha.

I was in a clothes shop in Coventry Garden a couple days ago and a shop assistant showed me his sleeve. What was cool about it is that it was vintage Thomas Hooper- from when he was on Into You..! Very ornate, still perfect after 7 years or so. I got tattooed in TFB (progress on my arm, Mo Coppoletta) and we spun by FST briefly to look in. My fiancé is booked in with Stewart next month.

I'm lucky in that my wife loves tattoos, and is heavily tattooed herself. I always joke with her that if we get divorced I'm shit outta luck finding anyone else. Though I guess these days there are many more relationships where one partner is heavily tattooed and the other isn't. That being said tattooed women are way hotter!

I mostly foster the seniors. I've lost three over the last several years and have three more that no one wants so they will be here until they pass too. I also have one that was so abused she's still scared of me after four years of constant love and patience. I'm not a violent person but God help anyone I ever see abusing an animal because I don't think I could stop myself from beating them senseless.

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We moved. We moved from a narrow, carpeted, shoe-boxy apartment with blue and purple walls where the landlords (who were nice enough) lived downstairs, to a bright, open, tiled-kitchen and new wood floors apartment with a shared backyard that is pet friendly where our friends live below us and a super nice couple below them and where it doesn't feel like mom and dad/landlords live. I painted. We hired movers. From here on out I will always paint and hire movers. I'm turning this little alcove into a walk-in closet. We have a big ass rug coming soon. We're a block away from a nice park and in July after vacationy stuff we'll most likely foster and adopt a dog. I like our new hood more than I thought, too. DAMN IT FEELS GOOD TO BE A GANGSTER.

This ^^^ Rescuing animals of any sort is a very awesome thing to do. I got my wee orange kitty that way. Life changing for the both of us. Thick as thieves. I don't know how awesome this is, but it sure feels pretty great. After ditching pro-sports 19 years ago (as a fan, defo not as any kind of athlete - unless rolling over on the couch occasionally counts as athleticism) I have rediscovered Major League baseball. I started with the Jay's season opener a few days ago and was amazed at how much I missed the game. I've even got my butt in gear and gone to a game and got tickets for a couple more. I missed the ballpark, the crappy hotdogs, the overpriced peanuts, and the raging drunks all around me in the nose bleed seats. More than anything though, I have rekindled my long-time love of the game. I was a die-hard fan from '77-94. It sure feels good to be back in the park again. So, maybe not high-end awesome, but it is a nice feeling and what's more, my partner Erin is totally into it as well. Another thing we enjoy doing together.

I've added running into my routine and will be doing my first 5k this month. I've also been organizing a memorial celebration for my friend Shannon Larratt here in Philly with approx 200 people signed up so far. On the same day as my 5k. Going to be a long day. But the upside is we've had a lot of vendors donate raffle items, with 100% of the monies raised going to his daughter Ari, so... totally worth it.

I feel this way about ANY business. Eat at home or the restaurant but not in a records store or clothing store or dentists office or tattoo shops. I mean, why can't you just sit and eat and move on? I see that crap all the time and it's one of the rudest things one can do.

Today, for the first time since early December, I shaved my legs FEARLESSLY - without caution, just waved that razor around all willy-nilly! ;) Finally, everything is healed!! (Guess it must be time to get something new booked right?!?!)

I've still got one piece of jailhouse, but the rest I covered. I have been going through my pix, and I have some picked out I may post, but I'm going to have to do a lot of cropping and blacking-out. Now, none of these are pix of the tattoos, they are, mostly, pictures of brothers representing, some in prison, some on the street, and you can see tattoos. Some clearly, some not so clearly. If that would be of interest, I'll get some up, but if you really want to see the tattooing plainly, most of them won't interest you. I tattooed a purple daisy on the lower calf of a fairly notorious sniper/killer from back in the early seventies...

We have had our second rescue/adoptee dog coming up 10 days now , he's a five month Staff x .

This thing followed me home today and I kept it. (Actually, My friend drove it home, I followed to make sure it made it there.) '74 VW Beetle. Bought it off a college kid for $2k. It's completely street legal, starts first time every time. Everything on it works. Basic transportation for me and a ton of fun to drive. Plenty of potential to do stuff with it. I got it bought, titled, registration, tags, and insured all before time to go pick up the missus from work today. "Twas a good day!" Besides, It has a tractor muffler with a flapper for exhaust. You just cant beat that.

