tells a story – and, therefore, adopts a meaning. Some people may spend months or years thinking about a particular concept before deciding to get it tattooed. But, some people’s reason for getting a tattoo is a nonchalant “Because I wanted to and why not have a thigh tattoo of Red Forman?” (This is a real example; I did, in fact, get tattooed by a man who had Red Forman on his thigh and I honestly miss his energy.) Either way, every tattoo has a story behind it, and I think that’s beautiful. By looking at an itty-bitty, one-inch arrow on my wrist, you wouldn’t know the meaning behind it anyway. This need for tattoos to have meanings is part of what permits the stigmatization of tattoos in our society. UO junior Haylee Frame got her first tattoo, a carnation on her arm, on April 2 at The Parlour. She said she has always struggled with body image issues – specifically with her upper body – and this tattoo has helped. “After getting it on my arm, I feel more confident to wear sleeves and tank tops because it’s really pretty and I want to show it off,” she said. Additionally, while permanence was not a factor that led Frame to want a tattoo, it doesn’t scare her. “On ‘Ink Master’ they’re always like, ‘You’re going to have this on you for the rest of your life. What’s it going to look like 50 years down the line?’ And, for me, I don’t care what I look like when I’m 70,” Frame said. “I’m going to be a wrinkly bag of bones anyway, so I might as well have something cool.”
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