I Got My Cake

Some of us like to watch movies, some like to listen to music, and some, like me, enjoy having amusing drawings carved onto their flesh with white hot needles. Yes, that's right, another week, another tattoo for E. As you can see from the picture at the left, this one's a real beauty.

In fact, if you go back over some of the things I've written in the past here on Bonez, you may just recognize the happy little character now emblazoned across my back. Here's a hint...it's Nathan Grantham, the re-animated and cake desiring skeleton from Creepshow.

As you can see, much to Nate's delight he finally got his cake. And forever will that cake remain in his possession, thanks to the power of permanent inks and dyes.

If you've never gotten a tattoo before, let me go ahead and remind you that they don't tickle. In fact, they downright hurt. But for those that have never had one, let me provide a quick guide to understanding the process.

A) Preparation phase: This phase is begun with the shaving of the area about to inked as well as placement of the stencil for the final job. This is usually where I will try and bribe the artist to make it hurt a little less, if at all possible.

B) Beginning phase: This is where the needle first makes contact. Any artist who has ever worked on me knows that this is where my screams are the loudest. I will usually thrash about in the chair, begging for mercy.

C) Mid tattoo: Okay, so now they've been working on me for an hour or so. By now the screams have abated and I have begun openly weeping, sometimes begging the gods to make the pain stop.

D) Towards the end: At this point I'm two or three hours into the work. Generally, by this point I am curled up in the fetal position, suckling my thumb and begging for my mommy.

E) Tattoo is done: Here's where I hop up, wipe the tears from my eyes, look at my tatt and acknowledge how much I like it. This is also when I start playing it off as "No big deal" and "That didn't hurt all that much".

There is at least one aspect of this tattoo that the average person will not recognize, namely that the head on the plate is actually that of my sister. (Yeah, what better way to show familial love than to have the torn off head of your kin topped with frosting and candles being carried by the bloodthirsty undead abomination that has kept you awake late at night more times than you can count...)

No, I'm not going to explain WHY it's my sister's head on that plate. That's between her, the court system and myself. You can get in a lot of trouble for breaking NDA's.

Nate was created and inked by Paul Major of Olde School Tattoo in Marietta, GA. This is not my first piece by Paul, nor will it be my last. I have seen several examples of his art applied to both myself and my brother-in-law, and I have to admit, I think he does fantastic work.

This was the first piece I've had done that allowed for some artistic expression. Most of my tattoos to date have involved graphics or logos that left little room for interpretation. For this one I created a webpage containing several graphics of Nathan as well as an explanation of what I was looking for. Once I was down at the shop I was able to further discuss these matters so that he could do the best job possible.

I couldn't be happier with Nate, honestly and truly. If there are any Bonezenites living in the greater Atlanta area, I cannot recomend Paul's work enough. He is courteous, friendly, and ALWAYS willing to play some Pink Floyd for you.

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