My NOLA Tattoo

Three weeks ago five of us finally got together to get these fleur-de-lis tattoos we’ve been talking about since New Orleans. Here’s mine. It’s on my right calf.

We went to Saint Tattoo here in North Knoxville, and they did a good job. Not that I would know the difference, since this is my first tattoo and I have no plans for another. But it’s nice and black and there’s no gangrene — so I think they did a nice job.

My brother Kurt called my cell while I was in the chair, so I gave him a play-by-play. Didn’t hurt much, and the whole thing took maybe 20 minutes. Cost me $60. Anyway, kurt Googled fleur-de-lis and discovered that the French government used to brand their prisoners with the symbol before the revolution. Cool. Also it’s a symbol of the Virgin Mary (who knew?) and is the logo for the New Orleans Saints and the Boy Scouts.

So now I’ve got a very permanent souvenir of the trip. And as an added bonus, another way to identify my disfigured body if dental records are unavailable.