I also don't mean to offend, but that honestly seems like a typical response a non-tattooed person would give. In the same way that non-smokers just don't understand. I think really it comes down to the fact that many tattoos are poorly thought out and many aren't. There are plenty of people who seem to get very crappy tattoos on a whim, and plenty of people who put very serious thought into the tattoos they get and never regret it. I can't speak from experience, of course; I'm not tattooed. But I think a lot of it comes down to the motivation - the difference between a momentary impulse based on something being cool, and a long-lasting drive to get something done. That I have experienced; I wanted to have my septum pierced for years before I actually got it done, and it was based not on it being fashionable or even aestethically pleasing but some kind of innate drive to have my septum pierced. (That said, the good thing about body piercings is that if you end up not liking it, you can always just take it out.) What I'm really trying to get at, I think, is that yes there are definitely people who get tattoos with little thought, but there are definitely people who get tattoos - and otherwise modify their bodies - who wanted to do so on a very meaningful level and who put a substantial amount of consideration into it. One thing that is pretty terrible, and generally symptomatic of the kind of people who don't put thought in, is shopping around for low prices. I think that with any body modifcation, pricing should be your last priority. Or even, not really a priority at all. If you're going to get your body changed - especially if it's permanent - you want it done in the best and most professional way possible, not the cheapest. But you get people going into tattoo places and asking how much they charge for such-and-such a piece, and then scoffing at the price.
too right. As my dad always said "if you're going to get into body scarification, you better go all the way, and do it up right" Actually, even as a non-smoker, I understand smoking. One willfully ingests a substance that makes him/her feel a certain way. And I think I even understand the appeal of getting a tattoo. It's a way of saying something about yourself... in a permanent way. Like thenewgreen, my tastes and attitudes tend to change with time. And knowing that, I don't think I could accurately choose something that I could still agree with at age 40, 60, or 80. The permanence of the thing is the catch. You're right on the money - if you want to pierce something - go for it. When you change your mind later, it's a tiny hole somewhere on your body. When you change your mind about a tat - you're either getting it removed ($$$ + Pain) or you're getting it blacked out... which... probably also means $$$ + pain. To say I don't understand might be a bit much. To say I don't see the logic in a permanent body alteration might be more accurate. Too many close friends regret their youthful tattoo choices and spend the remainder of adulthood dealing with it, with either hiding, lasers, or blackouts.Or even, not really a priority at all
In the same way that non-smokers just don't understand.
I think the key here is the regret part. You are looking at a tattoo as something that you are assuming you have to like for its aesthetic reasons your entire life or just have it removed. I know plenty of people with "bad" tattoos and they don't look at them as mistakes to cover up, they look at them as at some time in their life, I was this person and this is how I felt/conveyed what was important to me. Im not going to be a 40 yr old SERIOUSLY looking at my life and choosing some ink on my skin as my biggest regret. And really, if I am 40 and a tat is my biggest regret then I have had one hell of a life thus far.