RockelMan

Fuck you all!
1.) Personal high of 2011?
Wedding reception #1 party USA rock n roll!
2.) Personal low of 2011?
Laid off. Again.
3.) Best LST Thread?
SiRbLaZeLoTTTTT! (Ok, the Latest Tattoo one is pretty great..)
4.) Worst LST Thread?
Bubbles, but that guy was great for entertainment.
5.) Favorite tattoo (on you):
Shit, right now it's the newest, the buffalo head from Bailey. Also super stoked on the stars and dots filler from Andy Perez, mostly because I can't believe I waited so goddamn long to get it mostly corrected.
6.) Favorite tattoo (on someone else):
Those Cripwell legs. I know that person isn't on the forum, but shit. SHIT. Also, @abees and @jade1955 get some killer work! ...also Ursula's dude is tough.
7.) Favorite artist?
This is way too hard. There are a ton here, but I'm most excited about the newly "found" folks I've been introduced to on here, like Matt Arriola, Bart Bingham, Ron Wells. Stewart Robson. Still riding a small high with my Scott Sylvia tattoo. Bailey is a super funny dude and does flawless tattoos, no matter what your opinion of him is. Robert Ryan has been growing in my brain as someone I have to get tattooed by. All those dudes at Electric. Yeah, this is too hard..
8.) Best/Worst movie:
Best: MUPPETS.
Worst: Fast Five (didnt see it, im just guessing.) <<<<< I'll leave this one.
9.) Best/Worst album:
Best: I don't know shit about shit. But I've been listening to a lot of Koffin Kats FTW
Most Disappointing: Mastodon, The Hunter.. some good tracks but.. I don't know.. kind of a bummer.
10.) Biggest guilty pleasure:
That 70s show. Fuck that show... I always watch it..
11.) Best show/concert you did and did not attend:
Did: Descendents, Suicide Machines, X.. also unbelievably pumped for Lucero on Dec. 30th
Didn't: Missed Murder City Devils. Again. And again.
12.) Sum up the year in one word:
Mess.

1.) Personal high of 2011?
i didn't kill anyone
2.) Personal low of 2011?
2011
3.) Best LST Thread?
latest tattoo lowdown has been pretty cool
4.) Worst LST Thread?
if it was that bad i've already erased it from my memory
5.) Favorite tattoo (on you):
i did a small jenson skull and anchor on the inside of my knee for my friend hans that was killed by a drunk driver at the beginning of the year.
6.) Favorite tattoo (on someone else):
that horrible slayer tattoo, you know the one...giant, scary, poorly executed, and glorious all at the same time.
7.) Favorite artist?
i don't know the guys name but he's an inmate at one of the local state prisons and he makes these incredible and detailed sculptures out of toothpicks, sometimes with moveable parts. thinks like a harley with moving wheels, etc. it's insane!
8.) Best/Worst movie:
best: "such hawks, such hounds" or "until the light takes us"
worst: anything that was described as "a box office hit" or "wildly entertaining"
9.) Best/Worst album:
best: these got played the most: the naked & the famous-passive me,aggressive you --black breath-razor to oblivion ep --mastadon-hunter --
worst: uhhhh....i didn't buy it whatever it was!
10.) Biggest guilty pleasure:
smoking way too many american spirits
11.) Best show/concert you did and did not attend:
best and only one i did: nashville pussy/supersuckers
didn't: eyehategod
12.) Sum up the year in one word:
ugh
13.) Best television series
since i don't have cable, i hadn't seen "dexter" until this year and watched the first 4 seasons 3 times. i've also watched all the "it's always sunny in philadelphia" series repeatedly all year.

