May 23, 2010

So this picture was not really taken on May 23. It was taken much later that summer at the Gowanus Yacht Club, but it's the earliest photo record of the tattoos that Kat, Ryan, Jessie and I got together. Brooklyn Tattoo was running a special on tattoos of the bridge for $27.00 and we couldn't resist. We decided in a matter of days that we were all going to get these, which is funny to be because it took me four years to finalize my first one. I go into greater depth elsewhere on why I have no regrets, but to quote myself:

While I don't have a particularly strong relationship to the Brooklyn Bridge - to date, almost four years into my time here, I have yet to walk it - the bridge is an icon of Brooklyn. Even if I don't end up staying in New York long-term I know that my time in this borough will have been an important chunk of my life. If I'm an old man in Portland or Chicago or California or even Ohio I will not regret this keepsake of my time in New York. I might not look at it and see strong memories of the landmark itself, but I will remember countless nights of drinks and laughter from Greenpoint down to Park Slope. I'll remember sitting on the beach at Coney Island as evening deepened into night listening to the New York Dolls play at Siren. I'll remember writing reviews on early summer mornings in McCarren Park, jogging through Clinton Hill and Fort Greene, and playing 10am basketball in Boerum Hill. I'll remember cherry blossoms at the Botanic Garden and an amazing surprise 24th birthday party after finding out I'd gotten my first "real" job. Within this 4" x 2" bit of ink will reside bar crawls and brunches. Out of the way holes-in-the-wall and established, renowned restaurants. A million small moments that connect the few big ones to make a life.

In addition to that, there's still a lingering collective connection between us. I mean, these three folks are three of my closest friends, and we didn't need tattoos to solidify that, but still there's something sweet and symbolic to walking into the parlor together to get (sort of) matching ink. And with the distance between us drastically increasing soon, even the smallest (permanent, visible) reminders are a comfort.