Tattoo at last!

Soon after I started working, I made a list of things I wanted to do before I grow old. And in that list were 2 things - a navel ring and a tattoo. Got the piercing after my 2nd salary, but the tattoo remained elusive. You see, I wanted the perfect design. I searched thru the design books in tattoo parlours, went thru the net, tried creating my own, tried almost everything, n yet it remained outta sight...

One fine day, while looking thru one of the countless car ads we get as forwards (occupational hazard), I spotted IT!! There it was, beside the pic of a merc! And I knew it was what I wanted. I tried to describe it, but the only thing that came to mind was a kid sleeping. (and that's what I told everyone for quite a while). That was many month ago. I still hadn't decided where I wanted the tattoo. I went from lower back (too common), to hip (naah... not "right" place), to arm (no way! mom would freak out!), to ankle (hmm... ok... can show it off whenever...), and finally to the back of my shoulder (cool!).

Now that things were decided upon, I had to "emotionally prepare myself" (recognise this mads? :P ) told M to get my appointment at the tattoo parlour on saturday. We reached there on time. Walked in. a nice lady stood there and asked:

“Can I help you?”

“Ya, I want to get a tattoo.”

She looked up and down the salwar clad female standing in front of her and said:

“I’m sorry, we do only permanent tattoos here.”

“Ya I know. I want one.”

(look of surprise) “Please come in”

She took us to this guy who was checking out some designs on the net and told him that I wanted a tattoo. I said that my bro had made an appointment with them. He then asked me if I had the design. I had a printout, but he wanted the digital copy, if I had one, as the pic was white on black and I wanted black filled in. thankfully the pic was in my mailbox. We downloaded it and I told him that I wanted the dimensions to be “2 by 4”. While he was changing that and taking the printout, I went to talk to M and D who were waiting in the next room and checking out the other designs there. The guy called me back in and asked me if the size on the printout was ok. Holy goodness! I couldn’t even see it! I had asked for “two inches by four inches” and he had taken a print with size “two centimeters by four centimeters”! Got that sorted out soon enough.

Then we asked for the cost of it.

Guy: “4.5”

Me: “What!??”

M: “We thought it’d be around 2”

Guy: “No. this is a tribal design” (me: hmm so that’s what it’s called) “The lines are too close. It will come to 4.5”

M: “But my friend A got one done here bout 5 months back. It is like this” (draws a rough sketch) “See he had this and he filled this with two colors, shaded it with orange and green and did this and it came only to 3”

Guy: “I don’t remember this one. Are you sure he did it here only”

M: “Ya I’m sure. You can call him and ask.”

Guy: “No that’s ok... “(thinks) “But I’m sorry we can’t do this for any less”

I was tired of the waiting any more (seriously, it’s been months since I decided and I jus wanted to get with it)

Me: “It’s ok M, I’ll get it done.” (To the guy) “Do you accept Credit Cards?”

Guy: “Ya, but its 12% extra”

Me: “Oh 4%... that’s”

M: “No da, he said 12%”

Me: “12! Oh…” (To the guy) “Well how bout you make it 4 and I’ll pay by cash?”

Guy: (To N, that’s the lady who ushered us in) “What say N, is that ok?”

N: “Well. It’s up to you...”

Guy: “No actually you say coz you’ll be doing it”

N: “Well… ok I guess”

Guy: “K. It’s a deal”

They asked us to wait for a while. D said she had to go and that she’ll catch me later. N traced out the design at the back of it. Then she asked me to come to the one of the rooms they have there and sign on the forms they have saying that I’m authorizing so and so to do the tattoo and that they don’t hold responsibility for so and so, you know, all that stuff. I saw the big needle they were going to use and decided against asking how exactly they did it. But then I decided against it. After all, ignorance sometimes is bliss. Newy, N asked me to lie comfortably. I could hear the “krrrrrrr” that I will from now associate with tattoos, coming from the next room. She wiped my skin with tissues sprayed with something, that I later came to know was Savlon. She put something on my back and then pressed the tattoo design on my back. I asked her what that was. “Deo stick.” - “Deo??” – “Ya. It makes the design trace transfer on to the skin” Hmm… I dint know that. She then took a pic to ask me if the position was correct. It was.

Then the tattooing started. It really doesn’t hurt that much. Quite bearable indeed. Girls note, it only hurts as much as waxing. Guys, don’t ask me, I don’t have an analogy. She put on the outline first. The only really painful parts were when she was tattooing near my shoulder blade (oh it hurts near bones! Remember that in case you’re planning to get one and haven’t decided where.) and when it came close to my armpit. It took 30-45 mins to do the outline. I called M as soon as that was done and he said “Whoa! She really does a neat job!” We took pics of jus the outline. N came back and we started with the filling in of the design. This was tougher coz when the outline is being done you can feel where the needle is and go with the design. It’s like, I felt I was creating something there. (though, with all due respect, it was N who did all the work). But the filling-in part, well it’s different. They jus ‘fill-in’ and since after a while my whole shoulder back started paining, I had to engage my mind in other ways. When it hurt real badly, I hummed along with the rock tracks they were playing on World space, or I thought of food, or moved my toes around or something.

We took two breaks in between. One coz N got a call and the other coz... well coz it hurt then... the 1^st time, I immediately hollered for M and he came pronto. He was describing how much has been done and whether it was nice or not and stuff like that. I was so curious that I asked him to take a pic and show me. Jus when he was gonna take it, N came in and said something. I don’t catch it, so I told her “Just a min, let him take the pic”. M took it and gave it to me. It was almost half filled. Looked nice, except… “Hey N, why is my tattoo all bumpy bumpy?” – “Umm, that’s blood.” – “Oh…” – “You guys should have waited for me to clean it up 1^st” – “Ummm, I guess… (feeling weird now) Hey M, pass me the water na. And could you go get some chocolates for me?” M went to get the chocolates and N started again.2 mins later : “Oww! N, it hurts!! – “That’s coz now you know that there’s blood.”

Much much later.

Me: “Is it done yet?”

N: “Almost. 15 mins more”

10 mins later.

Me: “Now?”

N: “Ya, just some touch-ups left. 5 mins”

N: “Ok it’s done”

Me: “Ah! The words I’ve been waiting for! Can you take a pic??”

So here it is! My first tattoo!