Okay so odds are a lot/most of you won't even be interested in this but it will always be a pretty big memory for me so I thought I'd post it. If one person reads it then dangit I'm happy!
March 18, 2006 I finally got my Leonardo tattoo. It had been a long time in the making, Leo had always been my favorite turtle after all. When I first mentioned to my boyfriend that I was planning on getting a Leo tattoo he balked, he told me this was just some phase I was going through and I'd regret it later. The thing is, he didn't understand. To understand the tattoo it helps to know why I wanted it, why Leo has always been my favorite.
When I was a kid I grew up in your stereotypical white trash trailer park. You'd hear gunfire at least once a week, there were hookers, drug dealers (years later found out my dad was amongst those types), you name it. I didn't even dare step out on my back porch at night alone. That was all fine and good however since I didn't have any friends.
You know that kid in school with the frizzy hair and thick glasses that seemed to be learning the joys of acne way before everyone else did? That would be me. If I was lucky I'd have one friend a year, and generally they'd move on to bigger and better things before so long. It wasn't that I was that horrible of a child, it's just that in elementary school kids can be cruel, and it's easier to tease the little dorks rather than get to know them. So I guess you could say I did what any other kid would do, I turned to television.
I was with the Ninja Turtles from the day the first episode aired. I didn't know it was a comic of course but heck, I was a kid! I couldn't even afford comics! So I got absorbed in their world and I was instantly hooked. Donatello was the smart one, Michaelangelo (because that's how it was spelled then) was the goofy one that everyone seemed to like best, Raphael was the sarcastic one and then there was Leonardo. Leonardo was different than the others, he was the leader, the hero. Sure they were all young teenage goofballs but Leo was the one who you could imagine coming to rescue the damsel in distress. If Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was an old black and white movie, Leo would get the girl. And as silly as it sounds that's what I needed. I couldn't get out of where I lived, I couldn't get out of the fact that I was teased daily but in my mind I had my hero.
There's a lot to be said for fictional characters. The best part about them is that as long as you want them there, they will never leave you. Leo's always been there for me, even in those years when I would go weeks without even thinking about him. I am 24 years old and there have been nights I cried for an hour holding my Leo pillow as tightly as I could, then I snuggled up with it and went to sleep. 18 years later and nothing has changed, he is still there for me.
So I decided I'd make sure he was always with me physically as well. I looked around for official art but none of it seemed to grab me the way something like this should. Then Leonardo Mystic gave me the link to the MNT Gaiden comic. That was it, I knew that I needed to get that artist to draw my tattoo. I figured it was a long shot but I went out on a limb and I contacted Tigerfog. As it turns out it wasn't such a long shot after all! He got back to me quickly and though in total it took about three months after the initial contact I had my commissioned artwork. From there I just had to take the drive to Savannah to get it done.
First off I live in South Carolina where for the moment tattooing is still illegal. So I had a long drive to think about what I was getting ready to do. I wasn't nervous though, I was simply elated. Second I have always seen myself as a gigantic wuss. Pain hurts, that's my motto. I don't like things that hurt, therefore pain has never really been high on my list of things to put myself through on the weekend. But for Leo, I could suffer some pain. It wouldn't be
too bad, right?
I got to California Tattoo in Savannah Georgia and handed James my artwork. He immediately started showing it to people. Before the needle even hit my skin people couldn't wait to see the finished product. All throughout the process people were walking by, stopping to marvel at the little 5'2" girl getting a six inch tall Ninja Turtle on her shoulder. They'd stop and talk about which turtle was their favorite and conversations would start between people who had never met before. What a great fandom to be in!
I amazed myself throughout getting the tattoo. The line art didn't hurt, it simply stung. The shading hurt twice the closer he got to my spine but that was it. The coloring was one of the most painful things I've ever gone through. But I didn't cry, I didn't shake and I didn't even whimper. I realized that I'm a lot stronger than I thought I was, and I am still extremely proud of that!
Four hours later when I was done people stared. James was calling other artists over to look at it and he was sure to take pictures of the finished product for his portfolio. Before he bandaged me he even walked me around the studio. I can't take credit for the artwork of course, that was all Tigerfog and James, but this was my tattoo that everyone was marveling at and I'll admit it I felt great!
So now that you've gone through all that, here are some of my progress pictures. If you don't want to see them then just scroll to the end and you can see the finished product. I have to say that so far this is one of my favorite TMNT memories.
James working on the outline. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of his face. When we go back to get my friend's tattoo I'm hoping to get a picture then.
I can now say I've bled for Leonardo. I didn't know it until I saw the pictures though.
The closest I have to a picture of his face.
Look closely at his leg and thigh and you'll see I've bled TWICE for Leo! That's love!
The finished product. A problem I've been having is that he comes out weird in pictures. When I'm laying down his head looks tiny but when I'm standing his legs look stubby. I assure you he's fine.
And probably about five or six hours later.
