A tattoo is not something you can just discard
Splashing the cash on your birthday is not only inevitable, it is a tangible right. An entirely acceptable aspect of the day in which spoiling yourself is the standard requirement. For my birthday I decided to take a bigger step and get a tattoo.
Why do people get tattoos? Is it visual art, an underlying message, to give a sense of protection, reflect political and cultural views or simply a trend?
According to data, around 40 per cent of people born after 1990 are highly likely to have at least one tattoo. It is estimated that this will increase as the decades go by. It might even become a normalised adult rite of passage. The streets of Portsmouth have so many tattoo parlours around every corner, each one with its own unique brand of art and expression: a testament to their popularity.
When we tattoo it can send a message to others: this is me, this is who I am. People with tattoos are considered to be more of a risk-taker and more outgoing. So it is no small wonder that having a tattoo can also be a massive confidence booster.
Permanently marking yourself is no small step. It can take an agonising amount of steps before you find the design that you are happy with. We live in a world littered with various forms of consumption. Binging, buying and accumulating rubbish willy-nilly.
However, a tattoo is not something you can just discard. It is there forever. These intricate inks will become part of your identity. A proud display of your personality that hopefully won’t become an aid in a description of yourself should you be running from the law!
Getting a tattoo feels like someone scratching a hot needle across your skin.
Not entirely unbearable but after a while a fuzzy feeling can develop akin to feeling faint. These feelings can be gratified by putting as much glucose into your body as humanly possible and having a massive meal beforehand.
I was determined to do it all in one go; nothing could dent my fighting spirit.
Three hours and one-and-a-half bottles of energy drink later, I have a beautiful design on my arm that I will cherish forever. If you have the guts and the means, I highly recommend it!