SeeSea

@1981 - I love the sea horse - he looks like he just realized he's about to be someone's breakfast! :)

So, are you dumping in a couple Ciders or Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum?

@BrianH - If you can identify the high end of the going rate in your field, go straight to the top. Since you've been gone for a while and they need your experience, DO NOT let them negotiate off your old salary. That old salary is out the window. It is not a starting point and don't let them use it as one. And be straight with them if they try to do so. Get them to ID your responsibilities (even if they are the same) and negotiate based on those responsibilities and what the market will bear. And then add some because you are already "up to speed". Good luck!

AMAZING how they can do that! I have one of those. Just when you think he's in, he manages to catch one toenail on the edge of the door. Rotten kitteh. Maybe we should set up some high speed photography and design a new type of cat box.

@Mush - wow - hell of a sitting! Keep posting pics - that will be awesome!

Tuck this somewhere for fun.

Just posted this elsewhere, but it belongs here: I just tried Smith and Forge yesterday. Decent - more body than most I've had lately, with a strong apple taste and nearly no carbonation. Some are so over carbonated. This stuff is clearly marketed to men. It's made by Miller Coors, 6%. Anyway, I'm certainly not throwing the rest out of the fridge, but I've got many more to sample.

@Mick - no, I haven't. Looks like I have yet another one to add to the list! I just tried Smith and Forge yesterday. Decent - more body than most I've had lately, with a strong apple taste and nearly no carbonation. Some are so over carbonated. This stuff is clearly marketed to men. Anyway, I'm certainly not throwing the rest out of the fridge, but I've got many more to sample. I promise to move any other reviews to the Cider thread http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/random-crap/6011-cider-snobs.html

Welcome! Uh oh. Hopefully it's a pretty big watch. There won't be a lot of detail in something that small, if you want to make anything out in a mirror. You can keep chatting here about it. In fact, it's kinda nice because other folks have done that, and then come back to their intro thread and posted pics of what they finally got! It makes for a nice complete story.

The length of your session depends on several factors. Others around here can add more. - The size of the tattoo. If it's small, couple hours, it's easy to sit through in one session. If you don't, you will be mocked and ridiculed. Maybe even to your face. If it's larger and your tattooer has the expectation you'll sit for the whole thing in one sitting, you do it or try your damnedest. - Your tattoo artist's scheduling methods. Some only schedule in well defined time slices, for example, 3 hours. If the tattoo takes longer than that, you sit multiple sessions. If your tattoo artist schedules open-ended sessions, then you'll go until he finishes whatever goal he set for the session. This could be time or a particular part of the tattoo. Or, he'll keep going until you absolutely can't take another second and you have to tap out. No one likes to tap out. It's a sign of moral weakness, contributes to global warming, and will cast poorly upon your family and children. Even after many hours, it's so psychologically awesome to hear, "Ok, we've reached a good stopping point" instead of crying silently into your hand and whimpering that you're sorry you just can't take it any more. The silence that follows such an abject admission is enough to curdle milk and paralyze small dogs. - The body part. Personally, I can't speak to many body parts because I'm only working on a back piece, but yes, location can play a role. (Although your back, in terms of pain, is it's own set of differing body parts.) My one and only tap out was after 5 hours on the top/middle of my back that included spine down to the bottom of my ribs and the bones of one shoulder blade. Apparently, many think the shoulder blade isn't bad. My next session is to do the second coat in that area. I'm queasy just thinking about it. - Your own preparation. How you prepare for your session has a big effect - some may argue that good preparation plays as big a role as where on the body you plan to get tattooed. If you go in tired, hung over, or on an empty stomach, body part may matter very little.

Welcome! The length of your session depends on several factors. Others around here can add more. - The size of the tattoo. If it's small, couple hours, it's easy to sit through in one session. If you don't, you will be mocked and ridiculed. Maybe even to your face. If it's larger and your tattooer has the expectation you'll sit for the whole thing in one sitting, you do it or try your damnedest. - Your tattoo artist's scheduling methods. Some only schedule in well defined time slices, for example, 3 hours. If the tattoo takes longer than that, you sit multiple sessions. If your tattoo artist schedules open-ended sessions, then you'll go until he finishes whatever goal he set for the session. This could be time or a particular part of the tattoo. Or, he'll keep going until you absolutely can't take another second and you have to tap out. No one likes to tap out. It's a sign of moral weakness, contributes to global warming, and will cast poorly upon your family and children. Even after many hours, it's so psychologically awesome to hear, "Ok, we've reached a good stopping point" instead of crying silently into your hand and whimpering that you're sorry you just can't take it any more. The silence that follows such an abject admission is enough to curdle milk and paralyze small dogs. - The body part. This thread can shed some light: http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/general-tattoo-discussion/206-most-painful-spot-get-tattooed.html. Personally, I can't speak to many body parts because I'm only working on a back piece, but yes, location can play a role. (Although your back, in terms of pain, is it's own set of differing body parts.) My one and only tap out was after 5 hours on the top/middle of my back that included spine down to the bottom of my ribs and the bones of one shoulder blade. I've had many sessions longer than this. Apparently, many think the shoulder blade isn't bad. My next session is to do the second coat in that whole area. I'm queasy just thinking about it. - Your own preparation. How you prepare for your session has a big effect - some may argue that good preparation plays as big a role as where on the body you plan to get tattooed. If you go in tired, hung over, or on an empty stomach, body part may matter very little. Anything else to add, anyone?