Saw some more about that Scott Sparks kid recently... apparently, he's a trust fund kid from Ohio, got lots of tattoos to try to fit into the Cali hardcore scene, bailed after he finished a tattoo apprenticeship, and is now trying to be a swagtastic rapper who's all about weed, money, and girls who may or may not be ratchet. Thankfully, no one in the rap game knows who Judge or Earth Crisis are, so his face won't bring up awkward questions... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQ8FJ-PE4mA

@Delicious French is stupid? If you see your professors again tell him that he can go f* himself :P I think it is more of an old grudge than an actual difficulty. @Graeme Nous allons peut-être nous croisé à la convention de cette année :P Je n'ai malheureusement pas pu y assister l'an dernier malheureusement. J'aurais beaucoup apprécié aller à ma première convention de tatouages!

thanks for the reply! i will be more considerate next time

Thanks @jade1955 and @gougetheeyes Paris was a blast and if they put it on next year I'll probably go again, although I maybe only got for two or three tattoos this time...

I'm feeling this way too. Big thigh piece scheduled in July and everyday I stress over how I'll save enough money and time off of work. Ueeggghhh.

@Graeme et @Mushu, je suis très jalouse! Vous parlez et ecrivez assez bien, mais pour moi, le français est difficile. Je peux apprendre assez rapidement, mais, c'est difficile a souvenir les verbes avec leur changements. Avec être, je ne me souvienne pas bien tous les "tenses and agreements". Je ne comprenais jamais le subjonctif. Aussi, mon accent est terrible, mais vous avez l'avantage de vivre en Canada, où habitent-ils beaucoup de gens qui parlent le français, et c'est leur langue maternelle. Lol en Californie, où je habite, les gens parlent l'anglais ou l'espangole seulement. Tout mes profs m'ont dit que le français est très stupide, et j'aurai besoin de l'espangole quand je serai plus agée. J'ai beaucoup de fier maintenant, parce-que j'ai ecrit cette poste sans un dictionnaire. - - - Updated - - - added to the end of that, i normally do not need a dictionary to write in french, but i was pretty stumped trying to convey my thoughts in that post

Je pense que vous avez ecrit trés bien, au moins meilleur que moi...hehehhe Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

@Dan S I'd be interested in seeing, literally, anything from your life.

Ive got several homemade handpokes, they were all done by 'real' artists though, some in my house, some not haha

I posted this link one time before, but it is probably pertinent to your question, or at least interesting ;) Microscopics… « mortui vivos docent

Adopting a dog was one of the best things I have done in my life.

One thing I love about still being in school is the ability to request pretty much any book through the library, thanks to this thread my school will be buying Bodies of Subversion and checking it out to me in a week or so, and because I'm a graduate student I can keep them for months at a time.

Just taken out a mortgage for these. Anyone tried them?

they don't. everyone in norway is totally criminal so they can survive. you see senior citizens mugging tourists during summer and such. ooor maybe they make enough money so the prices doesn't bother them as much as us others visiting.

Here's the beginning of a nice piece. This is my brother-n-law, he received his first tattoo at GoldRush last June. He and I participated in walk-in saturday! He's been hooked ever since. He lives up in Salt Lake City and this tattoo was done by our very own @missStark who works at Anchor Ink in Salt Lake City.

I shave (or at least buzz down) the area to be tattooed. My tattooers seem to appreciate it. I didn't have time once before a belly session. My homeboy just shrugged his shoulders and handed me the razor and he manned the spray lol. We had a good laugh. Suggestion: if you are getting the area between your belly button and diack worked on, tame your pubes and wear clean underwear.

@asradin unstoppable! SIX tattoos?! Also, really glad that demon head is on an LSTer.. always warms the heart when that connection is made..

@asradin amazing collection from Paris. Well done to you.

Worked some more on my back yesterday with Mike Rubendall And then a new one today from Thomas Hooper

I just youtubed this guy and I miss when having lots of tattoos meant you were in a band like this:

Got this from Eli Quinters at Smith Street at the beginning of the month.

Thanks! They both turned out even better than I thought they would. Now I just have to figure out the what, when, where, and how for my next. Hopefully there won't be a 9 month period in between tattoos this time.

Maybe it's because I joined the Instagram recently, but seems like just a steady stream of these profiles about girls and guys with tattoos. I try to be good about following people who follow us, so I see this stuff in my feed. With all the things I said before intact don't you think people should have to have more than a handful of tattoos to be considered a tattoo model, also it would probably help if the tattoos were showing instead of just a close up of someone cleavage or some dude's six pack abs and the tiniest portion of a tattoo in the corner of the picture. Do you really need to be nude to show off your wrist tattoo, I mean I appreciate the female form as much as the next guy, maybe more than the next guy, but the idea of modeling is kind of a joke when every 20 something who takes a self portrait with their IPhone is being featured as a "model" .

