Pining for Piercings

I miss my piercings. Mostly my tongue, nose, and nipples. I could actually probably get away with having my tongue pierced as long as it was in the pink family or flat on the top instead of a ball. Though my work situation may be in flux in the near future, so perhaps I should hold off. I really want my lip pierced still, but that's just not gonna happen. There's really no way to hide it. I guess I'll just have to wait until I quit working for the man and become a bohemian poet.

When I told Jason how much my nipple piercings hurt, he was surprised. He thinks they were pierced too deep or something along those lines the first time. I'll buy it. Possibly TMI, but my nipples can put up with quite a bit of abuse and that almost brought me to tears. So if I decide to get them repierced, I'll get Jason to do it. I'm not shy. ;) It's not like I can afford it now anyway. My financial situation won't really be improving after all. I guess something to save up for? I was planning on taking a break from the tattoos, so maybe I'll go back to piercings.

Hrm...

Hillbillies and Freak Shows

Sunday is apparently my day to blog lately. Whatevs.

Russ and the Ink & Dagger crew are teaming up with Twain's and hosting a Halloween party. Alas, I will be in Virginia for a wedding on Halloween, so I won't be attending. So if you find yourself with nothing to do on Halloween, put on your hillbilly best and head over to Twain's. They're also doing $60-$100 Halloween themed tattoos during the day. I saw the flash sheet and they have some good stuff to choose from. Maybe next year for me...

Sat with Matt for the second session of his sleeve. They made his sword swallower look more masculine because apparently people couldn't tell that he was a he. Kurt was working on a really cool side piece. I love his work. Of course, doesn't make much sense to have someone's work you don't like on you.

I actually got to walk down the aisle at my friend's wedding without covering the tattoos at all. The airbrushing didn't work (as I'd suspected) so I just went au naturale. It was a great moment. I also got lots of compliments on them, which made me happy. All's well that ends well.

For Now...

I'm scheduled to get Misty finished on Nov. 7. I even put down a deposit this time, which I probably should've done last time. Lesson learned. I'll miss their Halloween party and $60-$100 Halloween tattoos because I'll be out of town. Lame. I'm sure I'll hear all about it afterwards. I always do.

Once I finish Beverly on Black Friday, which is the 27th this year, I think I'm done for a while. I'll get the filler for my left sleeve done at some point after Christmas because Meg's wedding is the Saturday before and to be done healing, it'd have to be done 2-3 weeks beforehand which would mean Beverly wouldn't be healed yet. So, I might as well wait until after everything is done and I have some Christmas/birthday money at my disposal.

My thigh is to the peeling and itching stage, which is my least favorite. Naturally all I want to do is soak in a nice bath, which can't happen for probably another week or so. This round has healed a lot better though, so I think he'll look nice for pictures. That's the point, after all.

Odds And Ends Part 308

Got my thigh touched up Thursday night. I sat for another hour and a half, so that brings the total up to 10 hours for just the one piece. It looks great, though. I haven't had many problems this time around. It's a little sore and if I sit for too long, it tightens up, but generally I'm doing much better than last time. When he's all healed up, we'll get proper pictures. Some gems from that night:

Russ: Damn girl, get a razor
Me: I never shave my thighs. You're the first guy to complain about it.
Russ: I'm the first guy to see it!

Jason: Jeremy gave me a lady head, too.
Russ: Jason, will you put on a wig and give me some lady head?
Jason: No, dude, that's gay.

After I was done, they insisted I watch some of these videos on YouTube. I'm convinced at least some of them are fake. But that's a whole other story for another time.

I bumped my appointment with Danielle to Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving). Now that all is smoothed over with Kurt, I'd like to get Misty finished after Halloween. I don't really have time to get her finished and healed before the weddings. Since I'm going to be airbrushed, everything needs to be all healed up.

I got sent home from BBW on Wednesday because my tattoos were showing. It was total bullshit, but there wasn't anything I could do about it. It was a floorset (read: don't need to abide by dress code), so I didn't think anything of wearing a t-shirt, plus I'd just come from the gym. A lady asked me about them and then the manager on duty got all huffy and sent me home over it. I talked to the store manager about it today and she said that while she saw the point, she could've handled it better. Frankly, it's so rare that we do floorsets during selling hours anyway I doubt it'll be an issue in the future, but it was still irritating. Of course, she had a chip on her shoulder for other reasons that I found out today. It made more sense when I figured that out. Doesn't give her an excuse to be all passive aggressive about it though.

