BFF: Best Friend Friday ~ Tattoo Etiquette

*weekly guest post by my BFF Karyn ~ enjoy!
I do not have any tattoos and while I can appreciate David Beckham’s tattoos, I am glad my DH is not all “inked” up. I have a large extended family and at least a dozen of them have tattoos, from my 20-something cousin (pattern of stars in pink, bright blue and a pretty yellow across top of her foot and Eeyore on her hip) to the 75 year old matriarch of our family, my great-aunt, who got a pink hibiscus on her ankle for her 70th birthday- no big deal.

I have always taught my children we do not make observations about a person’s appearance in front of them. Questions like, “where is his leg?” or “what is on her face?” are best left for when we are in the car. I would not want someone to walk up to me and say, “you really need to stop cutting your own hair!” So I would not walk up to someone with a bright green mohawk and say, “what were you thinking?” because I would assume they like bright green mohawks. The same goes if someone wants to put tattoos on every inch of their arm, I am going to assume they know tattoos are permanent and that they like tattoos- a lot. But what I would like to know is if there is such a thing as Tattoo Etiquette?

I am checking out of Super Target the other day and a young woman is waiting on me, she is petite with dark hair and blue eyes. She is wearing her Target red shirt with a slight v-neck and in three (maybe four, I am trying not to exaggerate) cursive across her breast bone is tattooed “Lost At Sea.” Under the writing is an anchor a good six inches long just above the v-neck and resting between her breasts! Now I am trying really hard not to stare and not to say, “what the @#$%&*! were you thinking?” and reminding myself not to make observations about people’s personal appearance and that she must like tattoos and it obviously means something personal to her. Just because she is working with the public does not mean I get to interrogate her about her personal life and the significance of her tattoo, but come on!

What the @#$%&*! was she thinking and what does “Lost At Sea” mean? Did someone die? Is she in the Navy? Does she hate the Navy? Know someone in the Navy? Was she lost, but now is found? Or does she just want to buy a boat? If you get a big giant tattoo where the whole world can see it, is it okay for a total stranger to say, “hey, interesting tattoo” and see if they respond MYOB or tell you their life story? Don’t you have to expect people to ask? If “Lost At Sea” is personal or special, she could have put it on her back or butt and saved herself the aggravation of people asking and me wondering.

Peace and joy!~Karyn