But first things first. I obviously didn’t make the Top 50 (of 30,000 entries) to win the 6 month job in Australia. Oh well, you can’t win if you don’t play. Honestly, Australia is one of the last places on my list to go. Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to go diving on The Reef. But the rest of it? It’s the United States in the south Pacific, with less culture and worse food. pass.
For years now I’ve wanted a tattoo, especially during and after my rtw trip. I was searching for some Indonesian designs but couldn’t come up with any good ones. So it’s never been a matter of would I do it, just finding what I would feel strongly enough about doing.
If I was going to do it, it would be something completely one-of-a-kind. Something culturally significant and interesting. Not half-assed or small. I’m not much into word tattoos. And since I’m not an artist, I’d better find a good listening artist that would work well with me.
I realize now it’s a better thing to tell people what it is before they see it. Unless I’m trying to get a strong reaction, heh.
It’s a Dia de los Muertos mermaid. The idea struck me one day when I was thinking about one my friend Adrienne’s paintings. It hit me, mermaid tattoo, aquatic life has become a big part of me, culturally awesome and relevant to several facets of my life, the southwest, the caribbean, colorful, celebratory, and most of all, dead. In addition to those things, it represents marking the first half of my life being done. Reminding me of the good, the bad, the mistakes and not to repeat them.
Here’s how the plan came together…
And here it is currently, but still need to add more water and fish. and then, who knows?
Finding the artist was a challenge. I tried a guy at a shop I heard was good, I liked his art the best of the artists. I booked a session with him before I left for Honduras, he had about a months wait anyway. When I got back, he’d lost the picture copies I gave him to work from. not good. then his drawings looked terrible, he wasn’t getting the style I wanted at all, even when I said “I want it exactly like this!”
My friend Tom then recommended Tanja Nixx, a friend of a friend who owns the famous Lyle Tuttle shop in north beach. He said he wanted her to do his next tatt, and that women tattoo artists are better listeners and would probably be what I needed. Also that she’s German, so she’s detailed, haha. I looked her up and her art matched the style I wanted a lot, she’s done Dia de los Muertos tatts, and she’s a traveler! The style of it being Central American folk art is not something you see often in tattoos either. but that’s exactly what’s nice in my opinion, i needn’t go down the list of overused, cliche’d, tattoo art.
So she’s worked out great and I love it.
What else is going on? Taking Spanish class again and it’s kicking my ass. I almost dropped it, but got B’s on both tests so I’m kinda hanging in there. But truthfully i’m lost. I’m also taking a 30-day hiatus from booze and first dates. A spring cleaning and detox. I’ve never done one before, and my health and liver could use it after the last several months.
Still doing lots of yoga and running more too. Been super busy between work, gigs, rehearsals, social life, class, yeah. All in all, not bad.
Traveling… want to hike Machu Picchu with my friend from Honduras. Anyone want to go? If that doesn’t look imminent, I may do a quick trip to Oaxaca to house sit, or I don’t know, Argentina.