RoryQ

@hogg Nice! I have same idea when I get around to it.

I asked myself if I wanted sleeves badly enough that I was willing to wear long sleeve shirts during the hottest days of summer. (I was / am, so that was fine.) I don't have to depend on anyone else "accepting" anything as long as I'm willing to do that. Now, neck and hands, that would be rolling the dice.

To me they are a luxury in the sense that ... let's be clear ... paying the mortgage or paying for my son's needs (yes, his wants as well as his needs) are ahead. I have a few paintings that have accrued in value since I bought em- enough that I guess they count as an investment. I hesitate to say tattoos could be an investment in that sense ... for obvious reasons. No re-sale value. But... I would prioritise spending my truly disposable income on them because, as Graeme said, they're gonna be there till death. You get "use" out of your tattoos daily. So much enjoyment and good memories. In terms of their perceived value: It's interesting to me that most people here (Ireland) don't consciously recognise the cost. When I see someone with big work then - if they aren't obviously patronising scratchers - then I know they are *probably* either someone with a good enough income that they can afford it out of disposable income OR someone who can budget and exercise restraint to save up. Either way, I admire / approve of that.

Nice! He's come to AllStar in Limerick twice... Maybe next time I'll try and catch him.

I'm going to mention Mo Coppoletta (The Family Business Tattoo). Mo is not a 'tattoo community' guy and he doesn't put pictures of his work online anymore. No secret I've got a lot of work by him, but to me he is just getting better and better.

Take care Mark, was nice meeting you this summer.

Since Oliver M. is out of town when I'm in London I think I might try to get a walkin at Modern Classic Tattoo in Fullham tomorrow. Will see how things proceed!

I think a Nimoy portrait would be really cool and still memorialise your friend in a meaningful way. If you feel strongly about the Hebrew lettering and flames then ... Why not... If the design shown was executed in a clean way it could look better than the sketch, which must have been intended to give a rough idea (guessing here). The lettering to me - non Jew here, but I do love Trek - almost looks like spiky tribal ... maybe the artist intended that - it's not a good or a bad thing btw. Either way, what matters is whether you will be happy wearing it.

My reading of the story is that the judge made the order on the basis that she could contract HIV or Hepatitis or similar as a result of getting tattooed. There's also mention of her having been tested, window periods etc. To me, if that is the primary concern of the court, it seems like the judge shouldn't stop there ... Why not ban her from drinking alcohol in excess, having unprotected sex etc. also? The odds of her getting HIV from a tattoo are vanishingly small in comparison with other risky life activities. I think that's the main silliness of the story. For what it's worth my wife is still breastfeeding our son and just started a big side piece. He's over a year old and there have been no bumps in the road so far. I think where any kind of illness could pose a problem is in the early stages of nursing, the first few weeks or months, moreso than down the road when the baby is eating solids and whatnot as well. Maybe we're cavalier about these things in our house but we haven't worried about it overly. Breastfeeding seems to result in such positive health outcomes for babies (and arguably mothers too) that I would venture to say a judge should have no business making this kind of order without pretty pressing grounds for doing so, in my opinion, not just because of the effect it will have on the family in question but for the broader signal it sends out potentially. It's kind of depressing here in Ireland to see how many mothers who might want to try breastfeeding have formula pushed upon them almost immediately, even though ostensibly we're supposed to be trying to improve the rate at which women breastfeed. The main reason I posted the story, though, is that it illustrates a judge with a pretty skewed perception of the health risks associated with getting tattooed are. We'd have more than a few HIV cases on this board at the rate we get tattooed here, if his fears were well-founded. I suspect he's not the only one out there of that generation in positions like that who holds those sorts of ideas.

Also, don't people take out regular loans for things anymore?

Going over for a wedding either way so it's no biggie. If I was coming over special then I'd have been more put out probably.

Aargh, Oliver M. (FST) can't tattoo me next week after all. Resisting urge to book someone else just for the sake of it.

I've never heard of an allergic reaction or infection arising from out of tattooing making breast milk unsafe to consume... I know my wife would be interested - are there many cases you're aware of or are there any resources / articles on this out there? Fascinated as to how the judge will enforce his no breastfeeding ban though! Given his concerns you'd think he would have banned her from risky sexual practices too.

