4 ms·

If there is anything that's a constant in life, it's that nothing is a constant. Tattoos have a permanence that is rarely matched by one's character - many peop

If there is anything that's a constant in life, it's that nothing is a constant. Tattoos have a permanence that is rarely matched by one's character - many people don't seem to realise that.

kube-system 1y ago
I'm not sure, in my experience, the older people I know with tats have exactly the personality that goes along with it.
- arresin 1y ago
  None of the millennials I know who got tatted during the height of the fashion wave match the character* of being tattooed. And some of them really went all out. Truly amazing what the desire to conform to our tribe will make us do to ourselves. (*statistically a drug addict, criminal or prostitute)
  - im3w1l 1y ago
    Maybe I shouldn't be telling on myself like this, but I think tattoos look really cool and the only reason I'm not getting one is because how many people look down on them.
- sevensor 1y ago
  I knew a man who had been in the Navy, in the Pacific, during WW2. Not many men of his generation had tattoos, but most of the ones who did were sailors, and he was no exception. Large tattoo on his forearm: a jester, with the hat and bells, like from a deck of cards. I knew another man of that generation with a number tattooed on his wrist. He never talked about it.
ravenstine 1y ago
This is why I likely will never get a tattoo of any kind, other than the fact that I simply have no desire for one. Some people become themselves early in life, but I feel like I different person every year that goes by. I don't even like the kinds of clothes I used to wear not that long ago, so I know I would soon hate any tattoo I'd get.
- schwartzworld 1y ago
  It all depends. I got a couple of tattoos 20 years ago and I’m not that guy. But seeing those tattoos connects me to who I used to be, and even if I wouldn’t go get them now, I could never regret them. It also helps that my tattoos are wholly original, i.e. not based on some trend, and that I chose the subject matter specifically because I didn’t think it was possible to hate it later on (a dinosaur and a 4d hypercube). Like, am I ever going to hate dinosaurs? I’ve loved them for 40ish years already.
  - johnisgood 1y ago
    I feel the same way about my self-inflicted scars. People who do not have one do not like to talk about it, but there can be beauty in them, in a way. It is kind of a taboo, I would say.
- RandallBrown 1y ago
  I kind of want a tattoo because I'd like to know what it feels like to get one. I don't think I'll ever get one though. I have a hard enough time deciding what kind of art to hang on my walls.
  - bluefirebrand 1y ago
    Don't believe the people who say it's not that bad It hurts a ton. It bleeds a lot It wasn't intolerable pain, but it's not "not that bad" either
    - kamarg 1y ago
      Really depends on where you get it done. On your forearm? Not that bad. On your scalp? Hope you take a stick to bite down on while you get it done.
  - noxer 1y ago
    You can get one that's only visible under UV light, but given the topic here it might be relevant to know that these are much harder to remove and also if they age they may become visible under normal light and/or stop fluoresced under UV light.
dvh 1y ago
"Nothing lasts forever, only change" --Genghis Khan
- tough 1y ago
  change is the only constant
  - pixelpoet 1y ago
    except from vending machines
gardenhedge 1y ago
Some people get them as things they have done or experienced. In that sense it doesn't matter if they change in life because their story hasn't.
nineplay 1y ago
It depends on one's outlook. I know people who's attitude is both "boy that was a dumb tattoo to get at 18" and "dumb 18 year old me is still me, and I don't want to remove that tattoo any more that I want to remove that part of myself". Obviously circumstances may change if the tattoo is offensive.
- ramoz 1y ago
  Your second perspective captures my personal take. I feel indifferent about the actual ink at this point. It’s more about a personal/symbolic mark of who I am, who I was, maybe who I’ll be - all the same person. No regrets.
owebmaster 1y ago
For many of us keeping a reference to not change/forget some things is a strategy not a mistake.
- mystified5016 1y ago
  Yup, that's what all my tattoos are. They're markers of things I've done, experiences had, and mistakes made. If when I get older and those memories mean less to me, the tattoos will become markers of who I was and what was once important to me. I could see myself getting some of them removed, but I don't think it's likely. Because of the way my brain is, it's difficult for me to stay attached to the past. Having permanent marks on my body makes the past unforgettable, inescapable. I like to think it's made an improvement on the person I've become, but of course it's impossible to know.
mtrovo 1y ago
You know, as much as I want to agree, it feels a bit shallow to look at life that way. I've got tattoos, sometimes people ask me "What does this represent to you?" and honestly I never really know what to say because I don't overthink them. What I do remember is where I was, what I was doing, and my whole vibe back then. It's a cool reminder that nothing stays the same and that I'm a different person now. It's kind of like asking your grandpa the story behind a scar he has. Now lately I feel like the speed on which trends are born and die, the non-stop over sharing, and that constant itch for "what's next" is really pushing us all to become these kind of formless blobs, scared to show any real "edges." For example: - Cars all kinda look the same now and are mostly some shade of grey. Same deal with phones and pretty much all tech. - Buying clothes with bland colors with almost no originality with the expectation that it will probably be in the bin the next season. - The whole clean girl aesthetic on putting in a ton of effort to look like you put in zero effort. - And don't get me started on how sad beige parenting is not a joke You only live once, there's no scoreboard at the end. Just do what you want with your life. More often than you'd probably like to admit, nobody really cares that much anyway.
- NegativeK 1y ago
  I got my tattoo when I was about half my current age. I wasn't too worried about not liking it later -- I'd wanted the idea for a few years, and I figured that it'd be a good memory if I changed later. I didn't change later. I had another artist expand the design about ten years ago. And while it had some meaning when I got the first round, I've realized over time that it means a whole lot more to me as I've learned more about myself. But when someone asks me what it means, I just shrug it off. I'm not sharing that kind of thing with people.
  - nurettin 1y ago
    I am a disembodied text, you can tell me.
    - nh23423fefe 1y ago
      tell
deleted 1y ago
[deleted]
ramoz 1y ago
I don’t regret or fancy my decade old tattoos. They symbolize a past life to me basically, and that brings meaning and unique introspection to me in a way.
6stringmerc 1y ago
A guy in jail once described his tattoos as “a permanent reminder of a temporary idea” and I found it insightful.
ryoshu 1y ago
I got inked twice before I made a commitment to my third tattoo on my wrist so it would be plainly visible. I committed to never working with or for someone who refused to hire a person because of something like a tattoo. Sometimes the commitment goes beyond the ink on the skin.
ladidahh 1y ago
I think for some people, at least myself, tattoos are a narrative, it's such a bizarre process, half art and half science, that each session, wether it was in a punk house with no electricity or an upscale art gallery on the other side of the world gets ingrained a little deeper. They're like little time machines, I can remember who I was, where I was, who I was with. And I'm guessing I'm in the minority here, but I can't stand the look of a fresh clean tattoo, the stick and poke in a dorm room, the 20 year old one done in a studio that wasn't too concerned with checking ids, the one that was done way too deep, in the dark, and healed into a puff sticker like scar consistency, that's what I love. I've considered a few times going in and getting some of my more visible ones removed, and the occasional must wear long sleeved shirt wins every time, no matter what I gain or lose, I like my garbage art time machines
UltraSane 1y ago
I don't have tattoos because I could never commit to having any specific image permanent on my skin. I have considered getting a public key tattooed though.
- crabsand 1y ago
  a qr code for your home page may be another option
eightysixfour 1y ago
The idea that your character is able to be quantized to a moment in time instead of the history of your life is bizarre to me. For the vast majority of people who haven’t suffered some kind of brain damage, life is append only and the current state is completely dependent on the history. You have markers of your past good and bad decisions all over you.