1.) Personal high of 2011?
Big one is getting my sleeve completed in Kyoto next week (yay!) tied with that is it'll be my third trip to Japan this year, and I completed my degree
2.) Personal low of 2011?
My Mum is really sick with her heart & emphysema and my younger brother was recently diagnosed with osteoarthritis and will be in a wheelchair within 6 months, he's 25.
3.) Best LST Thread?
Latest Lowdown, ICP great for laughs and Old tattoo photos
4.) Worst LST Thread?
@Ursula reminded me of bubblebutts thread about her, that was some bullshit
5.) Favorite tattoo (on you):
My sleeve from Horinao once finished
6.) Favorite tattoo (on someone else):
@hogg his back by Jill Bonny (haha hoggs' all up in this category)
7.) Favorite artist?
Horinao (Cat Claw Tattoo-z) obvious personal reasons for that one ;) and I'm sure it'll change next year
8.) Best/Worst movie:
Best - Didn't really see to many this year that I can think of... but for now we'll say Kung Fu Panda 2
Worst -"A Serbian Movie" @dcostello I always kept forgetting to mention this to you homie, but I read up on it on IMDB... I could barely read through the description lol. Seriously, there was no way in hell I was watching it!!
9.) Best/Worst album:
Best: 'Trem - For The Term of His natural Life'
Worst: To many to list...
10.) Biggest guilty pleasure:
Flying to Japan on the regular :D
11.) Best show/concert you did and did not attend:
Even though I work in the Music Industry, I didn't really 'attend' to many gigs that I wasn't working this year (don't really want to count those)... wait, I did see Tool & Rammstein again earlier this year. Lol forgot about that.
12.) Sum up the year in one word:
roller coaster (its two I guess?)

1.) Personal high of 2011?
Getting engaged. Opening a retail shop with my mother in my hometown.
2.) Personal low of 2011?
it was a multiplex of getting denied entry to the USA (where I'd been living for three years and have my dogs, house, fiancé) coupled with the death of my grandfather and a few months later my grandmother. I say this was a multiplex because I came back to Canada for my grandparents and then was unable to return to America, so it was one long shitty event. Not seeing my dogs for almost a year and my fiancé for months on end is fucking shitty.
3.) Best LST Thread?
ICP, Random Photos, Hip Hop Thread, full back piece thread
4.) Worst LST Thread?
The one where Bubbleberry wrote a novel about how shitty and sad of a person I am. That was pretty tight. (just as a side note, he tried to add me on Facebook a few weeks ago, according to his profile he actually owns a shop in where ever the fuck he lives and he was the one doing those awful tattoos that he claimed his "wife" did. it also appears he has stolen other people's tattoo work and put it on his shop's page. I wish i could meet him so I could kick his balls off, and then show him what a real tattoo is supposed to look like)
5.) Favorite tattoo (on you):
Is this tattoos I got this year? If so I guess none cause I didn't really get tattooed except for a little souvenir one. If it just means overall out of everything on me at this point I'd have to go with my back even though it's not done
6.) Favorite tattoo (on someone else):
way to hard to choose, nothing instantly comes to mind as 'the one'
7.) Favorite artist?
again, there isn't just one person who I could pick.
8.) Best/Worst movie:
worst movie I watched all year was "Rubber" total fucking useless bullshit. I can't even believe I watched the whole thing.
best movie I watched was ummm.... probably Bridesmaids.
9.) Best/Worst album: No idea.. I'm not even sure if I listened to any new albums this year. I've fallen off the new music band wagon as of late.
10.) Biggest guilty pleasure: these gourmet chocolate bars we sell at my mom's store. They are about 600 calories and taste like it. Headache inducing amounts of sugar.
11.) Best show/concert you did and did not attend: Actually I don't think I attended one show this year. That's what happens with you get stuck in a tiny town in Canada. Oh wait actually I went and saw TV On The Radio and it was amazing. And the worst concert was the opening band for TV On The Radio, Lissie Trully or some shit. Whoever they were, they sucked.
12.) Sum up the year in one word: Frustrating.

I´ll play!
1.) Personal high of 2011?
San Francisco trip by far
2.) Personal low of 2011?
Not sure if I want to share that on a public forum
3.) Best LST Thread?
Latest tattoo lowdown
4.) Worst LST Thread?
Whatever threads Bubbleberry started
5.) Favorite tattoo (on you):
I love all the tattoos I got this year equally believe it or not
6.) Favorite tattoo (on someone else):
@hogg ´s Lehi tigers
7.) Favorite artist?
Since I bought IRON WILL earlier this year I´ve been puring over it every other week, so if I have to pick only one I´ll have to go with Grime
8.) Best/Worst movie:
I´ve seen a ton of crap this year, but the only good one I can think of at the moment is Red State
9.) Best/Worst album:
The best is probably City and Colour - Little Hell. I don´t know which is worst, but I´ll say the Metallica/Lou Reed album even though I haven´t heard a single song from it.
10.) Biggest guilty pleasure:
Fuck dude, you had to ask... Okay, I´m sort of enjoying the latest season of Desperate Housewives. I feel like I´m setting the bar pretty high on this one.
11.) Best show/concert you did and did not attend:
Not sure. Didn´t attend too many concerts this year unfortunately.
12.) Sum up the year in one word:
Pretty, pretty, pretty good.
Oh, and I´m adding one:
13.) Best television series (I´m a television series whore!)
Louie

