One Nation
I think I was sixteen when I first wanted to get a
tattoo, but then again I also wanted to get my ear pierced
and die my hair blue. Well I'm eighteen now, my hair is
red, well the red its been since I've had hair and neither
of my ears are pierced but I did end up getting that tattoo.
In fact I also got him a friend. Now I'm stuck with two of
them, but I don't have any regrets, not yet atleast.
The plan for getting a tattoo was mine and my friend's.
We said that on graduation night we'd do it, but I wasn't
eighteen yet so we never did. My friends desire faded, but
mine seemed to stay constant. I always planned on it but
never had the bucks or the time. That's what I said
atleast. The truth was I never had the nerve. But who can
blame me? That's quite the plunge. There is no going back
with this one. So I came up with a plan. A plan to make
sure I wouldn't back out again. I told a girl. I invited
her to come and ogle me while I get my body marked for
life. With a chick looking on what am going to do? "No I'm
sorry. I decided not to purchase." I don't think so. So I
picked her up and we were off to the tattoo parlor.
We got in and looked around for a good long while.
Finally some one came up and asked if he could help us. It
was pretty good customer relations for the type of business.
I told him that I wanted to get a tattoo, and had a design
that I drew up. The day before that same guy gave me an
estimation of eighty dollars for my design, so I made sure
to mention that so that the price wouldn't rise while he was
looking at it. He said okay, and went behind the counter to
trace the design on special paper that puts an ink on your
skin. When that happens the artist can trace the pattern
instead of just doing something free hand.
My pattern was something very close to me. Something
that I thought about long and hard. Its a red spider on a
black web. Well that's what it is literally. What it's
modeled after is the chest emblem on the friendly
neighborhood Spider-Man. I Always read the comic books of
him, watched the cartoons, and even those really bad TV
movies. I just loved the character, so I did it. But it
doesn't say Spider-Man. And it doesn't have anything that
really screams, "look! This is a Spider-Man tattoo." I did
that on purpose. I wanted a pattern that could definitely
change meanings if I needed it to.
Now I was in the chair. With a girl on one side ( God
I wish I knew what she was thinking) and a tattoo artist on
the other side, the ink outline was on my back, my left
shoulder blade, and I had the biggest regrets now, but there
was no going back. To all of those that think tattoos hurt
let me tell you something. You guys are right, and I had it
on a pretty calm place. It didn't take too long either. I
remember "Mad About You" was on when I sat in the chair and
I never saw the end so it was definitely less than a half
hour. But in that half hour I did a lot of thinking, well it
was really during the commercials, but there was thinking
going on. I thought, "This really hurts. I think everybody
should get tattoo. Everybody in this great nation of ours
should be tattooed." At the time it was mostly a thought
fueled with vengeance, but now that I have a clear head and
not wincing at the pain of needles and the cold of that
Tattooed man's hands I think its a good idea.
My plan isn't exactly simple. I mean to get a few 100
million people to not just permit their kids to get tattoos,
but want them to would seem like an impossible task, but its
one with much to gain as well. Since the fifties, American
family values have been falling. In a poll done in the
valley by the firms of Peter Hart and Robert Tetter, the
question was asked, "which area of American society most
need[s] improvement, the no. 1 choice was strengthening the
family" (Graham R4). Now Tattoos may seem like they'd add
to that decrease, but I'd say they'd help reverse it. I say
that tattoos would be used as a rites of passage ceremony,
something that our country definitely lacks. Now I know
that there are plenty of non-official rites of passage
rituals, but none that the community has openly excepted.
Malidoma Some is from West Africa where this type of
ceremony is well excepted. While reflecting on America's
lack of one, he stated, "because of the unhappy loss of this
kind of initiatory experience, the modern world suffers a
kind of spiritual poverty and lack of community"(Some 68).