I've been going to one shop (Kings Ave Tattoo) but getting tattooed by different people there. So far just guest artists, but I plan on getting almost all of my future tattoos there by their in-house artists. I have such a high level of trust with them. Every one there kills it and the shop houses a variety of styles if I ever wanted something else. Also, they are super nice and I know I can walk in there and be treated well and taken care of. I feel like getting tattooed by one person has its pros and cons, but I would rather expand my options. Also, I love the idea of "collecting" tattoos. I'm looking forward to when I'm really old and showing a tattoo and being like "got this from______ back in _____" and every one starts freaking out. Kind of like Dan S :)

I like this one Zac Scheinbaum did: If you got a battle royale there instead you would never have a boring day again because there would be a fucking eagle fighting a snake fighting a dragon on your arm. Williamsburg.

Tattooed guys talking about how they don't like tattooed women give me the douche chills.

@Dashenka, life is very very short. We might as well do the things that make us happy.

did anyone catch this gem on their Instagram feed today?

As an old fart, I gots to agree. I had my left ear pierced when I was 12 years old, and have worn a stud in it since then, got my left nipple pierced when I was 18, it's still open, but I don't wear anything in it. My oldest gauged his ears out when he turned 18, but figured it out an leaves em empty. I've offered to take a tin-snip to 'em, but for some reason, he won't let me...they're closing up anyhow. I know, I know. Back in the day, when I got my ear pierced, the oldtimers (like me) were telling each other how faggy and shitty it looked. Every generation has it's own thing, maybe the next big fad will be plates in the lips. I do believe the Mursi are the present masters of this, but it's been around quite a few African-and even one Easter-Euro culture for quite some time. All that said, hey, if it's your thing, go for it! I've done too much wrong in my life to be judgemental of anyone else, whether it's how they look, who they sleep with, or what they do to their body.

Don't know if this has been brought up, but when people ask for something feminine it kind of confusing to me, usually because each person means something different and usually has nothing to do gender. First usually the person is asking you to give gender characteristic to either an intimate object like a ship, a gender neutral design like a flower, or animal where male and female aren't really that different, my example of this would be an owl. Usually it's not a case of slapping a pair of tits or an evening dress or a tiara on the tattoo. I mean usually they are referring to not making the drawing as bold or to not use as much black, sometimes they want the drawing more new school or cartoon like. Sometimes it's the colors they want you to use in the tattoo. I usually point out that femininity can't really be lost by getting a tattoo, which is what people are putting into these young girls heads.

We have the love and hate one up on the wall twice one right side, one upside down. IF you pick the love it's 20 dollars cheaper, but haven't had anyone notice it yet or get it for that matter. Have had a couple people come in recently with stuff like this, but I can't remember what the ones they wanted said. I think one was beloved and cursed.

Megan Wilson posted this on Instagram recently with the caption "San Quentin/Folsom Prison Body Suit":

Oh man...I have a coworker who has four tattoos (that I've seen) of pretentious Latin phrases in a Roman font--all upside down. Two on his forearms, one on each foot, and I'm sure a few more that I've not had the pleasure of seeing. Homeboy's starting to look a little "Memento." I don't know why shit like that gets me so heated--as my wife pointed out, they're not my tattoos, so I don't have to like them--but god damn! It just makes me think that he doesn't actually like tattoos. /rant

This was a good read, I got my g/f a nice japanese sleeve 2 years from a good friend of mine. Her parent's reactions were very obvious they were not happy she got her 1st tattoo a huge sleeve of a snake, and peonies with clouds. Her mother's response ofc was that it was way too much, and it didn't make her seem lady like. Each time she had her appointment, they would get upset, and say it's too much! Each time, I would bite my tongue on instances like this due to respect of her parents, and also because I live with them. Slowly, I would ask them, what makes it "too much" and why do you think it is that way for you? They are very old school on the idea of being heavily covered and think it is more of a infatuation and ritzy than anything else. Slowly they accepted that what she has, and who she is will always make her "feminine" enough, regardless how tattooed you are. My brother in law also, thinks that women with tattoos are trashy, which I don't understand, he grew up with the 80s punk scene, skating, and has every vinyl of awesome punk music, and has a subhumans tattoo himself. All in all, I find that modern society clings to beliefs of how they were cultured or raised about the idea of being "feminine" and what is "feminine". Being proactive with the public about questions and educating them to me; is much better than giving someone a negative reaction. The general public, will always look, and dart stares, regardless where you are. You are tattooed, you should expect to be approached, and questioned. I myself, did find it annoying, but now I take it with a grain of salt and take it in with a positive learning experience. Respectively, my dad hated the fact I was getting heavy coverage when I decided to start my 2nd sleeve when I was 21. Now that I have opened his eyes, and explained to him how tattoo culture is, where it came from, and why I did it, he doesn't think of it as so taboo.

