Okay so /fit/ I designed this tattoo, kinda and I'm wondering if I should get it or not or if I'm just memeing really hard and am gonna end up looking autistic. The wolves inside are based on that old Cherokee parable you always see in motivation threads (the good and evil battling inside where the one you feed wins) , but they also carry personal significance because my father told me this story when I really young just before he died. The Sanskrit text around it translates to "the line between good and evil runs not between cultures, nations or creeds but through every human heart" (a quote that strongly aligns with my own personal beliefs, as a spiritual person) basically saying "if I can change, and you can change, maybe the whole world can change". This is something I try to live by, trying to be the change I want to see in the world and spreading a message of love and compassion, because I believe that people are basically alright really just changed by circumstance. A lot of things in life are transient but this is a mantra id like to live by for the rest of my life, something permanent. On top of the meaning associated with it, it'll also look pretty badass. I'm thinking either shoulder or left pec, above the heart. I really want to get it but I'm a little autistic and prone to poor decision-making. So what do you guys think? Should I get it or is it just cringe?
For some reason my first thoughts when I was looking at it wasn't a wolf but "picture of europe with UK, part of france, and spain taken out"
If you aren't sure, wait three months and see how you feel about it then.
All non-military, non-gang-related tattoos are a sign of poor decision-making. Do you really think your 50 year old self will give a shit what your barely adult self thought would look cool? Of course not. You'll be thinking, "man, I knew this would be permanent, but I didn't realize HOW permanent."
Don't get a tattoo ever. Never ever. How would you like it if your 12 year old self got a tattoo of, I don't know, an ocarina because Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time is such a great game? You'd think, "you stupid fuck, I wish I'd had a little foresight."
>>16643232
>All non-military, non-gang-related tattoos are a sign of poor decision-making.
to be fair being in a gang is a sign of poor decision making as well
>>16643232
I used to work at a nursing home, and while none of the old folks ever said they regretted their tattoos, I had three that told me they regretted not getting any. One wanted to go out and get tattoos with her daughter, but she died a couple of months later and it never happened.
I just made myself sad.
>>16643232
But this tattoo reflects my most closely held sentimentalities, a memory of my father and my personal spiritual beliefs (written in Sanskrit because immersing myself in aspects of Hinduism and Buddhism helped me overcome my drug addiction). It's more than a passing interest in a game I kind of like, it's a visual representation of my core values, of my sense of self.
>>16643241
Some get stuck in bad neighborshoods and have no choice. For sure you'd never hire a gang member, but sometimes it's out of their control. Same as the military. It's a peer pressure thing more than anything, it's not like getting a Semper Fi tattoo is virtuous in itself.
>>16643253
Those old folks lived during a time when you could get a job just by sneezing, plus tattoos weren't an automatic signal of "I'm a slut who sucks dick for sandwiches" or "I'm a hardcore motherfucker, like seriously." There weren't biker gangs in these peoples' time, or a trailer trash culture, or such a thing as a tramp stamp. And you know they'd never get a fucking Cherokee parable on their goddamn shoulder, I mean holy shit.
>>16643265
Amazing verbal slip, first of all. But you're only making a mistake by publicizing, permanently and on your body, the feelings you feel right now. Are you going to forget these feelings? Of course not. Are your feelings any less because they're inside you? Of course not. If they're so fucking important to you, then live them, don't get a tattoo and say, "this is so important to me, I got it in ink!" That's an exercise in stupidity.
>>16643220
id flip it so that the head of the wolf was face up, just cuz otherwise you are going to get literally every single person who sees it asking why its upside down. because the bulk of it is the 'clear' part, you only see the black at first. at least iwth the black face up its eaiser for people who see it casually to just know there is a wolf. took me a while to see the white one though.
that or just let the edges line up with the cirle, because that makes more sense anyways.
all that being said, i think it looks cool, and its significant. its not autistic cuz its not from a recognizable franchise. someones going to have problems iwht it but who cares.
>>16643265
i generally say 'no' to tattoos OP, but i think the one you got is a good idea. especially if going through those helped you get through your drug use. even if you abandon those beliefs, going through drug abuse and over coming it will always be an important chapter of your life, and its always good to put a bookmark on those pages imo.
at worse you will look back and remember how hard it was getting out or drugs. when you drop the things that keep you away from drugs, this thing may be the one reminder about it, the one thing reminding you of how hard you worked, and even if you let go of the spiritual meaning attached to it, you know by looking at it that you wont go back to the abuse.
good luck OP. just flip it so the dar sides on top and perhaps lets the edges of the wolves touch the edge of the ring, because the extra blue makes it hard to see the wolf there.
>>16643287
They mostly had dragons, tigers, anchors, hearts, and flowers.
>>16643287
I appreciate your well thought-out response anon, but it's not my feelings I'm publicizing, as feelings are fleeting and transient, but my very sense of self, incorporating important chapters of my life so far. At the very least, it tells my story. If not for expression of sentiment or beliefs then what use is a tattoo? At the very worst, I could get it removed, but that pain would be nothing compared to the pain of forgetting my struggles, the pain of triumph. And I have lived my "feelings", consider the tattoo a badge of triumph a reminder of personal strength in times of trouble or self-doubt.
>>16643299
I'll flip and post in a sec, thanks for the feedback anon
>>16643304
This was my thinking as well anon, I like to think it was the time the good wolf inside me triumphed, something my father would be proud of.
>>16643334
i dont know what that guys problem is, sounds like he got a spongebob tattoo when drunk or something. his logic is backwards, tattoos are way more common place now than before and having a tattoo was a reason NOT to get a job back then. now kindergarden teachers have them.
plus, its not like you are tattooing your face. its a shoulder tat. the only people who really see it are people at the beach and your sexual partners. anyone who is seeing you shirtless is not in any position of power where their judgementso f you will matter. and even then 99% of the people are just g onna say 'neat' and then talk about their own or what they would get if they were brave enough.
It reminds me of the Russian Standard logo.
Which is actually pretty badass.
Not a tat guy myself, though, too much chance I'll permanently end up with something I think is stupid in 10 years.
>>16643350
I was thinking this too. It's not going to affect my professional career as I don't plan on wearing bro tanks to work and the only people who I'll have to explain its significance to are those I share intimacy with, as you don't really interact with people at the beach
the idea is fine but the design is kind of tacky as a tattoo (it looks like a logo)
tattoos are trendy right now and its always nice to have a reminder of your personal values but i think you'd do well to pay an artist to come up with a design that looks good a human body (as opposed to just a sheet of paper)
