My dad always swore up, down and sideways that he was not drunk when he got his tattoos. He got four of them -- two on each forearm. That was the place where servicemen commonly got their tattoos, so the tats could be displayed when their sleeves were rolled up.
Unfortunately, Dad made the mistake of getting all four tattoos done at once. As a result, his arms were so excruciatingly sore afterwards that he could scarcely hold up his gun while on guard duty. But he dared not report to sick bay because the army classified tattoos as self-inflicted wounds -- a court martial offence.
So he held up his gun for hours, paying a painful price for over-enthusiastic tattooing.
21 comments:
Imagine, I never knew that, self inflicted,, wow.
Who knew you could go all overachiever Type A when getting tattoos?
Omg, I did this too. I got a tat on my upper left thigh and one on my right shoulder at the same time. Mistake. Seriously.
Ask your Dad sometime how easy it was to take a shower while they were healing.
when you are in the military you are a GI...you know what GI stands for? Government Issue..you are government property and you can't do anything to government property. article 18 ..
I was never tempted but when I was in the Navy several of the guys who had entered service around the same time I did thought it was a rite of passage to get a tatt. Then they found out they had to get a chit (written permission.) Some of them chickened out after that, some got turned down and the few who were allowed to got them. They were huge, covering the upper arm, made them so sore the touch of the uniform on the tatt was really painful, and they couldn't roll the sleeve up because of regs. At the time women in the Navy couldn't get them. Their chits were always turned down.
Too crazy!
"over-enthusiastic tattooing"...that just cracked me up.
This supports my running in the opposite direction from getting a tattoo. Needles. Pain. Nope. But I do think that, if I'd decided as a kid to get one, I probably would have been like your dad--why not get them ALL done at once and be done with it? I never did anything so foolish. Oh. Wait. I'm of the generation that used to put our heads on an ironing board and try to IRON our own hair. Never mind....
and I thought Jim was a wimp with his chinese symbols on his ankles...lol
WOW!
Somehow I think being drunk wouldn't even be enough for me to get a tattoo.
Now that's dedication!!!
Im thinking of getting a tattoo, but not sure where I want it yet. And then there's the pain thing. I might have to drink some gin first!
I didn't know that about the cdn army. Dad had one he got before D Day that said "Death Before Dishonour" but as far as I know no one ever gave him a hard time about it. Love the poster, but what's with the Union Jack??
Francie, I know it looks strange to our eyes now because we're so used to our current maple leaf flag but until 1964, the Union Jack was the flag of Canada too.
It's amazing what we will do...and then what we will do afterward...tell you Dad he's a brave man...
wow. yeah i wouldn't have thought of that either.
I'm ink free but I have a feeling that will change someday
4... all at one time? pain!
OK, call me gross, but I imagine wiping his bottom wasn't much fun then ...
All four at once? Crazy.
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