BEST/WORST of 2011:
1.) Personal high of 2011?
Fishing nearly every weekend of the 2011 summer/fall.
2.) Personal low of 2011?
I lost some good friends, and some not good ones. Mostly good ones though.
3.) Best LST Thread?
ICP THREAD.
4.) Worst LST Thread?
I got bored with the hipster thread a while ago.
5.) Favorite tattoo (on you):
Its like picking a favorite kid... but eagle chest piece.
6.) Favorite tattoo (on someone else):
@hogg and his two tigers... fucking perfect
7.) Favorite artist?
Tim Lehi blows me away every year. I scored a High on Fire shirt he drew up this year. I try and wear it every day.
8.) Best/Worst movie:
Best: Midnight In Paris
Worst: Fast Five (didnt see it, im just guessing.)
9.) Best/Worst album:
Best: Chuck Ragan - Covering Ground
Most Disappointing: Fucked Up: David Comes to Life
10.) Biggest guilty pleasure:
Copenhagen wintergreen and hot wings (at the same time)
11.) Best show/concert you did and did not attend:
Did: Sheer Terror
Didn't: Powerhouse/Doomsday Device reunion show
12.) Sum up the year in one word:
indifferent.

I know its a little premature, but Im bored as shit at work, so this is what I decided to do on a cold Oakland morning:
BEST/WORST of 2011:
1.) Personal high of 2011?
2.) Personal low of 2011?
3.) Best LST Thread?
4.) Worst LST Thread?
5.) Favorite tattoo (on you):
6.) Favorite tattoo (on someone else):
7.) Favorite artist?
8.) Best/Worst movie:
9.) Best/Worst album:
10.) Biggest guilty pleasure:
11.) Best show/concert you did and did not attend:
12.) Sum up the year in one word:
Add whatever questions you want. Lets get to postin.

stupid ways i hurt myself usually involves baking cookies... or hot water. recently, it involved hot water and my new pup. she tried scratching her neck while lying dangerously close to the edge of the couch, her back towards the edge. i was sitting next to her with a cup of steaming hot water that had just been poured from the kettle on the stove, and just as i said to her "you're going to fall off the couch" she looked at me like "oh shit!" and fell, but in the process decided that flailing her legs would work as an attempt to keep her balance. my cup was kicked due to the flailing, and hot water landed all over my legs, missing my crotch by mere inches (thank fuckin' god). it's still healing.

Lesson to the wise ,you can't train through injuries .If your serious about what you do treat any injury accordingly ,this may sound prudent to male bravodo ,but then again you haven't seen the number of guys virtually ruined,depressed or cripped by what started out as treatable .

Never stop training!!! When I fuck up and give up my neck, I just tap. That's in training of course, tournament or on the street I'm not fucking tapping. In training I tap a lot, if the guy I'm rolling with get's the hold, I tap then start again. I've been injury free for the last 6 months.

Well looks like I am going to be getting tattooed regularly. Just started my lady head over at Invisible and am booked out till the end of March, then follows another artist. At the end of it I will be consecutively tattooed for over a year solid with a month break at most. I have a feeling my itch will be satisfied for awhile!

I keep on getting more of my sleeve completed bit by bit about once a month. Longest period between tattoos was about 4 years. My last session was a week and a few days ago and I don't have another appointment till the first week in the New Year :) During the time I have been getting my sleeve done, I have been planning out what my next tattoos will be!

Because I don't have the money for anything else :P

Last time getting tattooed for me was end of August this year... and in less than 3 weeks time I'll be back in Japan getting the sleeve finished ;) (and y'all can bet your collective asses I'm excited!)

The longest time between tattoos for me was about a year and a half (not including the 18 years when I was underage).
The last time was 4 days ago. Session 4 of a sleeve that still isn't finished. The itch for me right now is literal.

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.

