Alley and I got tattoos yesterday. [View All]

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My sweetie's co-worker had a tattoo party. Alley has wanted a blatant tattoo on her hand for some time now. She is a few years from retirement, working for a federal law enforcement agency, and has adopted a bit of a short-timers attitude regarding conformity. She has towed the line for many years and now has a position that is strictly office work.

She wanted something that reflected her philosophy regarding life, and adapted the Navajo Changing Woman story. Her tattoo reflects elements from that creation story.

Her words describing Changing woman:
Changing Woman was born of First Man and First Woman (the sky and earth). She mated with the Sun and water and bore twins: Monster Slayer and Born for Water (who later become the saviors of humans). She uses bits of her skin to create the Navajo people. Each year when she becomes an old woman, she sees a reflection of her youthful self in a lake and becomes young again (like the seasons).

This the result, still tender and raw, the colors and design won't "cure" for a couple of weeks.





The artist asked me if I wanted one, and I made a snap decision to do so. I stole a Apache Gaan (Crown Dancer)design from a painting by a Comanche Artist Rance Hood. I e-mailed him and offered a turquoise ring in trade for using his painting. Happily he accepted my offer. The first image is the original painting, then images of my tattoo.







I still need to have the background done, and Alley will also have her work touched up and finished when the tattooist returns to the Los Angeles area next month.

Nothing like having ink done when your middle aged.

A link to the tattoo artist's site: www.sikink.com
A link to Rance Hood's website: http://www.rancehood.com/