A recent trend among millennials is to go get a tattoo. Yet the "real" adults say, "you'll regret it once you're old and saggy," or "you won't be able to get/keep an appropriate job with a tattoo." Or, my favorite phrase of them all, "your body is a temple, treat it like one." I guess it just so happens that my temple enjoys having a few colorful patterns on it because it adds a new kind of radiance to my life.

Not only are tattoos "setting you up for regret" they make people think differently about you and what you stand for. For example, you see a man walking alone at night with a sleeve on both arms, it makes you a bit more uncomfortable than if that man had zero visible tattoos. Sure you might still feel uncomfortable seeing him because that's the type of society we live in. But why do you think tattoos are so bad?

Could it be because our parents, media outlets, and stereotypes play into the fact that "nothing good" can come from a man or woman with tattoos? Yes, it is exactly because of that. However, most people that I've encountered with tattoos have been some of the least judgmental and considerate people I've met. I've had doctors, professors, friends, co-workers that are inked.

You've heard of expressing yourself with clothes and music, but why is it frowned upon to express yourself with art? Tattoo artists are associated with being bums, but how? They have a job, an extremely cool one if you ask me. Their work is sitting around drawing on people or drawing up new tattoos. They literally get paid to create masterpieces. Who cares if their canvas is someone's body? They are doing something fun, and it makes a difference to everybody they ink up. Whether it's getting a tattoo just to do it or getting a piece of art for a lost loved one.

Also why is it that once a woman has a tattoo, she's trashy? I've been hit on by guys who think highly of me, yet once they find out about my tattoos they instantly retract the nice things they were originally saying because now I'm "less" in their eyes since I have tattoos. But you know, I take pride in my tattoos they mean something to me. Anyone who doesn't like it can either deal with it or leave.

It's your body. If you don't want to be tatted, it's your choice and your body. You don't have to do anything you don't want to. If you do want to be tatted, go for it! My only advice is tattoos around the shoulder blade hurt badly; so be prepared for that and for the judgment that comes with it, but don't let someone make you feel like lesser of a being for having a tattoo.