TATTOOS and THE WAY I SEE IT

All this talk about tattoos and the young people (anyone under 50) who foolishly spend a lot of money decorating their bodies with expressive artwork and how it’s going to look and how are they going to feel, when they get to be 75 years old and their muscles are sagging and their skin is getting that old look. Well how does anyone feel when their undecorated bodies are sagging and their skin is turning into crocodile skin? At least they enjoyed the beauty of their tattoos while the designs last.

What something may look like 25 years from now is no way to decide whether you should enjoy something now. What if?  What if? What if? What a lousy way to deny what you want to do now.

The way I see it, decorating one’s body with paint goes back to the beginning of time, right about the same time the cave men and women were painting their activities on the walls of the caves they lived in. So many cultures that came along afterwards followed suit, aborigines in Australia, Native American tribes that originally came from the land of today’s Russia, South American peoples, African tribes, etc.
European royalty of the 17th and 18th centuries had their faces painted with bold beauty marks, boasting little designs of stars and sky-high wigs, men included, thank you. The courts in Asia were partial to painting their faces white before adding the colorful lips and eyebrows, etc.
And really, how many women won’t leave the house without their face power, lipstick and eyebrows. What’s the difference? Style. That’s the only difference.
Is there such a difference from the fancy fashion designers changing the styles of clothing each year? Have you seen some of those gowns worn on the red carpets of film festivals? Sometimes I feel embarrassed for those women! It’s as if the designers spent a lot of time and imagination to create a new way to make women look like clowns. Maybe those women don’t have full length mirrors in their homes, or perhaps they got dressed before they put their contact lenses in.
Body piercings? Not new. Been around since history was first recorded, maybe earlier.
My thoughts? Enjoy your body art. Some of it is downright gorgeous. My hat is off to you artists that create the beautiful designs and the courage those of you have to withstand the pain to have the glory of a tattoo. Enjoy it!