I got my first tattoo when I was 14. Young, I know, but I always felt the need to make everything around me, feel like “me”, and that included my own body. Some of my tattoos were teenage “mistakes”, some are profound with deep meaning, and some are just colourful things that make me happy. I’m going to share a few of the stories behind a few of my tattoos.
#1. Cassette Tape
Mine and my little sister’s birthdays are only one day apart (I’m May 17th, she’s May 16th) so a few years ago she asked me to take her to get her first tattoo on our birthday weekend. We decided we’d each get a tattoo representing each other. I got there and picked a cassette that represented my early youth (I remember having a cassette, oh god, I’m old) and had them put her birthday as the numbers on the front. I loved it! Now it was time for Caitlin to get her tattoo in honour of me… and she chickened out.
#2. Cupcake 1
This is one of my favourite tattoos. I just love how bright, happy and colourful it is and it reminds me of the cupcakes I made with my grandma growing up. This tattoo I got at a shop in Miami on vacation one year and it started the infamous “Tattoo Drama” on an episode of 1 Girl 5 Gays between Andrew and I. Oh, memories.
#3. Cupcake 2
This tattoo I got after the first cupcake one and I did it at a really cool tattoo parlour in New York City two summers ago. I knew I wanted more cupcakes (I still do!) so when I was on vacation I knew I had to get one. For some reason this was one of my most painful tattoos, but it totally one of my favourites!
#4. Explicit
This sort of sums up my youth. I was always getting in trouble at school, and at home. I knew I was gay and was struggling with coming out, and I felt like everything in my life was wild, “bad”, or “explicit”. I got it done in my hometown and it really, really hurt. I love it still, it reminds me of a different time in my life, but it’s my one tattoo that I always think ‘Great, I’m going to be 85 with the word Explicit tattooed on the back of my wrinkly old neck”, but, whatever!
#5. Pin-up Girl
My great-grandmother was a socialite, model and actress in the 20′s, and just basically lived a fabulous life. In those times being a sexual, powerful woman was considered controversial; and I love her for being just that. She is one of my greatest inspiration and if I could I would do anything to spend an afternoon with her in her hay-day. The tattoo isn’t finished (it just really hurt) and was done by an artist 30 minutes east of my hometown. I can’t wait to finish her and fill in all the spaces around her, it’s one of my favourite pieces I have.
My NEXT tattoos:
I have two new tattoos that I’m planning on getting. I’m going to London, England in a few months and I plan on getting another cupcake tattoo, but using the UK flag (the Union Jack) as the bottom, and a yummy green on top. Also, I recently had my mom, dad and little sister write “mother”, “father” and “little sister” in their own writing and I’m going to get those words tattooed on me, somewhere.
Anyways, thanks for giving a sh*t about my ink, until next time.
David Robert xxxx