Reading what I write it sounds like I'm doing 2-3 sets of 20-25 reps for someone those movements... Which I'm not. The 20-25 thing is a Dan John idea for total reps if you're training nearly every day. Today was more like- 3x5 -16kg KB prying goblet squat -halo -hip extension 10x10 16kg 1 handed KB swings 2x10/10 lunges with 16kg KB 2x10 paused push-ups 2x5 strict pull-ups 8 mins 1 arm 32kg suitcase KB carry This is my fourth day in a row and although it isn't a lot of work it adds up. Should be adding reps / weight in some cases.

Mother banned from breastfeeding because of tattoo Mother banned from breastfeeding because of tattoo Guess my wife needs to stop feeding the baby. Bloody hell.

I'm doing a version of Dan John's / Pavel Tsactsouline's 40 day workout. Lately StrongFirst (Pavel's new organisation) has been calling this a 'movement-based workout' because it ticks the boxes for all the major movement patterns you might want to train - a push, a pull, a hinge, a squat and a loaded carry. It's best worked out as a relatively high-frequency workout so you might be training 3-5 times a week with this. I'm doing some prying goblet squats, haloes and a posterior chain movement to warm up. For the work sets the movements I picked are (at the moment) weighted lunges, pushups, kettle bell swings and pull-ups. These are relatively light exercises in terms of loading. I'm using this more as a back-garden summer workout. Keeping things in the 20-25 rep range for all of the movements except the kettle bell swing (100 reps) and pull-ups (10-15). Usually 2-3 sets per movement. I've been managing to get in 1-2 aikido classes a week. The instructor runs a very high tempo class so even though it's undoubtedly a less physically demanding martial art than muay thai or brazilian jiu jitsu, I'm calling it my cardio.

Right now: Hemlock Grove season 2... Continuum... Sons of Anarchy...

I think it can look great. Oliver Mackintosh at FST indeed springs to mind- some of his panthers he has done in a more trad style than other parts of his portfolio, for example? It can also age beautifully, which was one reason, at the time, I decided to get my back piece just in black and grey.

In fairness, if the OP loves lifting that much... Why not?

Starting Strength? If you don't have a lot of other tattoos or any major future plans I would think the ribs would fit. It'll be painful but I'm sure Ripp would tell you to suck it up ;) Might go a good idea to drop the text and just go with the low bar back squat diagram.

I'm just at the end of four days in Stockholm. My wife did two days getting her side panel started by Calle Corson at King Carlos. A really giant peony (picture on his IG if anyone is interested). I've been here before for work but this time I was just minding my son- so we were in every park and playground I could find. Cool city. Expensive but that's a bit like complaining Dublin is wet. Of course it is.

RIP Const. Woodall.

That's irritating, no doubt. Great looking tattoo though. You might be interested in this thread btw, it's somewhat related:- http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/general-tattoo-discussion/4151-artists-who-copy-tattoos-styles.html

Of course I'm glad tattoos hurt: I agree it's an integral part of keeping them for the dedicated only... Willing to sit and take it for the lifetime reward of the tattoo. But... I got to admit that I stopped philosophising too earnestly about the educational or self improving nature of the pain the time I got my front lined out. It wasn't a relevatory experience for me ... I just felt like I got carved up! I guess I found my personal tipping point that day. Small tattoos, or decent pieces most places on the body... I can grin and bear it and, yes, I probably learned a thing or two about managing pain mentally. Even my back piece was pretty Ok. But a really long sessions on a sensitive place like the torso or ribs... mostly just makes me miserable end of story. Can't make a purse from a sow's ear.

Just on Jezebel, this article and really journalism in general: As a news junkie one of the downsides of the move from print media to online for me is that "click bait" articles seem here to stay. It doesn't matter if it's contrived, deliberately provocative or just plain badly written... If it gets the hits then it apparently fits a (short sighted) business model. Already with The Guardian in the UK there is a divergence between the print paper and website. You'll find nutty pieces online you won't in print. BTW, on that original article, what was her obsession with the guy's on-the-fly analogy... Is he supposed to be a tattooer or a professor of English!?