i dont personally think its my job or any other tattooed females to change people's preconceived ideas of tattooed women/people. i dont particularly want to educate them either, these beliefs of theirs tend to be pretty ingrained anyway. its no lost cause but i take each case by case, if they seem genuinely interested, i will take a minute to be polite, they want some freakshow ill tell them where to go.

Props to my wife for starting a really interesting topic! It is interesting to see the response out there. I am not a fan of the "if you have tattoos, then you waive your right to privacy." My own mother said that to me once. No one waives their right to privacy simply because they decide to decorate their body with something they warrant as attractive or has some meaning to them. It follows the rule your parents taught you as a child: It's impolite to stare. I don't have that many tattoos [yet], and the few I do have are hidden on a general basis. That being said I don't have to endure the same stares, comments, and criticisms as those that are heavily tattooed. Especially the ladies out there. But, when people find out I have tattoos, I am generally bombarded with the "what is it; where'd you get it; what does it mean?" questions. I don't have a problem answering but, I have yet to get to the point of people stopping me every twenty feet to ask about them. The notion, I think, the ladies have to deal with is three-fold. First, there is a preconceived notion that women are supposed to be sweet and demure; and tattoos seem to be counter-intuitive to those of this frame of mind. Most of the controlling interest in society is still of the generation, or a strong product of that generation, that women are supposed to behave lady-like. They do not think that a woman can have tattoos and still be lady-like. I know that may sound hyper-conservative, not to mention horribly sexist, but I challenge you to look at it from this point of view. How often, ladies in particular, have you gone on a job interview and accidentally flashed a wrist tattoo? Did you notice if your interviewer changed demeanor once they saw it? If things were going so well, then the tattoo was revealed and you didn't hear back from them; why do you think that happened? Unfortunately, not matter how the culture may be changing, the corporate world is still controlled by those that have an issue with tattoos in the workplace; especially ladies with tattoos. Second, tattoos on a woman are like adding flourish to art work. As an artist, the feminine form is a masterpiece. There is a reason why they are called the fairer sex. Everyone, regardless of gender, enjoys looking at women. We like how they move, and look. It is a subconscious attraction. When we watch the Red Carpet specials we are there to see the ladies in their expensive gowns, and fabulous hair styles; and comment accordingly. We only notice men if they have a strong charisma, charm, or personality; which is what makes them truly attractive. Otherwise men fade into the background. Humanity has admired a woman's beauty since the stone age. Why do you think that there are more works of art about women than men? Look at the Masters and their portfolios. More often than not women are a prominent focus to their work. Add tattoos to that subconscious attraction and you create a monster that will stop at nothing to absorb every curve and detail. That is what creates the people that ogle as a tattooed woman walks past. Finally, the last reason is actually quite horrible; but I think it is truthfully worth mentioning. The final reason is that society thinks that a woman that has tattoos is only in it for the attention. Like I said, it is heartless, as I know most women are not of that mindset when they get tattoos. For some reason there is a preconceived notion, again among the older crowd and their lackies, that women who wear "girly" clothes [i.e.: tank tops, skirts, sleeveless dresses, etc] and reveal their ink are being show-offs. I, in no way, agree with this statement, and I do think that the dynamic is changing, but there are a few hold-outs that feel this way. I want to go on record to say that the above is just guess work on my part. I am not omniscient and do not know what people are really thinking. I am only going on what I have gleaned from conversations with people over the years about the topic; and what I see on a daily basis. Observations and opinions run rampant and, like artistic critique, everyone's interpretation is different. I am part of the culture and, along with my wife, feel that this is a topic that needs to be more openly discussed to break down the perceptions of others; especially the individuals that find something taboo about our artistic expression. It has been said here before: If we can change one person's perception of tattoos, then we have moved a step in the right direction.