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The interviewee got the tattoo when he was eighteen years old back in November of 2009, where he explained the reason behind getting this tattoo. He started off by saying that he had Just turned eighteen years old that October in 2009 and he wanted to signify that he had Just graduated high school and he was old enough to do most things an eighteen year old can do.
He said getting a tattoo is something he always wanted to get some tattoos, but he said he originally walked inside to get a sleeve, which is when your whole entire arm from wrist to holder is covered in tattoos but the cost came up to a thousand dollars so he settle for something way less. The participant got his tattoo in Miami, Florida at a tattoo parlor called Silver Back Tattoo shop which is well known in and around the surrounding Miami areas. The interviewee said the artist he chose to do his tattoo was a white male he believed look like to be between the ages of 23 and 26, so a young dude and the artist had tattoos everywhere.
The interviewee went on to say that the artist had two sleeves on his arm, a few tattoos on his leg, and some tattoos n his face as well. He chose this person because that was the first person to greet him as he came in and also, he was the one that asked him what kind of tattoo he was looking to get. This artist also worked with him to figure out what tattoo would have best suited him and also what were in his price range; and plus he figured since he had all those tattoos he probably knew what he was doing. The individual said his tattoo was a representation of himself, and it means a lot to him.
The tattoo symbolizes his personality, his behavior, and his lifestyle. The individual stated that the dices in his tattoo represented gambling which is something he likes to do. He mentioned that he likes going to the casinos in Miami as well as doing other stuff such as gambling on football and basketball games and also playing dice games at a park in Miami with his friends gambling for money. The individual said his tattoo means a lot to him, It’s like a way of voicing how he feels through his tattoos and also how he carry his self.
His tattoo is a means to show people what type of person he is, also the type of lifestyle he lives and also it shows the way he was brought up he says. The tattoo is a nickname his mom gave him, which a lot of his family members and some friends know him by. The individual felt that this nickname is very special because his mom gave it to him and it described him so well, and the fire and dice that surround the tattoo was like the icing on the cake. The interviewee does also have another tattoo that is located on the same arm on the upper arm close to the shoulder.
The tattoo is a big rose with his mother name underneath which he said homebodies the love he has for his mother and how much she means to him. This tattoo relates to the other tattoo he has on his inner forearm because that’s the nickname she gave him. The interviewee says that the tattoo he has on his left arm is where it represents family and the intimacy and the relationship between him and them. The rose above his mother name to symbolizes love and they are her favorite flowers. The rose is colored in he says with a little red, but it’s a little hard to see because he is dark skin.
The individual believe in family and to him that’s more important than anything. He said he wanted to get a sleeve, which are full length tattoos that I described earlier with his immediate family, more of like a family tree since he has such a big family. The interviewee says he has six brothers as well as a step sister, and mentions that his tattoos are a work in progress and hope to get that sleeve that are he want to get some day with his family names on them. The individual said that his family didn’t really have much of a reaction when he got his first tattoo.
He believe that since he got it at an age where he was old enough to get it that’s probably why there wasn’t much of an reaction to it. His mom reaction was that she taught it looked nice and asked him what made him get a tattoo in the first place, and he said it was something he always wanted to do and also that it expressed him and his personality. The individual said his tattoo said the tattoo looked alright, because not everyone in his family is into tattoos and really care for them. He said they see it mostly as Just a body art and that’s it.
My participant sees his tattoo as a odd art but they also have a meaning to it or a story behind. . He feels that’s when someone gets a tattoo it could be because they wanted to and also sometimes because they have meanings behind them. His friends on the other hand where basically happy he Joined the clan, as they would say because they already had tattoos. They taught his tattoo looked cool because it was unique because it was something that he originally drew up and had the artists trace over it and then drew it on him.
The participant feelings towards his tattoo haven’t changed at all, and he till feels the same way he did when he first got it. He says why would it change? The participant says he got that tattoo because it represented him and his lifestyle and that is never going to change because he will never change. He says he may not gamble as much as he did when he was younger but he still does gamble. He said the way he is and how he acts is Just his personality and he isn’t willing to change that for anybody and as far as he is concerned, no one has a problem with it. He says his happy with his tattoo and hopes to add a new addition to it soon.