Tattoos – What Do They Really Say About a Person?

As far as Mother’s Day presents go, mine pretty much rocked. Hubster booked us a room at a pretty incredible bed and breakfast in Eureka Springs, Arkansas call The Peabody.

 

What’s cool (to me anyway) about The Peabody is it’s smack dab in the middle of the historic downtown district, which means we can park the car and never get in again until it’s time to head back home. Everything we want—shops, food, entertainment—is within walking distance.

Now, I’ve been contemplating tattoo number two for a while now. (Okay, technically it’s tattoo number three, but I figure number one doesn’t count since number two covered it up.) I want it somewhere visible because I’m getting it to remind me of the one thing I struggle to do.

Keep things in balance.

I’ve pulled several ideas together, these being a few.

 I don’t want anything huge, just something about three to four inches on the inside of my forearm where I can’t miss it. I haven’t done it yet simply because I haven’t found the right artist.

I have no idea what prompted me to check out artists in Eureka Springs, but I did. Maybe it was the laid-back, eclectic feel of the place that yanked my inner flower child out for a little spontaneity. I went by a place, talked to one of the artists and plunked down a deposit for a design.

Then, walking back to the B&B, hubby and I started talking about corporate perception. Where he works, visible tattoos are a no-no. They don’t say you can’t have them, but you absolutely must cover them up.

That got me thinking. I had no idea what the corporate policy was where I worked. And the last thing anyone wants in July or August in Oklahoma is long sleeves.

So, I called the artist and told him to hold off—at least until I could track down my company’s policy.

Still, the whole thing kind of yanked my flower child’s chain. If I’d chosen not to go through with the tattoo on the basis of not liking the design that would be one thing. But to step away because I was worried about how other people might perceive it? Because it might label me as incapable of doing my job, or poor judgment? Yeah, it didn’t sit well.

What do you think? Has the perception of tattoos changed in the last five to ten years? Do you categorize an individual when you see them with ink? Does it depend on the content of the artwork? What would you have done in my scenario?