"It's a commitment...it's a part of who you are..."

I was brought up a middle-class, quasi-conservative, Catholic. There were some things I thought I was progressive in and others, I remained conservative. My first year in college, I ran into my best friend from high school who had joined the Marines and was on leave. I was amazed to find out he had gotten a tattoo...a unicorn on his arm. I said at that point that I would never get a tattoo...IT WAS TOO PERMANENT FOR ME!! And I closed that book for another 12 years.

In my experiences of being a gay man, particularly one interested in Leather and Bears, I found tattoos and piercing to be commonplace. I became less judgmental of them, but still drew the line when it came to me.

Then, in February of 1997, several things happened at once. My mom had been dead for several months. I was living with my father, who would occasionally drink and go off on me. He would allude to my homosexuality, but never saying anything outright. One night, he really went off on me. Also, during this time, I had to deal with spousal infidelity, "Should we or shouldn't we?" I told my other half he could and he did and I didn't realize how stupid I was. Needless to say, I felt very alone and wanted to do something that would remind me that I am an independent person and one that doesn't have to rely on others for my happiness.

I had toyed with getting a tattoo by that point and thought "why not?" Truth be told, I was rebelling against the three most important people in my life. Tattoos can be rebellious, and most of the designs you see in shops are meant to provoke attention, such as the naked women, ax-wielding skeletons and so on. Tattoos gain more "mainstream" acceptance when the design is less provocative. Now, I see tattoos as a commitment to oneself and an expression of a part of oneself.

I was still scared to do it, so I asked one of my friends, David, to come along. I had several ideas when I walked in the door, but soon pitched them all when I saw a Celtic dragon on their wall...I knew that is what I was going to get. It was pretty busy that night, and I almost chickened out several times. If David had not been with me, I would have. I was successful in talking David into getting one also. It took an hour and 40 minutes. It's in black ink on my right hip. I wasn't quite ready to go that public.

On December 31, 1997, I was ready to go that public and the black Celtic design you see to the left and at the top of every page is now an band on my right arm. On December 30, 1998, I took the third dip into the tattoo pool! The design on my upper right chest is a celtic knot design made up of my initials: J E C... see if you can find them...

Here are some tips if you are even remotely thinking about getting a tattoo:

• If you don't know what you want, visit several tattoo shops and see what images they have to offer. Some will only do customized work and that can be expensive. If you want a customized design, try to walk in with it ready to go.
• Make sure you know how much a design will cost and how much time it will take to do. Start with something small or simple.
• Go on a Saturday morning or as early as possible. Why? Because you need to keep the bandages on for at least 24 hours, which means you really can't shower during that time. Of course, it does depend on where you get it. And if you sleep a lot, that will take up a big chunk of time. I got my first tattoo on a whim, late on a weeknight and didn't plan for it. I went to work the next day without a shower and I felt awful.
• Make sure you've eaten beforehand. My friend almost passed out because he hadn't anything to eat. DON'T DRINK ALCOHOL...it thins the blood and you'll bleed like a stuck pig.
• Even after the first day, you can not let shower water hit the tattoo directly for two weeks ... another thing to plan for. Otherwise, the heat and water leech the color from your skin. Same thing with hot tubs and tanning booths.....
• Make sure they use the highest sanitary conditions possible. Needles and razors should be used once on you and thrown away.

Here are some links...I try to keep current ones, but they may be outdated....These few should link you to all the information you would ever need...

BME -- Body Modification E-zine

TRIBAL TATTOO -- Links to tattoo homepages....some are outdated...beyond my control

THE TATTOO WEBRING HOMEPAGE--This will register your homepage for the webring.

TATTOO LINKS -- Links and FAQ's (Frequently Asked Questions)