Trying to get a sense of the meaning behind your tribal tattoo, armband tattoo, if you have one. Me and a buddy were discussing this and he says because it looks cool, I said because it means something, your thoughts please.
Hubby got a wrap around Barbed wire tattoo back in 1996 when they were 'cool'. Looks just like Pam Anderson's. SO COOL! LOL Totally regrets it now. Doesn't mean anything to him, just a dumb kid at the time doing something he thought was bad ass. lol
It may have started off with meaning to someone, but the coolness took over and it became fad. Like now the fad is stars, infinity signs, feathers, and swallows. Damn shame Sailor Gerry got blown up like that. Wonder what the next tattoo fad well be?
Don't they mean, "Yeah, I saw a lot of Mountain Dew commercials while watching Survivor then woke up one morning and knew exactly how I could express my rad individuality...... for, like, ever. Whoa, that's one bitchin' cool tat, bro. So who's you favourite hottie on Survivor?" // Note to self: Don't put fingers to keyboard without ingesting at least one morning coffee.
Yeah like how my lower back tat from the late 90s is a "tribal" dragon because I was born in the year of the dragon. However, 1) I never see it so I forget it's there 2) I got it before the branched out lower back tats were called "tramp stamps." Do I regret it? No, not really because you only see it if my pants are low or shirt is short or I'm in a bathing suit AND it does mean something to me. I still think dragons rock! On OP topic, I WANTED an arm band because it would look "bad ass" but 1) didn't know what to get that would actually mean something 2) didn't want the pressure of having to keep nice arms the rest of my life 3) didn't want to have a tat I couldn't cover in a formal dress.
I know a lot of folks really like the tattoos and think they are cool, but sometimes there is a severe downside that people forget about. One of my clients is a very bright ambitious guy and just a really nice man. However, in his case he is covered with tattoos. Now he's in a brutal custody fight and those same tattoos that he thought were so cool when he got them are coming back to hurt him. Rightfully or wrongfully people will judge someone based on what they see and he comes across as being a "bad-ass" biker and therefore, less than a good dad. It's sad, but it is reality so tattoo canvas beware!
Personally I think that unless you're of Celtic, Mauiri or native American heritage you shouldn't have a tribal tattoo. Also Chinese symbols are getting ridiculous. I keep checking Asian people to see if they have English words tattooed on themselves and they never do I wonder if it's because white people generally feel they don't have a significant cultural background and feel the need to imitate other cultures? Just a thought, not intended as the start of a heated discussion. I think the bottom line is that a tattoo is a very personal thing and should have some significance to you other than "it looked cool at the time". I often ask people if they'd care to share that significance or story but I understand some of them are very personal or private so I try and be understanding of that. As far as regrets (regerts for Bad Ink fans) go, I think Tattoos should be a "snapshot in time" kind of deal. You were at that place in time and it's part of what made you who you are today. Of course this is coming from a guy who has a large Clash tribute piece on his shoulder so take it as you will
