ChrisM

From when Tim Lehi was sitting in at Kings Ave.

From when Tim Lehi was sitting in at Kings Ave.

From when Tim Lehi was sitting in at Kings Ave.

From when Tim Lehi was sitting in at Kings Ave.

From when Tim Lehi was sitting in at Kings Ave.

From when Tim Lehi was sitting in at Kings Ave.

From when Tim Lehi was sitting in at Kings Ave.

From when Tim Lehi was sitting in at Kings Ave.

The Occupy Wall Street movement has come up in another thread, but I thought it deserved it's own. I thought it might be interesting to post some of the images and quotes that have struck a cord in us, whether it's a picture or a video from a mainstream media source or any type of social media. My first contribution isn't uplifting or even current, but I believe these are relevant words from a master-

Man so this is is more a story about a story, but a few years ago I worked with my buddy Dave, who has been in the game FOREVER. Anyway LST's own Pat (gougetheeyes) and I were at the shop having a conversation along the lines of this thread, laughing about people passing out/shitting themselves etc. when from the back of the shop where Dave was drawing I hear him chime in;
"had somebody die once"
uh... EXCUSE ME!?
"Yeah a girl, she died."
He's shuffled over and started in like it was a cross between a campfire ghost story and the monologue from Jaws.
"It was back in the 90's, Hawaii, 94 maybe? Anyway, crazy production shop sailors would come in, you'd work 12-15 hour shifts, go upstairs, sleep a few hours come back down, do it again. Make all your money for the next 6 months in 3 weeks. Anyways, it was one of those stretches I'd been going for hours, next tattoo was a girl, wanted a flower. She went into the bathroom, came out, and as she was walking to my chair she hit the floor. Dropped fucking dead. Paramedics came but she was blue, shot up in the bathroom before the tattoo, killed her. Fucked me up for a good bit. Good thing she didn't make it into my chair before she died, I probably woulda quit tattooing."
Pat and I were in awe, and just like that Dave went back to his drawing. I don't think anyone said another word for about an hour.

Found it. So cool.
Rassier back piece drawing one
Rassier back piece drawing two

Just came across this today. It's my man's back done by Jeff Rassier. It's almost done now, the picture is kind of old.
Also can't wait to see that backpiece Stewart

Who's Dari? ;)

haha, no way! this girl was an engineering major. i suppose the triforce could be a simplified version of it. i've gotten to do quite a few triforce/zelda tattoos, actually tomorrow i'm doing a link tattoo on a guy who i put a ganondorf on last year. i'm actually surprised at just how many zelda tattoos i do each year.

Congratulations! I spend waaaaayyyyy more time on here than I should.

andrew stickler and jef whitehead both tattooed images off the sheet they did on me. no pics though.

That sound is like music to my ears. Pick em up! Mock...SI...ing....SI...

I've also been told I have great skin for color. I practically glow in the dark I'm so goddamned pale. I don't think I'll ever ruin my tattoos in the sun because I've never really been able to be out in it for very long anyways.

I have some pretty bad ones I will never mess with ,because of association. one of them is by the late Eric Hogan. he was by no means a great friend , more like someone I knew, But I will always remember him, His mother would probably appreciate this. During these times that seem sometimes like a "cool" race, we need to remember the whys and hows people have always gotten tattooed. As a tattooer/ist we ,especially street shops, face it everyday. those silly reasons mean something to those not in the know. your Moms love, your children's love, you went somewhere, you freed yourself, don't forget. They aren't just cool. Last evening I put stick figures holding balloons on a woman's foot, I tried to put them on with all the professionalism that i could. If those don't meet anyone's ideas about what good art is or what a cool tattoo is,it doesn't matter. she talked about how she went to a different shop and they were rude about it. I did a good job, she was happy, I got to eat dinner doing something I want to do,not something i have to do, Im not cleaning toilets ,Im not a Walmart greeter. not that good hard work isn't respectful , Its that I'm lucky and hopeful today. And yes I will try and give them the best stick figures they need. I do love me some "regular people".

Best advice. That, and go get tattooed like it's an addiction, because if it's not, and if tattooing is about making a logical career change instead of succumbing to this overwhelming force you can't really understand but you feel a need for... then it might not be the right choice.
I replied again against my better judgment and you seem like a nice enough person, but please understand that in tattooing and, likewise for the tattooed folks that tend to be serious, they're not thinking about what their mother will say (after the third, fourth, etc. that worry falls by the wayside, if it ever existed) -- they're already thinking about the next one, how pumped they are to get tattooed by whoever's doing it, whether it's a close friend or a tattooer they've waited years to be tattooed by. On both ends of it, that person is basically feeding the need.
That phrase that you don't choose tattooing, tattooing chooses you, seems to prove itself more and more, especially on here. Go figure.
Also, internet arguing will most likely pale in comparison to working at an actual shop with actual people who want actual tribal arm bands and tazmanian devils.
Good luck.

Groundhog Day!
Threads like this and posters like areilla are some of the reasons I don't come here much anymore.
I'm tired of defending real tattooing and discussing why people shouldn't be tattooers when they clearly don't understand what tattooing is.
Someone fairly intelligent who thinks they have a grasp on art wants to be a tattooer, they post a dumb-ass, inflammatory post, people exercise their good will and give sensible responses, the original poster spouts a fountain of reasons why they are right and everybody else is wrong because their reasoning is rock-solid and everybody just doesn't understand, man. Then a bunch of comparisons with other trades and professions are drawn but none of them hit the point. Then someone calls out 'bullshit' or 'troll' the original poster reasons that's what internet forums are for, to discuss stuff.
It's fucking boring.
With a half-working knowledge of how to argue a point, you can 'prove' that you deserve to tattoo. That doesn't mean you do.
You can 'prove' that tattooers don't need many tattoos because 'it's art man, it's all about personal choice'. that doesn't mean you're not a parasite.
areilla, if you can save tattooing and feel you are better than everybody else but you don't want to pay for tattoos, you should type less and draw more. But I know you won't. You read a thread just like this, that had some great points raised but you wanted one of your own.

I hate to be up front but from what you wrote here and in a couple of other posts, I gather you haven't really been around tattooing much. I hate to be frank but if you don't like getting tattooed you don't like tattoos. There are too many people who get into tattooing as an escape to their job they have or some sort of midlife crisis rock star thing, but don't understand what people put into this craft in order to be good and how many people are half assin it out there. I knew right off the bat I would not be a tattooer not because I don't want to be, but plain and simple there are too many people doing it and I could never do it as well as the people who have mastered it. I have managed to find a way to be part of tattooing without tattooing by working at a shop and getting tattooed by great artists, I would suggest you do the same.

This was a great read Gouge! Thanks for sharing. Can't wait to get to his new shop soon.

I "like" like this thread. Meow.

Feeeeeccckkkk. I'm still gonna do it. It's practically a sickness. YES I CAN! :)