And that's what I want to recap in this plan, a sense of
community. I originally wanted America to be a tattooed
nation just so everyone else would have to sit in the chair
that I sat in, but later it evolved into something much
greater. The return of community, Family and the return of
one's own knowledge of their heritage. The other day I
talked to my little brother's friend. I asked what his name
meant and he had no idea. My name, Joyner, means wagon
wheel maker. It's something I've always known. I thought
it was real odd that this kid didn't know what his last name
meant, but few people I know truly recognize much about
their genealogy. But now it's even harder to find out about
one's family tree. In 1970, 2.6% of black marriages were to
white spouses. Now that number has raised to 12.1% which is
still low since most states have no space to mark race on a
marriage license. These relations are only with black and
white relations, and it's true that, "Blacks Americans are
still less likely to marry whites than are Latinos and
Asians"(The Economist 26). So what about Italian-Scottish
marriages, or German-French marriages. Those must be
happening too often to even poll. How can one possible keep
track of their heritage. This rites of passage could help
that. Tattoos could be a countries flag or a clans quilt or
a families suit of arms or anything. Someone could get a
combination of their dad's and their mom's tattoos. Jill
Green berg, who's a tattoo artist here in the valley, who
also lived in Africa for a good part of her life describes
tattoos there as, "your name. It tells you who you are, who
your family is and what your back-ground is" (Creno C1). It
brings the past back into the family. And once again,
that's what I'm all about.
But to say we need to get 300 million people tattooed
still sounds a little crazy. But atleast we've got a head
start. The Candela Corporation, who designs tattoo removal
equipment, estimates that 20 million Americans have
tattoos(Gillipsie 1). That may not be a head start, but
those are people we don't have to influence. Also now it'll
be easier to influence the other 270 million. You see
tattoos have come along way since the good old days of rose
and panther tattoos. While red roses are still the most
requested tattoo, the second most popular is the Tasmanian
devil. Also the new tribal designs are the latest rage,
with antiquity toward Celtic, Samoan, Japanese and North and
South American designs (Brinkley-Rogers B1). There are so
many reasons to go out and get one, and too may patterns to
pick from. Not to mention the new glow in the dark tattoos.
There is now Luminescent Pigment Tattooing, where a tattoo
is given with ink only visible under ultraviolet light
(Phoenix Gazette A2). It is just a matter of taste and time
to get the rest to follow those 20 million, but how to do
it.
I've taken this plan and separated into two parts, the
first being a more open and direct plan. The second, I must
admit is a little covert. But the big thing with this plan
is that I can't do it. I'm one man and a not very important
one at that. Also there are a few things that may
definitely get in the way. Like religion first of all.
There are a few religions that hate tattoos. So we'll just
have to suspend our disbelief and think about this plan a
more of a structure that could be followed for other plans.
Its starts like all great campaigns, with advertising. I
need movies, television, music videos and media at my
disposal to show tattoos. Not just on Rocken' Rollin' Hep
Cats, but on everybody. Just a visual sign that tattoos are
still out there. Then we need positive advertising, have
one of those two hour long specials on CBS or ABC about how
great tattoos are in other countries and also here. They
could show all the great tattoos of the stars. Celebrities
are great for this job, because most of them are still a
little slow minded and can be talked into anything for a
good cause. We talk Kevin Bacon into getting a tattoo.
He'll tell Mary Hart for ET how great it is and we've got it
made. There should be some one else though. Some one for
the older, rougher generation. We need a politicians, a
really good one too. What we need is another Robert
Kennedy, but this time with a tribal arm band. He'll be
rushing for reform and making the country great again.
Parents will love him and tell their kids, " Why don't you
get a tattoo like that good guy on C-Span. Then we elect
him as president. But all the while these public things are
happening We have a secret agenda, but that's part of the
second half.
When I got my second tattoo, I was all by myself. That
original girl was now in Hawaii, and all my friends had to
work, but this time I didn't need any coaxing. It was about
a month earlier that I found my tattoo in this mail order
magazine. It was this pattern on some shirt and was too
cool. I just knew that I had to have this on my body, but I
didn't want the shirt. The best way to describe it in the
least amount of words would have to be a Zodiac Compass. So
I cut it out and kept it in my wallet, until that day. I
took it out and asked him how much. It's about the size of
my fist and had three colours in it so I expected a good
amount, but the tattoo artist and I have a mutual friend and
it seems that with that the price went done to a hundred
bucks. It may seem like a lot, but they do last forever
after all. I mean mine haven't washed off yet. So once
again I sat in the chair, but this time I wasn't lying on my
stomach. This time I was sitting up. I saw a whole lot
more with that. Mike, the tattoo artist, had a picture of
his wife on the his desk. She was really normal looking.
