do you really care what others think?
Yes, I do care what others think. However, others is a very subjective term. For example; I can care about what my family thinks, while not caring about what this tattoo community thinks.

I am passionate about my tattoo, and appear to care about other’s opinions too much here, but in reality it is just the product of my own anger issues that make me feel obligated to continue posting. It really doesn’t have much to do with my level of “caring what other’s think”.

I’ve been institutionalized multiple times for my anger issues, they are extreme. I have had a difficult life, and this tattoo means everything to me. I’m not a fucking idiot, I don’t regret my first tattoo, I won’t regret this one. Hell, I have a deductive thought process don’t you think I’m capable of foreseeing regrets before making a permanent decision? Especially in regards to my religion! Hell no man, no regrets here, there, anywhere. Not to mention a lot of the meaning behind this addition is to capture a time period, as my first tattoo’s was. How the fuck can I regret capturing a time period in my life?

The difficulty with the internet, beyond the obvious “stranger” and “I don’t know you” and “typed word harder than face to face in trying to get a point across” etc is we read with no idea as to intent, mood, etc when you make a post. Now you’ve told me about your past. To me that’s just an internet respect. Nobody really cares about yours, mine, or anybody else’s past. I have my own personal pity party to deal with, and no reason to involve a bunch of cyber strangers into my business, nor would they really want to come in if invited. No one will ever know YOUR deep meaning behind your tattoo – that’s yours. People on a tattoo forum when asked about a tattoo can only answer from their own personal tattoo experience (if they have one) and any research or tattooist friends they may have. My new tattoo will make no sense to anyone else unless I’m asked, meaningwise. If you look at it you can make comments about coloring, line work, shading, etc. But whether you like it or not doesn’t matter. It may just not be your style, so you won’t like it right from the get go.

I know I’m getting people’s opinions, as I do in real life. However, over the internet people’s opinions tend to be very disrespectful. This community is upset with me because of a thread I posted on another account 9-10 months ago. I asked if my tattoo will stretch or deform, and specifically stated I do not care for any advice, opinions, etc. in regards to my age. I have people in person to help me with life advice, the way it should be. Of-course everyone commented about my age, then threw me into the stereotype of a 16 year old with a cross tattoo, then all the followers started hopping into the band wagon of meaninglessly insulting me.

What do you mean by there “isn’t a lot of art“?

Very easy on the internet for the typed word to be misconstrued. If you add to that an attitude, then it will all go downhill. I’m an old fart, so my 1st thought if I heard you were 16 and had a tattoo, I’d first think against the law, and then I’d be upset at any tattoo artist tattooing a minor. I would look at you and think regardless of how smart you are, you still only have 16 years of life experience. I have 52. That doesn’t make me smarter, but I have lots more information I’ve gathered than you, period. I’ve lived 36 more years than you, and have seen a lot more than you. maybe not smarter, maybe not wiser. But that 36 year fact is pretty simple to understand.

From a tattoo perspective, in MY eyes, I just don’t see a high level of artistic quality in your piece. But now in hindsight I feel somewhat the same way about my 1st, an eagle. My 2nd brought that point home to me. But, I took “crap” from these forums too, and you know what? It was deserved. I let my personal passion spill into a generic world, and expected the entire world to have the same passion as me. I was sadly mistaken, and shame on me with all of my years of supposed experience to miss that. I got caught up in my 1st tattoo love. Now I see my new one and know the steps I took to get it, and that point is crystal clear.