I Remember My First Tattoo
All my life I wanted a tattoo . My Uncle Ray had a hula girl tat on his leg and he could make her dance. Every time we went to the beach with my cousin I would beg Uncle Ray to make her dance (much to the chagrin of my mother) and he always laughed and made her hula for me :) I was only 3 but I thought that was the cat's pyjamas and I wanted one!! Okay, fast forward a few years and I found out you had to let them use a needle to give you that tat. HOLY CRAP!!! I thought about it and decided I didn't want a tattoo anymore, I would just admire them from afar.
As the years passed, the desire for my own tattoo only became stronger....aah, but so did my fear of needles :( Some would tell me it didn't hurt at all, just a buzzing sensation, and others would be honest and say it hurt like hell if you got one on your foot, ribs or down the center of your back so just be careful of the placement and it wouldn't be too bad. Hmmm.....I still put it off thinking it was just a whim on my part and I'd be happy without one of my own. Not true!!
Last year (yes, I know I'm old but I feel you shouldn't rush into these things!) I finally got up the courage to have my first tattoo. I decided to get a small tat on my back, upper right shoulder, and drew out a picture of exactly what I wanted. I asked a friend of mine to go with me for moral support. Okay I'll be honest, it was so I wouldn't run! We went out to eat and I had a very large Margarita. We stopped to visit a friend and I had another very large Margarita. My friend thought we should definitely make one more stop on this lovely Saturday night to have a drink (biggest Margarita I've ever seen) and a dance. He was on to me, he knew if he didn't liquor me up I'd never go through with it! Smart man :) When it appeared I was good and giggly he said it was time....dum da dum dumm......we were on the way to the Golden Lotus tat shop. Suddenly, my palms were sweaty, my heart was racing, and my mouth was so dry I couldn't swallow! Oh gawd this was it.....
I thought I did quite well! I only cried twice, gritted my teeth until my lips went numb, and grabbed a part of the tat artist that I will not mention here but, needless to say, the poor man still cringes when he runs into me in town. I know what you're thinking, "Geez what a woose!" Yep, I'm thin skinned and made out of marshmallow cream and have NO problem admitting to being a baby when you stick a needle in me!! There aren't enough Margaritas on the planet to make me smile while having a tattoo. We stopped off at the local 24 hr. drug store to pick up Aquaphor and antibacterial soap and , of course, ran into everyone I knew. It was break time for the local cops and every one of them insisted on dragging the bandage off to take a look at the masterpiece. This is when the adrenaline rush decided to wear off and the Margaritas kicked in hard!! I was laughing and dancing all over the parking lot and my friend had to catch me and carry me back to the car before I was arrested by my friendly cops for public intox. (They still laugh and threaten to use the breathalyzer when they see me lol) It is a Saturday night I will not soon forget!
I was able to get most of my first tattoo done in one sitting. The shamrock is beautiful, the flames shooting up from it are vivid and realisitic, and dude did a great job on the smoke curls even though I may have made his toes curl. I am supposed to go back and have writing put on but I haven't mustered up the courage for that yet..... one day, I promise to do it. When I get this small but beautiful tattoo in honor of being Celtic Wiccan completed, I think I will stop. It will be my first and my last tat and that night will forever be burned in my memory. (I figure my local tat guy just breathed a great sigh of relief!)
