revafisheye

Tattoo me

MacDougal Tattoo on Sullivan Street

Last night, in a fit of impulse and inspiration, I got my first tattoo. I accompanied my friend Cat to her friend Pete’s tattoo parlor on Sullivan Street and by the end of the evening I had my own. Pete was friendly and fun and I felt so comfortable in his studio. Once he got started on Cat's tattoo, I couldn't take my eyes off of it. I had been skeptical of the choices - the colors, the location, the subject - but once Pete got down to business, I was stunned. It was beautiful.

I've daydreamed about getting a tattoo since I was a kid, but never felt particularly moved by any specific design. People were often surprised that I didn't have a tattoo; I've had a nose ring for years. Cat joked that I should get something before we left. “What would I get,” I laughed, “a semicolon?”

Ping! The light bulb flashed above my head.

The semicolon is one of the most underrated and misused forms of punctuation. The beauty of the semicolon is in its simplicity; it joins two complimentary phrases that could otherwise stand alone.

An inch-long, black semicolon now graces my left wrist, just above my hand; I'll never wear a watch again.

posted by revafisheye @ 8:36 PM