Sunset Stone

sunset stone, originally uploaded by kai smart.

Stuck in the dry lands longing for the mist-salt-ocean air of the towns I have lived in before. I visited Santa Cruz, and got gulping lungfulls of seafog to tide me over.

I get asked all the time if I have tattooed myself****. I have not (yet). I am afraid that my concentration on dealing with the pain (yes, I am pretty tattooed, but the pain still does not feel GOOD. I am not one of those people.) will make it harder to concentrate on the art. And of course I would want to do a good job! I think if I did tattoo myself I would tattoo my thigh, mainly for the easy access (I don't want to have to go into a contortion and THEN try to execute my masterpiece) but also for another reason: I am not going to tattoo every part of my body.

I know it seems like most tattoo artists go for that, and indeed it is tempting because I have the freedom to do that if I wanted to, but I am still FIRST AN ARTIST, and I think about the picture (my body) as a whole, not just as a meaningless background for art. Not to diss anyone who does go for the whole body, either peice by peice or as a full suit. That's fine for them, and to each their own- but I really like being naked when I'm naked (I say this phrase quite a lot) and this is why all my tattoos are visible when I am dressed. This is why I started getting tattooed on my neck (!) and forearms (!) FIRST (much to the chagrin of my parents). I value nudity. Eventually I will have some tattoos that will be under clothes most of the time, but certain things I want to keep bare, like my lower legs.
I also value the way my tattoos look upon me as others see me everday. I want them to be a part of how I am expressing myself to the outside world. They are an homage to the art and the people that I love. With every tattoo I have gotten I feel like I look MORE like myself.

I also look very "sweet"* so my tattoos add to my love of contradiction. They get people to examine their own perceptions of what a heavily tattooed person would look like, act like, etc. It's been my experience that I am NOT what is expected. I like the contrast of my tattoos with my dresses and maryjane shoes and flowers in my hair. It keeps me honest. It's a kind of rebellion, but one that is very sincerely thought-out, and not in malice at all.

MUSIC!!!!!!!!!

Oh my God I can't stop listening to the new Andrew Bird. (But I must! I have limited myself to twice a week, so I don't stop hearing it.) It's orchestral and chiming and clattering and melodic. It builds, then releases. He is apparently a one-man band. He has a lovely voice and his album design is also pretty kickass. Do you like The Arcade Fire and John Vanderslice? Do you like lyrics about ancient sea slugs and Waves of Dark Matter? Then go buy Armchair Apokrypha. I obviously can't use enough exclaimation points to be able to communicate this.

I really like the new Feist. I just wish she was ugly**. hehe.
It's not fair that she lives in Paris and has a bone-structure like that and vocal chords that can do THAT and is a great songwriter to boot. The album is called The Reminder, and my surly indie-record-store clerk of a brother is uttering a sincerely-dissapointed and "over it" sigh right now, somewhere on the other side of town.

This might also be really uncool, but The Cold War Kids are GREAT. Their album kicks ass and the singer has an almost over-the-top desperate note in his voice, that may almost be gay (and therefore GREAT!), but then he sings a song that sounds like an old black spiritual, and it totally works for that too. Woah. I like the lyrics and they rock out quite fabulously. I don't even know what they or their album (Robbers and Thieves) looks like. Maybe I shouldn't look. I was sort of bummed when Silversun Pickups released an album poster with their faces on it. I was content imagining them as a teenage family band of blond incestuous opiated mid-90's basement punks. Who live entirely on sunshine and cigarettes. By the way, go buy "Carnavas" (awesome cover art on that one, and the font is rad too!) or "Pikul". YOU WILL NOT BE DISSAPOINTED!!

###I gave in and looked up The Cold War Kids. They are younger than I expected, and now I believe that they actually were born during the Cold War and it is not just a cute band name. I am also very much more in love with them than before, mainly because of the well-written and funny tour diary and their uncomfortable photograph faces (and funny hats).

An excerpt from the tour diary:

6-26
What do you know about Glastonbury? That it was began by druids on a
farm spanning 10 miles? That 160 thousand people are there camping in
mud that creeps halfway up your shins? We knew none of this. It goes
without saying that people here are crazy. It’s mob mentality. People
can’t really enjoy this. It’s a tradition thing. They know that they are
supposed to enjoy it, so they follow suit. There was one guy that was walking
by us wearing a shark fin on his back doing a genuine breaststroke and
the look in his black and sunken eyes convinced me that he had been out
to sea in his mind too long. We tried to get away from the mud and get
some sleep in a little tent on top of wooden picnic benches. But we found
no solace. And no Winehouse, either.
But we did discover Seasick Steve. He was playing before us at the Q
party. Seasick Steve is a tough looking man (eagle and sailboat
forearm tattoos, big ole white beard) from the U.S. South, aged about
55. He plays guitars with an average of 3 strings and his songs are
pretty terrific stories.
On his day off in South London, Maust become quite the gin snob
after his super elite and private tour of the Beefeater distillery In case
you want to walk by, it’s the Vauxhall tube station.

And now my next act will be....SLEEPING!!!






* and I am....;)

** I take it back, Feist is Canadian, and therefore awesome and deserving of beauty;)

****A man who is unafraid of tattooing himself is David Allen. He has a blog I have been following for a while, about being an apprentice, and with his passion for the craft and attention for detail, he is already becoming an AMAZING tattoo artist. He's very inspired by Classical artwork too, and you should doubly check it out if you like that.