check yo self before yous wreck yo self. Education! So, you say "I'm in the market for getting a tattoo," and "what should I know and consider when getting a tattoo?" Well, I'm glad you asked! I came across a "scientific" article written by pediatric nurse practitioners for other pediatric nurse practitioners to educate and counsel preadolescents and adolescents about tattoos. Educate not in an "abstinence" kind of way, but in a "sex ed" kind of way. The authors discuss the history, the procedure, care, and potential risks of getting a tattoo. They even mention alternatives to tattooing. The article goes a little further and considers counseling implication for teens regarding tattoos and also explains removal techniques of tattoos. It's actually a very easy read and probably good for anyone considering a tattoo. Don't say I never warned ya!

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hours before the first session and I'm feeling a little nervous, mostly because it's going to be a huge piece. This week, as people were becoming enlightened of my plans on getting a tattoo, I fielded a lot of inquires regarding what I was doing. Two of the most asked questions were "does it hurt?" and "what made you decide to get that?" The first question is typically from a person who doesn't have tattoos and probably doesn't plan on ever getting one. And, the second question is just people wanting to know why I would ever want to enduringly scar my back with a giant dragon. My answer to that, "why not!?!" I guess that doesn't answer the question about why one would choose to mutilate their body. Personally, I find tattoos (bust out your dictionaries) a pulchritudinous form of art. I'm not a rebellious adolescent nor am I into self-inflicted violence. So why the heck get a tattoo? I don't know, cause I want one. I hope that's a good enough reason. I guess it's about as relative as me trying to describe to someone how painful it is to get one. It depends on the individual.

After a couple of weeks of back and forth emails, Katie and I are heading up to Portland again to meet with Phuc. This was just a consultation visit. I didn't have a concrete idea about what I wanted so I found it difficult to describe my interests through emails. When I arrived, Phuc had plenty of books for me to go through. Many of the books were of Japanese tattoo masters who have created elaborate full bodysuits by "tebori," the traditional Japanese art of hand tattooing.

As I flipped through the pages, I found a design that I really like. An oversized dragon. This particular design completely covered the back and on to the individual's butt. As I showed Phuc the design I had discovered, he asked, "are you going to do your cheeks?" Katie and I laughed as though he was making a joking remark, but he explained that leaving space on the lower back when doing a back piece can interrupt the flow of the tattoo. It would also provide extra space to work with. After hearing his explanation, I was convinced. I should get my "cheeks" tattooed!

After I had decided on a general design, I left it up to Phuc to design the rest. I trust his artistic abilities, which are definitely far beyond mine. He also traced my Grendel tattoo, so he could plan his cover up. As Katie and I were scheduling the first appointment, Sue, Phuc's wife, mentioned that they had come across a website where the author had blogged his experience getting a koi tattoo on his back at New York Adorned. They suggested that I look at it to see what I was getting myself into. After looking at the site, it inspired me to also journal my own experience.

I scheduled the first session two weeks from today on April 2nd at 2 p.m.

Historically, dragons in Eastern doctrine have been associated with good luck. The creature lives for the most part in the ocean, river, or lake, but it has the power of flight and rules over the clouds and tempests.

I have been interested in getting a dragon tattoo for sometime. Shortly after I moved to Boston from Colorado, I had the opportunity to go to the Boston Tattoo Convention to see many talented artists. I didn't have the chance to talk to anyone that day, but I did see one artist's work that caught my eye. Phuc Tran, from Portland, Maine's Tsunami Tattoo. I was drawn to Phuc's artistic style and decided to contact him. After a few short exchanges, I was on my way to Maine to get some water waves. A few months later, I ended up with a lot more than just waves.

As the saying goes, "once you get a tattoo, you'll want more." Or something like that. As I was getting the work done on my leg, I was thinking about a piece that I have been wanting to get for a while. A dragon. But where? A sleeve may not go over well in my line of work and would probably make it difficult for me to get a job in the future. The next best option was my back. So how big do I really want to go? My back is almost an empty canvas. I do have a small tattoo of Grendel I got back in high school, but other than that, I'm wanting to go large. I'm thinking the upper half of my back. We'll see.

For those of you visiting this site for whatever reasons, I want to invite you to join me in my journey and share in my pain as I endeavor on acquiring a dragon tattoo on my back. Each session will be documented with commentary and pictures. I welcome any comments that you have and look forward to hearing from everyone.

Jim