The Inked Perspective

“Alright, before we start, you’re absolutely sure you want this tattoo?” – Q

Since December of 2023 I have been contemplating on whether I should get a tattoo on the side of my head. I talked to my wife EXTENSIVELY (God bless her patience), talked with my boss, and did some real soul searching while weighing the pros and cons of my forthcoming decision. I went back and forth within myself. I considered how others would see me, how my son’s Parent-Teacher conferences would go, and who would hire me if I lost my job tomorrow.

I thought long and hard about it, sometimes until the wee hours of the morning when I couldn’t sleep. After much consideration, I talked to Q about it. We had joked and talked about it over the past year at various tattoo appointments, but this time we really, REALLY talked about it. Having multiple head tattoos himself, he was both honest and professional about the process and how life was a little different afterwards. He told me I might have some feelings of regret, or an “Oh Shit” moment after the tattoo. I took his advice to heart and we booked the appointment. I would be his first head tattoo. I was stoked (and fucking nervous).

The weeks leading up to the appointment were weird. I watched videos of Cody Alford, who is a heavily tatted Marine veteran (MARSOC, btw), various tattoo artists, and people getting their heads done. The worst-case scenarios of what I was about to do came forth with a vengeance. “What if people think I’m a bad parent?”, “What if people look at me funny and judge me?”, and “What the fuck is my mother going to think?”. These were just a couple of the questions that swam around in my soon to be artistic scalp.

A couple of days before the tattoo I had a real heart-to-heart with my wife about it all. All the questions, the worries, and most of all the consequences. I’ll never forget what she said to me that night: “Babe, your hands, neck, and arms are tattooed. You may as well get your head done, it’s not going to matter.” While simple, it spoke volumes.

People already look at me and judge me; may as well have a cool head tattoo for them to look at.

People might think I’m a bad parent regardless of what/how many tattoos I have, or due to a plethora of things; may as well do it.

As far as what my mom is going to think…….Eh, she’ll come around to it like the other tattoos. (And piercings, life choices, and ideologies). P.S. She thinks the head tattoo looks cool. Love ya momma.

The night before the tattoo I laid in bed in the quiet and thought about it all. This was fixing to be the point of no return, so I better resolve any issues within now, or hold my peace. What I decided are these things:

• I’m never going to work a job where I can’t look like myself.
• I only get to live a little while, so I’m going to look how I want.
• People can think whatever they want, I know who I am. More importantly, my wife and kids know the man I am.
• Nobody gets to decide who I am. They never got to, I just allowed them to.

Now, I’m not saying to rush out and get a head tattoo. Consider the weight of your decision, find an artist who genuinely cares about your well-being and the consequences of your actions (thanks Q, you rock brother!), and finally search within and see the future you.

In the end, the old adage rings true: “And if it harm none, do as thou wilt”.

xoxo

Jake

P.S: The side of the head wasn’t terrible pain wise. Mom says no face tats though. (Isn’t she going to be surprised 🙂 ).