100% fucking hipster bullshit. this is how i can tell
a)piles of zines in the background
b)stone washed tight pants
c)ugly ironic sneakers
d)really small fitting hoodie
e)pants rolled all the way up so you can see my raggedy old vans and craaaazy socks on Mr. Background
d)dude is wearing a friendship bracelet and I'm assuming he's not a 12 year old
e) horrible ironic art passing for something real

Funny thing is I know way more women with tattoos and piercings than men.
Haha internet comments. They start off with a solid idea than transition to name calling...always
I do have to say I do not think I can trust a Forbes article with accuracy in the area of tattoos. The statistics are always biased and skewed, even if none is intended. Statistics are statistically proven (yup I said it) to be skewed in favor for the argument at hand when presented with an article or statement. Place yourself in the shoes of the person writing the article. You find 3 statistics that either prove or disprove your argument. Would you use a study that disproved your statement? This being said the statistics presented by this article are only a rough estimate on the subject matter at hand. Proof of point would be, who did they ask? If they asked people on an online survey that automatically excludes people who do not frequent that website, do not have internet access, or simply hate online surveys (I fit into the last category). You must also take into account there are way more people with a small tattoo than moderate to heavily tattooed folk, the latter being the ones more likely to be subjected to a biased opinion by a potential employer.
When talking of tattoos in the workplace, visible or otherwise, I feel you must take into account the subject matter, size and placement of the tattoo in question. For example if the tattoo was a massive blood-drenched severed head with the words F*ck the World, I would say yea, if they knew about it you probably will be looking for more interviews, but if it is a small butterfly, you probably have a decent chance of it being overlooked. Body piercing also carry the same weight with placement and possibly ethnic background as well. A fine example I have encountered is, I have seen Indian women in the professional world have a small nose piercing and nobody questions otherwise, but if I were to walk in brandishing a fresh industrial bar, there would be questions.
I would also like to add that every writer has their own opinion woven into any article they write, simple based on personal experience and human nature.

Hey everyone, Now I am sure we have all had people come up to us and have some negative comment thrown at us about our tattoos. What have been some actual quick thinking comebacks you have used to sort of defend/make the idiot go away.
I'll start it off:
My wife and I were in a clothing store and this lady comes up to us and said "Look at that awful tattoo, I don't like to see that on a woman". My wife's zippy comeback was "Ya well I don't like to see a mustache and a beard on a woman either but there is nothing I can do about yours..." We laughed and she walked away all frown faced LOL

hard to believe i opened up my shop, boars head tattoo parlor, 1 year ago this weekend...time flies when ya having fun!!!

Dan Gilsdorf

I'm finding this thread quite interesting. When I started getting tattooed I was not particularly well informed, but I had a good idea of what I wanted. I started with my inner-forearms. I figured, if I'm getting these cool tattoos why shouldn't other people get to enjoy them as well? I work as a carpenter, so that is not a field where people judge you too harshly on appearance, more on competence. Reading about the warped tour body suit made me laugh. I'm not there at all, in fact if I wear a hoodie I appear un-tattooed. But in reading and looking at tattooed folk I've started working my way up, gives a more balanced look.
Just got my chest done, you can't see that one at all with a t-shirt on. So I'm starting to see the appeal of semi private tattoos as well.

Last one; I could wear this thread out with pics of customs bikes and cars from Japan:

The original ,amazing Genko from Japan.

I had the chance to go to the Bay Area Convention of the Tattoo Arts today and I now consider myself spoiled silly. Backpieces and bodysuits! Not only was I able to purchase a copy of the impressive 2 vol. Bloodwork: Bodies collection, which documents some outstanding pieces, but I was also able to attend Horitomo's presentation on backpieces. I don't know about others who may have attended today but I found it very enlightening. Essentially addressing a variety of Horitomo's own beliefs on how a traditional backpiece evolved to it's current state since the Edo Period, his belief on traditional composition, what makes up a "completed" backpiece, the differences between pieces for men vs. women, even the traditional belief that the bacpiece should be the bearer's first tattoo prior to adding sleeves. In my own account this was the exact opposite of my own planning, where I'd started with my arms. Jill, had mentioned this to me, and there are many examples of this in Japanese tattoo magazines, but I always assumed it had to do with the traditional idea of hiding the tattoo behind clothing. It was then interesting to hear Horitomo giving examples of how adding sleeves first was potentially detrimental to the composition of background in an artistic composite. Even an artist's signature added to the tattoo, which was debated in another post was discussed.
It was a great opportunity for me to look into the traditional Japanese tattoo mindset without having to question the authenticity of the source as there's so much "exoticism" sometimes applied. There's another seminar tomorrow and I'd recommend it. Besides it also comes with Horitomo's new book too. Bonus! Anyone else's thoughts about it today?