If there is anything that's a constant in life, it's that nothing is a constant. Tattoos have a permanence that is rarely matched by one's character - many people don't seem to realise that.

kube-system 1y ago

I'm not sure, in my experience, the older people I know with tats have exactly the personality that goes along with it.

arresin 1y ago
None of the millennials I know who got tatted during the height of the fashion wave match the character* of being tattooed. And some of them really went all out. Truly amazing what the desire to conform to our tribe will make us do to ourselves. (*statistically a drug addict, criminal or prostitute)
- im3w1l 1y ago
  Maybe I shouldn't be telling on myself like this, but I think tattoos look really cool and the only reason I'm not getting one is because how many people look down on them.
sevensor 1y ago
I knew a man who had been in the Navy, in the Pacific, during WW2. Not many men of his generation had tattoos, but most of the ones who did were sailors, and he was no exception. Large tattoo on his forearm: a jester, with the hat and bells, like from a deck of cards. I knew another man of that generation with a number tattooed on his wrist. He never talked about it.

ravenstine 1y ago

This is why I likely will never get a tattoo of any kind, other than the fact that I simply have no desire for one. Some people become themselves early in life, but I feel like I different person every year that goes by. I don't even like the kinds of clothes I used to wear not that long ago, so I know I would soon hate any tattoo I'd get.

schwartzworld 1y ago
It all depends. I got a couple of tattoos 20 years ago and I’m not that guy. But seeing those tattoos connects me to who I used to be, and even if I wouldn’t go get them now, I could never regret them. It also helps that my tattoos are wholly original, i.e. not based on some trend, and that I chose the subject matter specifically because I didn’t think it was possible to hate it later on (a dinosaur and a 4d hypercube). Like, am I ever going to hate dinosaurs? I’ve loved them for 40ish years already.
- johnisgood 1y ago
  I feel the same way about my self-inflicted scars. People who do not have one do not like to talk about it, but there can be beauty in them, in a way. It is kind of a taboo, I would say.
RandallBrown 1y ago
I kind of want a tattoo because I'd like to know what it feels like to get one. I don't think I'll ever get one though. I have a hard enough time deciding what kind of art to hang on my walls.
- bluefirebrand 1y ago
  Don't believe the people who say it's not that bad It hurts a ton. It bleeds a lot It wasn't intolerable pain, but it's not "not that bad" either
  - kamarg 1y ago
    Really depends on where you get it done. On your forearm? Not that bad. On your scalp? Hope you take a stick to bite down on while you get it done.
- noxer 1y ago
  You can get one that's only visible under UV light, but given the topic here it might be relevant to know that these are much harder to remove and also if they age they may become visible under normal light and/or stop fluoresced under UV light.