Consults and Touch Ups

I had my consult with Danielle today for the last spot on my left arm. We decided to take this girl:

http://imagecache5.art.com/p/LRG/12/1285/NUQT000Z/billy-de-vorss-tie.jpg

And make her more gothic and sinister to fit with what I already have. She's actually going to have tattoos as well, which I think is gonna look awesome. I think we're gonna give her a full sleeve and flowers in her hair so she looks a little more like me. Danielle was really into it, which was also exciting. It's always way better when the artist is into it. So I'm set for Nov 4 and she thinks she can do it all in one session. Rock on.

I'm also set for my touch up with Russ. I'll be seeing him Thursday night. That'll be good to finally get done, though my thigh doesn't think so. It won't be nearly as bad as the last time, though. I should be able to walk just fine after just a touch up. Russ didn't seem to think it would take that long, so I figure it won't be that traumatic. I don't have much desire to walk around like a pirate for another 2 days.

I still haven't figured out what to get Kurt to atone for canceling on him. I'm really leaning toward the gift certificate for a nice dinner. Who doesn't like going out to dinner? I know I'd be pretty happy with that. So maybe I'll just go with that. I'll refresh my memory on the prices of the stuff at this place and determine how much seems right for a dinner with drinks and dessert. After all, might as well go whole hog. Then once I do that, I'll schedule the second session for Misty and stick to it. I'd like to get it done with enough time to be healed or mostly healed by the first wedding, so that puts me getting it done sometime next week. I guess we'll see. I still have to atone after all and I'll give him a ridiculously big tip. I gave him over 20% last time, so I think that's appropriate for this time around.

Also, a shout out to my friend Grace who got her first tattoo this week and it looks awesome. Congratulations, girl! Welcome to the club.

I Like To Watch

So Wednesday Matt started his sleeve. I actually ended up getting there not long after they got started. It's gonna be a really amazing piece when it's done. The concept is circus freak banner art, which is just cool to begin with. It was nice to watch someone else get poked for once. I got to show off some of my spelling and grammar skills. It's the small things in life.

Tomorrow Jenn starts her 3/4 sleeve. I'll be interested to see how it works with what she already has. It's always fun to see how these things grow. I'm sure when my sleeves are done, they'll look a lot more cohesive than they do now. Yes, I've decided I'll eventually have two full sleeves. My parents will swallow their tongues, so I think I'll ease them into it. I want the left one done first, but that probably won't happen before my birthday. I have to cover them up for the weddings and I don't want to have to fuck with more than I have to. I may have to finish Misty after the Halloween wedding so I know she'll heal right. It all depends on when I start getting paid a decent salary. I thought it would be in by this paycheck, but no dice. If it's not in by my next check, heads are gonna roll. I'm already on Kurt's shit list for canceling last Sunday and rightfully so. So I have to figure out something to give him to make amends and show just how sorry I am. I'm also gonna give him a ridiculous tip when she gets finished.

Rational Choices

I was supposed to get Misty finished today, but I think I'm gonna cancel. After looking at my credit card bill and the fact that money I was expecting didn't come in, I really can't justify the cost. I feel bad canceling at the last minute, but I really don't have any other choice. I guess I'll see when my salary will be kicking in and go from there. Hopefully it'll be with enough time that she'll be healed by late October so I can have my arms airbrushed for the wedding.

It's not like I'll be without tattooing this week. As far as I know, no one else has changed their plans so I'll still get to hang out in tat shops and watch other people get poked. Sounds good enough to me.

The dermal is healing nicely. All the bruising is gone and it seems to be healing up just fine. It's still flush against my chest and I like the lower placement. One of my co-workers suggested I get more, but I think that would be pushing the dress code a bit. They tolerate one, but I don't forsee them tolerating 2-3 going down my sternum.

So that's the latest updates. With the permission of those being tattooed this week, I may blog about their experiences. Keep your eyes peeled.