My Wife is a Carnie

Ariana got a new tattoo tonight. I think she uses the opportunity to go out of town as an excuse to go under the needle; no wonder she's scheduled herself for so many trips this year. I like 'em, kind of makes me feel like I'm married to a bad-ass biker chic, except without the bike. I also like the fact that she gets them in places that aren't necessarily hidden - like her wrists, back of the neck and sternum. It shows a certain commitment to her art that the girl with her sorority tattoo wouldn't understand.

It's making me really pine to get another one myself. I have one on my right shoulder that I got when I was 18 (nearly 14 years ago!), and despite my constant musings about how I would like another, something has always prevented me from going through with the idea. I've always used the excuse of money, but somehow I've always managed to scrape enough together to buy a pack of cigarettes no matter how poor we were. Why shouldn't I be able to do the same with a tattoo?

I'll never be as daring as Ariana. I doubt I would ever get inked anywhere where I couldn't hide it relatively easily because I don't want my image to be the reason I'm not hired. I know it's shallow, I know there are lots of teddy bear men who have a skull and crossbones tattooed across their necks, but can you picture those guys as investment bankers? As much as I love the counter culture, I would probably take my money elsewhere.

And therein lies my dillema; I'm too radical to fit in and too normal to stand out. Perhaps my next tattoo should simply be the words "I wanted a tattoo, but all I got was this sentence instead".