Ink!

I got my first tattoo a few days after my 21st birthday. It was my birthday present to myself--my first self-defining act as a fully legal adult. I love it and have been wanting to get a second tattoo for a long time. I've come up with several ideas over the years, but none have ever stuck (heh) with me for very long.

My grandmother passed away this fall and, for a variety of reasons, there was no formal memorial service or funeral. I was struggling to find a healthy way to channel my grief when suddenly it occurred to me: my next tattoo needs to be an owl. I love owls and so did my grandmother. Every time I see one, I can almost touch the Grandma I remember from my childhood--full of energy and fully in charge of her world.

The universe conspired to assist in the form of a winning raffle ticket and I am now in possession of a gift certificate to the tattoo shop that I was planning to use. I'm now in the visual research stage of the process and hope to get the tattoo by the end of January.

Here is a sample of some of my Google Image Search results so far: