My Skin is a Canvas

I am going to get a tattoo.

There! I said it with certainty this time. Always before I have been hesitant. I have said "I was thinking about getting a tattoo when I'm eighteen" without any conviction. But now I will go through with it.
I don't know what yet, or where. I was thinking a tribal design on my upper arm. I'm thinking that I'll end up with the tribal piece on one upper arm, kanji on the other upper arm, and a pair of abstract wings on my shoulder blades along with my motto "contra mundum" (latin for against the world - portrays a sentiment of independence), all in black. I'm not one for colorful tattoos. Or colorful anything, for that matter, except hair and artwork. I so wish I had fine, white-blonde hair. But that's off topic. I was talking about tattoos.

I am fascinated by tattoos. There's just so much potential, for beauty, for symbolism, for meaning. I realize that many people have really tacky tattoos (or so it seems, sometimes), but I think there's a lot that can be done if you can find a good artist and work with your own anatomical structure. Tattoos are an art form. They can be amazing, but I think you have to be spatially aware and know where things look good.

My parents are very conventional. They disapprove of tattoos and tell me that I'm going to regret it. I disbelieve them. The rate of regret is 17% and the top reason for regretting a tattoo was that they had gotten a tattoo with someone's name and now were no longer in a relationship with them. There are plenty of people who live quite happily with their tattoos for their whole lives (and I'm not getting anyone's name tattooed on me anyway).

I've heard that you can get addicted to the needle. Once you get your first tattoo, you go back for another one, and then another, and so on. I hope I don't get addicted - but even if I did, I don't I'd go so far that I'd overdo it. I think I'd be too sensitive to that.