For years, beginning perhaps fifteen years ago when we were
invited to attend a considerably younger co-worker's wedding, Mary and I have
held a common opinion regarding tattoos on young ladies. . The bride was beautiful, of course, as were
the bridesmaids and especially her Maid of Honor, a sister with the
knock-me-down dark beauty that so many of our Southern California Latinas
display. The gowns were strapless and of
some shade of orange that seems to be reserved for wedding apparel.
Showing its fiery breath just short of the sister’s neck was
the mouth of a four inch dragon’s head, whose body and tail would
proportionately reach below her waist, had the dress not covered it up. I’m sure the tattoo was designed to accent
her beauty rather than detract from it, but we both commented that as she grew
older and her body parts began their inevitable shift, she might have second
thoughts about the process. In fact, one
of our continued hypotheses is that some LASER-wielding dermatologist is right
now making a fortune, as the Boomers and Gen-X children reach middle-age and
beyond.
Last Sunday were had dinner with a group that included a
young gentleman who had just, moved to one of the less-populated areas of Texas. His planned business is a tattoo parlor where
he expects to hire several artists besides himself to meet the demand. The expected draw will come from the Army
Camp, Fort Hood, which is in the news because of the trial of a Muslim Psychiatrist
who killed nine solders about to deploy to Afghanistan.
 |
| Lawn Mower Tattoo |
When I was a Navy Dentist serving with the Marines, a
CO had to give permission to get a tattoo, and it couldn’t show
when in uniform. I presume that
has all changed now.
It was a navy man, Captain Cook, who brought tattoos to the
Western World. The natives of New
Zealand and nearby islands thought decorating the skin with indelible ink set
them apart from the riff-raff. European young
ladies of the day took to the fashion as a means of showing they were current
with fashion. Of course most died
earlier than our women do today.
For those who feel as Mary and I did, there are now
excellent tattoo parlors specializing in non-permanent tattoos. I might have one of those done as I was
impressed by a tattoo on the head of a man with a hairline similar to mine.
What made me think of the proverb and this subject while in
my shower is that I find myself with a variety of liver spots and varicosities
arranged in seemingly random fashion on my body. I am confident that as more appear to connect
the dots, God will show some recognizable pattern He has in mind. When that happens I am sure God will laugh at
my plan to avoid tattoos.
I am off tomorrow to return to Mason City, Iowa and my
sixtieth high school reunion. Since all
who will be attending are likely either retired completely or in some
occupation they have chosen as a second career, I hope to have enough
ammunition on my return to fire off a Post on Encore Careers, including my own. Please join
me.
No comments:
Post a Comment