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Why I chose a condor for my first tattoo

It was an obvious choice

By Conny ManeroPublished 4 years ago 4 min read
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Why I chose a condor for my first tattoo
Photo by Loïc Mermilliod on Unsplash

Plenty of people admire a tattoo, would like to get one on their arm, leg, or a more discreet place, but for one reason or another, they never visit a tattoo parlor. Like most people, I’d seen tattoo parlors on TV and they looked, to say the least, dark scary places manned by rough-looking men. You know the type, big, bald, burly men with dark glasses and facial hair, in other words, people you wouldn’t want to meet in a dark alley.

Another thing that scared me was the possible dangers. I’d heard of people getting infected by HIV and hepatitis due to dirty needles or contaminated ink. Last but not least, the pain. Getting pricked by a needle a few hundred times seemed like a mild case of torture. In short, why would anyone do this to themselves?

However, when a friend showed me a picture of her first tattoo I thought … if she can do it, I can do it. I went online, searched for tattoo places in Toronto, and was presented with a string of possibilities. After having dismissed a few, because I didn’t like the look of them, I found one that I liked. We exchanged a few emails and I sent them a picture of the tattoo I had in mind.

When I arrived at the tattoo parlor I couldn’t have been more surprised. This parlor was nothing like I’d seen on TV. It wasn’t dark and dodgy but modern and full of light. Neither was there any sign of big, bald, scary-looking men. I was greeted by a friendly stylish looking receptionist.

I got another surprise when I met the artist who would do my tattoo … a pretty young girl in jeans and an oversized sweater was a mass of beautiful dark hair. This was a tattoo artist? She looked more like a model.

Much to my disappointment, I couldn’t get my tattoo right there and then. This was merely a consultation and then (if I didn’t chicken out) I could get the tattoo at a later date. We set a date for the following Friday.

Before getting started, the tattoo artist showed me her version of the picture I had presented her with. Hm, to tell you the truth, I had reservations. This didn’t look like a condor, this looked like an oversized turkey. But I was there, I had given my deposit, so I might as well go through with it.

The artist got busy. Without going into too much detail, there was no cause for concern of a dirty needle or contaminated ink as everything was new and sterile. Even the armrest was wrapped in plastic and the artist wore gloves.

As for the pain … not worth mentioning. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would say … 4. I felt something, but I wouldn’t actually call it pain, more like a bit of irritation. Although, some areas of my arm were more sensitive than others.

After the initial excitement it actually got quite boring, The tattoo artist seemed to know what she was doing, so I read my book and enjoyed a cup of coffee.

And then suddenly the humming of the pen grew quiet, I had a look and my tattoo was finished. I was to keep the image cover for 24 hours and once the bandage came off, I was to wash the image several times a day with an antibacterial soap followed by a vitamin E cream.

A few months later I got my second tattoo. This time of a condor in full flight.

Why did I choose a condor for this tattoo? Let's face it, a condor is an ugly bird, and if young girls are compared to pretty birds than older women are ugly birds. As such, I'm an ugly bird.

But there is another reason why I chose a condor tattoo.

Many years ago, I started playing ten-pin bowling tournaments. I was not exactly champion material, but I wasn't a bad player either. My average was 175 with an occasional 200+ and a top score of 257.

In tournaments, however, I went to pieces. All my opponent had to do was give me a dirty look, ignore me, or say "You're gonna lose" and my confidence went from 100 to zero in two seconds flat.

How it happened exactly I can't remember, but I came across a picture of a condor. As mentioned earlier not exactly a pretty bird, but definitely a bird to be feared. And for some reason, I started to identify with this bird.

From then on, whenever I stood on the approach, I was no longer Conny, I was … the condor. Now, at the start of a tournament, or even just a practice game, I imagined the condor, waiting to take flight.

As the condor, I might not be the most beautiful bowler, but I would soar to new heights and I was to be feared. And it worked. A few years ago, Dieter (a.k.a. Raven) and I took first place at a Halloween tournament and we took first place in the league.

Dieter and I no longer play league or tournaments, but we do bowl every Saturday morning. We have a mini-competition going, just for the fun of it. Do I beat him? … hardly, he's way better than me. He's got a 200 average while I only have a 175 average. But occasionally, I do manage to snatch a game from him or manage to come close.

goals
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About the Creator

Conny Manero

Conny is the author of Waiting for Silverbird, Voice of an Angel, Lily, Kitten Diaries and Debbie. Contributor to various hard copy and online publications.

She lives in Toronto with her son and cats.

https://tinyurl.com/4schsv77

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