That's all I could think for the first ten minutes, "Man,
this guy has tattoos all the way down his arms and his wife
is really normal looking." Of course, that's pretty bad
judgment of people, but I wasn't quite thinking straight
with the pain and all. You can remember something hurts.
You can even get ready for it, but no matter what you do, it
just hurts. He did the outline then started to fill in with
colour. And a relief came through me, numbness. I could
feel the needle, but my back was numb. It was pain that
didn't hurt. I was pumped. Then came in a herd of kids
from the local high school. They were all young. I
couldn't say they were eighteen, but they were all young.
There were four guys and a couple of giggling girls. All of
them hovered around me and I felt freakish. "Why are you
all looking at my. Leave me be. I'm a human being." But
then they started complimenting the my tattoo and telling
each other they should bet that pattern. Which made me
shiver a bit. But now my tattoo was done and Mike decided to
help me out. My first tattoo faded a bit and he recoloured
it for free. He's a great guy. But then I left the chair,
and had no where to go. I just got my second and greatest
tattoo and had no one to show. So I went home, had a
twinkie and watched Blues Clues on TV.
For the second part of the plan we need many resources
at our disposal. You see this is when we get a little
tricky. We first need to get rid of a great foe of our
plan, TV. I know before I said we had to use TV to help us,
but for this part it's bad. It keeps people apart and
families from talking, and if we're going to label tattoos
as a rights of passage then we need to bring families
together. I hate saying this, it physically hurts me, but
TV must die. We can scramble the satellites or something, I
don't know. Just as long as they are stopped. Then we
start a line of lectures and public teachings. We can call
them Cultural learning, but it will be about tattoos. With
no TV people will go to these things more often. People
need to be entertained and still don't like to think, so
after they see Zeus and Roxanne for the twentieth time
they'll just end up going to this place and here our genius
lecturers speak. They'll speak about how tattoos are could
be used for a rites of passage ritual, pretty much our goal.
The point is to get the ideas out there. With this we need
to introduce a new time era of modernity. Give a catchy
title like, "We are living in the time of a Modern
Renaissance." Make the people think they're doing new and
exciting things, that they are part of history. Introduce
new art form and styles. In the mass media have painting of
tattoos, new artistic movies and sculptures, all with
tattoos as the subject. People are dumb and will follow
anything. If they feel like they're in something new, most
likely they get pumped and join in. All the while this is
happening there will be a mass production of tattoo parlors
and the sorts. We can't have them over flow with business,
and people getting frustrated wit the lack of opportunity.
The ASC tattoo directory list names of 1,600 tattoo parlors
, but the publisher David Plumbert guesses that there are
probably more like 6000(Brinkley-Rogers B1). The country
will be flowed with them, but we're almost there now. We
have tattoo parlors next door to kiddy restaurants (Ulik
C1). Now if that's not a clear showing of our plan in work
what is? So now we have our set up, we have our cultural
boundaries and we have our outlet. Now we set them up. By
this time we have people loving our president and loving him
, and that's when he'll get interviewed by Barbara Walters.
She'll spend time on what have you , but in the end it'll
all come to him publicly stating that we need to be a
tattooed nation. Now that may sound stupid, and maybe a
little naive, but that won't get people tattooed, and I'm
not trying to get that generation tattooed. I'm going for
the next generation. The kids during this will remember
this time as they're great youth and try to influence their
kids like all other parents, but this time they'll get their
kids tattoo. Oh and it will be beautiful. Everybody
walking around with arm bands or calf tattoos. Maybe then
we'll return TV.
Well I'll tell you one thing if you get a tattoo, pick
something you like and want forever, because what I said
before is true, It won't wash off.
Bibliography
About the Author
Back to The Full Cup
Send comments to:
mjoyner@imap3.asu.edu