@Graeme - yes, having the day dedicated to the session is nice. I generally work a half day and try to lay down for an hour or so before I head to the shop. Even more important IMO is not having to work the next day. Have a good session - sit strong!

The importance of breakfast aftercare. Johnny Appleseed cider. A little sweet but good for a post tattoo morning meal.

I'm doing a Monmon for a sweet kitty who crossed the bridge in June. There are some other artists currently doing the Monmon style, but IMO, there's nothing but the original. I saw one the other day on Instagram and it just doesn't have the spark.

Every time I have a session, I take a picture of the ink cups with all the different colors we're using for the session. Today is a happy palette with green, yellow, dark green, orange, black, white and two different color blues. I'm going to make a little slide show/video when this is all over and use some of these pictures. I don't want to forget some of the interesting details of this experience. Speaking of which, I should probably include a screen shot of this thread! Good times. Hey @Graeme - are you doing the grind today or tomorrow?

Advils for the win. I don't notice a bleeding problem, but it helps with the swelling and to help me sit. I've got some screwed up back/pelvis issues that make sitting in any position painful.

Maybe we need a thread for places we'd all like to visit, and who on LST is along the way. Come on over! :)

[Delete post, replaced by obligatory non-sequitur] Italian Word of the Day: "Ebola" "I pick-a Guiseppe for my bowling team because he Ebola perfect game every time."

Fodder for another perfect comparison. I've used comparisons as superlatives when people try to extract from me how much this costs. Hmmm. A mani-pedi (manicure and pedicure) with fance-shmancy goofy designs on each one at a mid-level place with tip can get to $100. And let's assume a round $150 tattoo per-hour rate. Say the Housewives of (insert your favorite suburban/metro area here) have their nails done every two weeks. Let's even stick them with some chipped nails and say every 3 weeks. Let's contrast that with a 3 hour tattoo session with tip at $500 (NO TIP COMMENTS PLEASE). A break-even on these babies is 4 months. In other words, if you have a tattoo session less frequently than once every 4 months, then you spend less than the nail girls do. So it's easy to say, "yeah, my getting tattoos costs less than nail maintenance for those who regularly paint their nails." (Ok, not ME in particular, but you get the idea. :)) Sorry Bunny - I know you'd say screw any type of justification, but your comment reminded me of the plainskins thread and things to say to derail such questions from well-meaning friends without sounding like an ass. [Edited to correct typo]

Oh @Mick Weder thank you for the reminder. I'm again staying with friends tonight - and the larder is cider depleted! Must avoid another travesty of nature again! I'm hoping to find another interesting brand this time around - I have a nice list from the http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/random-crap/6011-cider-snobs.html thread.

You probably still have time to edit your post and paste in an off-color joke or something. ;) Maybe that's the universal sign of posting regret - randomly placed jokes and non-sequitur comments.

Welcome! The deck looks really nice.

Welcome, and I second the motion!

Check here for all sorts of "boob out all over the place" advice: http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/general-tattoo-discussion/5371-ladies-thread.html "Only been 6 hours ..." that's damn good. It seems that the body starts giving out after 5-6 hours from what I read and my own experience. I made it to 8 once in the wee hours of the morning, but I was in a sorry state. As much as I've fine-tuned managing proper hydration, temperature control (warmth) and food, I think the body just runs out of reserves. And then there's the mental fortitude. Truth be told, that goes a loooong way. Countless times I've had to yell at myself to put on my big girl pants and suck it up. Mantras and a lot of self talk. My last couple of sessions, we were watching documentaries on a big screen in the room, and I found that I was distracted from the pain more during one of them because I was getting pissed off at what an idiot the narrator was. ;) She'll probably have advice about sitting long, but it would probably be good to schedule some nap time, or at least some bits of time away from the machine where you can recharge your nerves. Perhaps a couple good solid breaks each day.

This is NOT my back yard, but I wish it was! So much fun! https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10151658937849364