LOL at perdita!!!! Very nice!! I am a wimp too! I have had tatoos myself...but since I change my mind so often..I use the temporary ones!! With proper care, they usually last a couple of weeks!!

As for the frog, most, if not all of us, have had to crawl through ground glass at some point in our lives. I find the memory of that time in my life more than enough, without having a permanent visual reminder....... I'm afraid you have missed the point. The tattoo is not a reminder of "crawling through glass" at all. It is a reminder that she is strong and as long as one "keeps flapping" (as she calls it) they can overcome the worst odds of whatever faces them. She sees the frog as a symbol of strength and perseverance. It's a positive thing and makes her smile. Reminds her to believe in herself. As to the poster that said why not just do temporary tattoos.......well because they are not personal. A tattoo is much more than an embellishment to many of us. It becomes a part of us. It is our history. Those who can't get past the idea that it's just permanent art are missing the point that several of us have tried to make. I rarely see my tat. Forget it's even there. But when I do think of it it puts a big huge smile on my face. It took a long time for me to decide to do it. It's a symbol of freedom, of survival, of loving who I am. The tat itself is just a cute little character. No one seeing it would ever put any meaning into it. But for me it means everything. Similar to my friend's frog. It is a part of me. Reminds me of who I am. I like who I am. The one I want on my foot will not have the same intensity of meaning. But it has been well thought out. It will reflect another lighter side of me. It is something I love. It will be unique due to the artist I've chosen. I don't like young people getting tats much either. I asked my own kids not to do anything to their bodies that couldn't be reversed until they were sure. Neither has a tat and they are in their 30s. The idea of getting one creeps out DH. But he cringes when I put my earrings in. He has issues with skin being broken. Can't look at the needle when he get a shot or gives blood.

Well ann, it is hard to explain, but it is precisely because I can't see it that I like having the artwork on my back. Neither can I see my own face, but I still like having it. The artwork is a private, personal thing that I can display or not - emphasis on not. Netla, that is a wonderful idea. Now that I am thinking of it, a poetry tattoo is sounding better and better. I would also give consideration to my favorite words from the Bible, Matthew 7:7 'Ask, and it will be given you, seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened for you.' Although that is a bit long, I am not a big person!

That's how I roll, probably about 80% anyway. I've often thoughts it's odd that I care so much more about how my house looks than myself when so few people see my house. Illogical. Mind you my moment of true freedom will be when I wear caftans 24/7--haven't gotten that liberated yet. something I enjoy and think is pretty and comfortable physically but is a little too far out out of the norm to be truly comfortable psyche-cally. I will say that many tattoos and piercings aren't meant to be seen, or not by many. I guess I wanted to point out that amongst the many varied motivations for body mods, among which certainly is outward appearance (whether aiming for beauty, personal expression, signalling conformity to a group or supposed nonconformity to 'the man'), I think there really are other true motivations that are more inward. And of course one might say one wants to look good to or for oneself rather than to or for those around one - not sure if that's truly achievable or not. Among the people I know personally these days with tons of visible tattoos, well of course I met them through my own social circle so they have similarities - but I wouldn't call them boring or bland. they're typically musicians, artists, longtime alt music fans or otherwise a little less staid, they're still getting tattoos well past the first blush of youth, they seem to enjoy getting more, and I think they know by now that tattoos are common enough not to signal nonconformity but they seem to plan out and enjoy the artistic and self-expression aspects. The people I know seem to pick the artists carefully. I find the art interesting to look at and the people tend to lead kinda fun lives, or at least it seems to me. You know, road trips, scooters, punk rock, bluegrass, drag, deep end dining, geekdom, film, burlesque - they seem to have pretty neat interests and are fun to talk to at dinner parties. Maybe a common thread among the people I know is that they tend to be a little intense, like REALLY into their interests. But then again it seems everybody gets intense around here in the winter, it's just way too drab not to.