My arm gets a new pulse.

To begin this post, I want to refer to one of my favorite online references, Dictionary.com.

The word TRUST is defined there as: Reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing; confidence.

So, who earns trust? Well, Wife for one. She has my complete and total trust. That’s not something a person simply gives out freely or on a whim. Family has my trust. Certain friends have my trust.

And now Glenn has my trust.

Anyone reading this is probably thinking, “Who is this Glenn you speak of?”

As it turns out he is a tattoo artist (Thank goodness I broke this news to Mom a little while ago, I don’t know if she could have handled it delivered in this venue. Sis, well, sorry, but this is what you get).

For quite some time now I have had the growing desire to get a tattoo. Wife, as many people know and some people don’t, has many. Very tasteful. Very neat. And they are a part of her. They all have meaning to her, even her little tattoo of Yoda has a certain meaning that she holds dear.

OK, enough about her, lets move on to me. After all, I am the author here and this blog is all about me.

So, back to a growing desire. I have put a lot of thought into this, about five years worth (at least I can say I went into this with plenty of forethought). There were certain things I wanted to accomplish here. I wanted it to be tasteful. I will not have anything below the sleeve of a short sleeve shirt. I want it to have symbolism that’s important to me.

So, who are the two people in my life that mean the most to me? Well, obviously that would be Wife and Ben. Wife and I have been looking at the Chinese Fu Lions for quite some time. They come in pairs. They are typically found outside Chinese temples and palaces. They are male and female. The male sits on the left side, the female on the right. The male holds an orb under his paw representing something treasured and important. The female holds under her paw a cub, representing children and value of life.

This general definition fits into my criteria perfectly. So, tasteful and meaningful design has been chosen. Next on the list, to find the appropriate artist to accomplish this task.

I did quite a lot of internet searching for a proper place and person. Wife, who was extremely excited about this project (and very jealous) said we could pretty much go anywhere that would make me comfortable. So I broadened my search outside the area, and came across Triangle Tattoo and Museum: Art With a Pulse.

Triangle Tattoo is located in beautiful Fort Bragg, CA. The scenery there is fairly similar to that of our hometown of Eureka. Port town, right on the ocean, and the weather is similar. However, if one is interested, SCUBA diving is infinitely better in the Fort Bragg area than here in Humboldt. The difference in water clarity is absolutely amazing.

So I got on the web site and did a little investigating. Triangle Tattoo has been in Fort Bragg for over 25 years (aka: well established). The head honcho, Mr. G, has written numerous articles for Skin and Ink Magazine (aka: he is well respected). Madame Chinchilla has written articles and books, and also is an artist (aka: also well respected). Over all, I could find nothing wrong with Triangle Tattoo. Time to look into artists.

After looking at their portfolios on line, I came down to two: Professor H. Glenn, and Erin Honest.

I called to make my appointment, told the friendly gal on the other end of the line I wanted to make an appointment, and then told her I was undecided about who I wanted to do the work. She asked me what I was looking for and maybe she could help with that decision. In the end, she recommended Glenn.

She was right on. I emailed a couple of pictures to Glenn. One I found on the internet of a Fu Lion statue and another I had hand drawn (mind you, this was a very rough sketch). Then I had to wait. I arranged this appointment over a month in advance, so there was quite a bit of waiting.

The day of the appointment Wife and I arrived about an hour early, wanting to get a look at the artwork in case there were any last minute changes to make. I couldn’t have asked for it to look any more like what I wanted. No revisions needed.

For the first sitting, I was in the fighting chair for about five and a half hours. Second sitting, about a month and half later, was four and a half hours. The finished product, as I see it, is something I’ll be happy to be living with for the rest of my life. Both Wife and I are very extremely pleased with the end result.

So to Glenn, I say this, “You are the man!” To Erin, who was doing an amazing piece while Glenn was finishing my arm, I say this, “I need to have you do something for me in the future.” And to Madame Chinchilla, Wife and I both say this, “We hope your tooth issues are resolved and you’re feeling better.”

Thanks to Triangle Tattoo, and especially Glenn, for putting your Pulse on me.