THE GUY WITH THE BUDDHA TATTOO (A Personal Story)

I’m taking a brief departure from the usual poetry post this evening to share with you a bit about my personal life.

About five years ago I was waiting for my wife to get her nails done, killing time in a bookstore and discovered a picture in a tattoo magazine that called out to me. I wasn’t even considering getting a tattoo at the time but appreciated the artistry and felt an unexplainable connection to it.

The design of this tattoo was so striking I was driven to take a picture with my old iPhone 4. I kept this picture with me for the next five years, transferring it to three successive iPhones. Every so often I would glance at it and imagine a day when the planets would align and I could go through with getting it.

A couple of years ago, in 2014, the thought of finally getting the tattoo done began to nag at me. I had gone through a particularly challenging couple of years in my career and felt it would be a reward for overcoming those challenges. I sent the picture to, Greg “Grease” Lehman to get a price quote. Greg has been in the business for decades and has a reputation for being one of the best tattoo artists in the Twin Cities. At the time money was tight and my fiscally conservative side just wouldn’t allow me to spend that much on body art. I’m a born saver and have never been a spender so the process never came to fruition.

Fast forward to 2016, due to my success here on Steemit, my writing career has grown tremendously and when I least expected it. For the first time in my entire life I could justify a purchase like this as a reward for all the hard work.

It just felt like the right time so about three weeks ago I made an appointment with Greg, the same artist that I emailed two years prior. The day of reckoning was Wednesday, September 14th at noon. He said the piece would take about four hours in the chair. I arrived at his studio alone having no idea what to expect. The shop was very clean and organized with lots of things to look at. I was a little nervous, with this being my first tattoo, but Greg struck up a conversation right away and made me feel right at home.

The last picture ever taken of my bare arm.

When I saw the Kramer (from Seinfeld) figurines I knew Greg had good taste.

Pictures blown up from the original photo.

Greg scrubbing up and preparing the tools of his trade.

At this point a rough sketch of the photo was drawn on a piece of plastic that transferred the drawing onto my arm. Greg began work with the tattoo gun. I was surprised at how little this hurt. It felt like little more than an electric pulse at this point.

After about an hour most of the outline was done. The tender skin on the inside of the arm hurt a little more than the rest but it still wasn’t bad at all.

Next came the filling in of the solid areas and more of the fine detail work. At this point a wave of pretty intense relaxation came over me from the endorphins my body was releasing. Many say this is one reason tattoos are addictive.

My view from the chair.

About two hours into the process came the fine detail work. I typically have a LOT of energy and sitting anywhere for two hours is a challenge but I had so many endorphins rushing through my system by this point I was content.

Three and a half hours later most of the fine detail work is done, everything except the color.

Next Greg added purple to the lotus, signifying the crown chakra. For the color ink he changed to a wider needle (actually a grouping of several needles together). It wasn’t any more painful, maybe my arm was just numb by this point.

Then came the white ink for the highlights, to give a three dimensional effect. I’m not going to lie, the white ink stung a bit. He used a completely different style of needle for this color. What the white added to the overall look was well worth it, it really finished it off.

The finished piece with the artist himself!

In Greg’s world even Charlie Brown has ink!

Greg sent me home with a bandage over the piece wrapped in plastic wrap and medical tape. He told me this could be removed after two hours. I got multiple packages of “Tattoo Goo” to keep it moisturized for the first week so it would heal properly. That night I was exhausted, likely from the rush of adrenaline and endorphins. I could barely finish my poetry post that night on Steemit and was ready for bed at 8:30.

He explained that the colors would begin to even out after a few days and the piece would have more contrast and look better and he was right. It looks much better now than it did the first day. For the first two days after I got it, I felt like I had a mild sunburn on my arm. Three days later there was no pain whatsoever.

I’m extremely happy with the Buddha tattoo and what it personally represents. In a way it feels like a talisman to me. For the rest of my life my Buddha will remind me of the importance of meditation and life balance, it will also be a permanent reminder of this true miracle that happened here on Steemit, and will be a tribute to my meditation student, Demanche, who recently passed away unexpectedly.

So from now on I'll be referred to as, The guy with the Buddha tattoo.

Have a wonderful evening everyone!