smiling.politely

I can't remember if anyone else has posted these, but I came across this at an antique store a week or so ago. From the March 11, 1946 issue of Life Magazine. I'll upload some closer photos to my photo gallery in a few minutes...

i'm straight edge. i have a few shirts, and a few tattoos. but, i don't make any bigger a deal about it than that... where i live, most people not into music probably think i'm wearing a shirt advertising a ruler or a razor. the straight edge kids that make a huge deal about it in every day life are insecure, need a reason to feel special, and will probably break edge by the age of 24.

i'll just leave this here...

Forgot to post this in last month's contest... Got it done mid-fiancee visit, so I was too busy with sushi joints and Klingon Monopoly to be online. Also, in what may have been a small miracle, we got the stencil (which was two pieces) perfect on the first try. Josh Cruse JP Cruse Professional Tattooing Wichita, KS

started today with my boss... we decided that since we put a backpiece on my chest, we should do a chestpiece on my head. EDIT: just realized i forgot to mention... by Josh Cruse, of JP Cruse Professional Tattooing, in Wichita, KS. i'm used to posting things to my friends on Facebook, where i don't have to clarify as much.

one of my coworkers uses one of the water brushes, but as a way to make washes with solid water color. he's begun mixing that very painterly look with spit shading recently, and is getting some killer stuff knocked out. i'm still on regular ol' spit shading, but i wouldn't be opposed to at least trying one.

i give the standard "some mean something personal, some mean i like tattoos" line. although explaining the straight edge praying hands to little kids at the pool can be fun... since they seem to always think it means something about how i hate Jesus. so, they get a quick rundown on what it really means, then probably go back to thinking it means i hate Jesus in five minutes.

after joking about it a bit a few months ago, i'm booked in on a day off two weeks from now with my boss to do an eagle on the back of my head, with the wings wrapping around onto the sides. hopefully it waits a few weeks for it to go full winter on me, otherwise my ears may fall off.

i probably got a few visible guys done too early, by accepted considerations, as i have one hand and my knuckles done with one forearm and loads of huge spaces still bare. those large areas are spoken for (waiting for money and/or ability to travel for most). my parents have been getting tattooed well before i was born... i was around shops since preschool, knew of the negative mindset that some have towards tattoos, and thought over those tattoos for years. i know those factors led to the tattooer doing them, since he had known me and my parents, and knew i wasn't just after the tough guy look like a lot of people my age. that being said, i also knew that in the art-based lines of work i was considering when i got them done, visible tattoos wouldn't be an issue for most. seeing sculpture professors with big tattoos on their necks, and Tom Huck (the printmaker) covered from the fingers as far as i could see, i could still make it with hard work. once tattooing became the goal for sure, i knew it was a similar situation. i wouldn't advise anything visible or too crazy for most, unless they're dead set on a path where it's no issue.

80 miles is about as far as i've always travelled to get tattooed... and it's as far as i commute every day for work (until i get a bit of money saved up and move back to town). my roommate and i in college drove a few times just to set up his appointments for a month later when we were about 2.5 hours away. if it's the best option, it's worth it.

if that costume doesn't incite spontaneous U-S-A... U-S-A... chants, then people suck, and you should hit them with your 2x4.

i like that his checking on her was timed to the music so they wouldn't lose the beat. and that he ended the "catch everyone" bit early to keep up with the "singing." is 25 too young to disappointedly say "Kids these days."? EDIT: also, i'm not sure which i'd be more stoked for... a Civ tattoo, or seeing Gorilla Biscuits. preferably both.

DEFEND TROO POP PUNK! seriously, though... this is what "punk" looks like to kids growing up in the Disney Channel generation. at least they're honest about their vocal talent, though, and aren't using auto tune. that way, new kids at shows can hear how much they suck.

i saw a few of these on a blog awhile back, and was bummed they didn't source them. PROBLEM SOLVED. also, i have a degree in printmaking, and specialized in woodcuts and etchings. i made it all right around the time i really delved into learning tattoo imagery, and i've been wanting to make more to replace it all, since it's pretty rough. i don't even have access to a printing press right now, but this stuff reaaaaally makes me want to dig out the chisels again.

the back of my guitars have long been a repository for my favorite stickers. i have a few lining my TV as well, which was a bit distracting at first.

i have a full chest piece (or as it was described by my boss, a backpiece on my chest) started last November, and while it definitely felt like a really huge commitment, it's also the tattoo that's been the easiest for me to adjust to so far. usually, when i catch a view of a new one in the peripheral vision, it's a bit odd, or something seems out of place. for some reason, the biggest one i have yet just seemed like it had always been there. also, that Burk leopard is super rad!

it's a Boltz painting... somewhere aways back on the Smith Street blog, they have an image of someone who got it as a full thigh piece, and i believe it's the basic composition for Frank Carter's backpiece as well.

This one isn't on me, it's on my Dad. However, I started an apprenticeship near the end of the summer, and this was the 50th tattoo i've done. Obviously, there are things that could be better with it, but I was honored he let me do it (and basically let me do whatever i wanted). Jay Cavna design...

i don't have any upcoming plans set in stone, but my fiancee has a few hours with Chad Koeplinger on the 19th in Limerick, Ireland, and if she can afford it, she's on the waiting list for Oliver Peck soon after as well. she's taking advantage of some of the guest spots at All Star before she moves over to all the splendor of the Great Plains....

Should be no problem, sir! Also, i forgot why reading comments on videos is a terrible idea... hoping this fellow is trolling hard.

we have a big TV in the shop where i work that we just figured out how to stream things to (via a Blu Ray player). Tattoo Age all day for most of the last two weeks, sometimes with the sound off for music instead... i'm sure the random customers get tired of it at times. the new season should keep things exciting and new for us, since it's getting to be like our Rocky Horror Picture Show.

"If you controlled what they did, you'd just pass on your own rubbish tip of imperfections. You hope the next generation will be better, stronger, more generous." Thankfully, it seems that she at least succeeded at this goal, although probably not intentionally.

i saw the line drawing of this on the Red Megalith Facebook page when he posted it... me and the guys in the shop where i work spent some time drooling over it. times like this i'm glad i found this site. also, I NEED TO GET TO NEW YORK.

i'm at least glad that they're good at clean, readable graphic design, with a heavy emphasis on the hierarchy of information.

so far i'm batting .500 on still being straight edge. it's good enough for most who claim it, so it's good enough for me! (on a side note, it's all pure sarcasm... similar to when my friends ask if it's breaking edge to swear or think about girls.)