I got to Bethesda is record time to make it to my appointment at 12:30. I decided to got all the way to Bethesda to have James do my tattoo because he is a friend’s husband, I have met and liked him, and have seen some of his work, which was amazing! I was afraid to go to some crackhead in Baltimore that I did not know. I made the right decision.

Anyway, once I got there and met with James, he had to take some time to work on my design and make sure it was perfect. I sat in the waiting room, (which was so nice, it felt like a spa) reading Martha Inc. on my Kindle. The whole scene was kind of funny, and made me wonder what Martha would think, and how silly it was to be reading my Kindle while waiting for a tattoo. Was that the first time in history, I wondered?

I was surprisingly not nervous, I thought I might been but I was confident in my decision, design and artist and had no reason to be nervous. James was finished with the stencils and worked with me for a while to make sure the placement was perfect, then it was time to get started.

At this point, I got a bit nervous about the pain. This was not my first tattoo, but it was the first in about 12 years, so amnesia had set in. Once he started, I was relieved. It was not bad at all and I got a really cool lesson on the kind of machine he was using and how it was designed by a guy who invented a boat motor to use less voltage. In tattoo machinery, this translates into less trauma on the skin. Anyway, I digress. Just a few petals in, I noticed someone watching from the side, and realized it was Jason coming to visit. He had a meeting in Rockville, so it was perfect to stop by and say hi. He stayed for a minute, and had to go to beat traffic home.

The tattoo process took about 3 hours. It was really bearable pain, until the sensitive bits on the back of my arm and close to my armpit. Ouch. I imagine that he does these parts at the end for sanity sake. I was glad when it was over. I have to go back in a few weeks to add color, but I am really happy with the outcome so far. The best part was, when I got home, Nolan pointed to my arm and said “what’s dis? It’s pretty! cool” all while nodding his head in approval. I hope he doesn’t mind having an odd mom, too much.