dvh 1y ago

"Nothing lasts forever, only change" --Genghis Khan

tough 1y ago
change is the only constant
- pixelpoet 1y ago
  except from vending machines

gardenhedge 1y ago

Some people get them as things they have done or experienced. In that sense it doesn't matter if they change in life because their story hasn't.

nineplay 1y ago

It depends on one's outlook. I know people who's attitude is both "boy that was a dumb tattoo to get at 18" and "dumb 18 year old me is still me, and I don't want to remove that tattoo any more that I want to remove that part of myself". Obviously circumstances may change if the tattoo is offensive.

ramoz 1y ago
Your second perspective captures my personal take. I feel indifferent about the actual ink at this point. It’s more about a personal/symbolic mark of who I am, who I was, maybe who I’ll be - all the same person. No regrets.

owebmaster 1y ago

For many of us keeping a reference to not change/forget some things is a strategy not a mistake.

mystified5016 1y ago
Yup, that's what all my tattoos are. They're markers of things I've done, experiences had, and mistakes made. If when I get older and those memories mean less to me, the tattoos will become markers of who I was and what was once important to me. I could see myself getting some of them removed, but I don't think it's likely. Because of the way my brain is, it's difficult for me to stay attached to the past. Having permanent marks on my body makes the past unforgettable, inescapable. I like to think it's made an improvement on the person I've become, but of course it's impossible to know.

mtrovo 1y ago

You know, as much as I want to agree, it feels a bit shallow to look at life that way. I've got tattoos, sometimes people ask me "What does this represent to you?" and honestly I never really know what to say because I don't overthink them. What I do remember is where I was, what I was doing, and my whole vibe back then. It's a cool reminder that nothing stays the same and that I'm a different person now. It's kind of like asking your grandpa the story behind a scar he has. Now lately I feel like the speed on which trends are born and die, the non-stop over sharing, and that constant itch for "what's next" is really pushing us all to become these kind of formless blobs, scared to show any real "edges." For example: - Cars all kinda look the same now and are mostly some shade of grey. Same deal with phones and pretty much all tech. - Buying clothes with bland colors with almost no originality with the expectation that it will probably be in the bin the next season. - The whole clean girl aesthetic on putting in a ton of effort to look like you put in zero effort. - And don't get me started on how sad beige parenting is not a joke You only live once, there's no scoreboard at the end. Just do what you want with your life. More often than you'd probably like to admit, nobody really cares that much anyway.

NegativeK 1y ago
I got my tattoo when I was about half my current age. I wasn't too worried about not liking it later -- I'd wanted the idea for a few years, and I figured that it'd be a good memory if I changed later. I didn't change later. I had another artist expand the design about ten years ago. And while it had some meaning when I got the first round, I've realized over time that it means a whole lot more to me as I've learned more about myself. But when someone asks me what it means, I just shrug it off. I'm not sharing that kind of thing with people.
- nurettin 1y ago
  I am a disembodied text, you can tell me.
  - nh23423fefe 1y ago
    tell

deleted 1y ago

[deleted]

ramoz 1y ago

I don’t regret or fancy my decade old tattoos. They symbolize a past life to me basically, and that brings meaning and unique introspection to me in a way.

6stringmerc 1y ago

A guy in jail once described his tattoos as “a permanent reminder of a temporary idea” and I found it insightful.

ryoshu 1y ago

I got inked twice before I made a commitment to my third tattoo on my wrist so it would be plainly visible. I committed to never working with or for someone who refused to hire a person because of something like a tattoo. Sometimes the commitment goes beyond the ink on the skin.

ladidahh 1y ago

I think for some people, at least myself, tattoos are a narrative, it's such a bizarre process, half art and half science, that each session, wether it was in a punk house with no electricity or an upscale art gallery on the other side of the world gets ingrained a little deeper. They're like little time machines, I can remember who I was, where I was, who I was with. And I'm guessing I'm in the minority here, but I can't stand the look of a fresh clean tattoo, the stick and poke in a dorm room, the 20 year old one done in a studio that wasn't too concerned with checking ids, the one that was done way too deep, in the dark, and healed into a puff sticker like scar consistency, that's what I love. I've considered a few times going in and getting some of my more visible ones removed, and the occasional must wear long sleeved shirt wins every time, no matter what I gain or lose, I like my garbage art time machines

UltraSane 1y ago

I don't have tattoos because I could never commit to having any specific image permanent on my skin. I have considered getting a public key tattooed though.

crabsand 1y ago
a qr code for your home page may be another option

eightysixfour 1y ago

The idea that your character is able to be quantized to a moment in time instead of the history of your life is bizarre to me. For the vast majority of people who haven’t suffered some kind of brain damage, life is append only and the current state is completely dependent on the history. You have markers of your past good and bad decisions all over you.