Gunfighter: A Modern Warrior's Life

TattooStory (3)

If you have been reading me for a while, you know that I have tattoos.  You know the stories behind all four of them , as I have talked about them in several places on my blog over the past few years.  Well, last night, I was once again privileged to be tattooed by master tattoo artist, and seriously cool guy, Paul Roe, proprietor of British Ink Custom Tattoos, right here in Washington, DC.

As you know, most of my tattoo work is of a religious nature... what I like to call faith statements... and this new (5th) piece is no different.  This one is on the inside of my right forearm.  Have a look:

(Please to forgive the photography.  Mrs GF had to deal with a squirmy subject)

Totally Lutheran.  Totally badass!

 

I love this... it is a total faith statement and a total historical hat tip to someone that I truly admire.  If you aren't familiar with this emblem, it is probably because you are neither a Lutheran or a student of the history of the Christian faith.  In any event, I'll explain it to you:   You know who Martin Luther was, don't you?  he was that splendid German Augustinian Monk/Priest/Doctor of The Church who was responsible for starting The Reformation.  The emblem on my arm was Luther's personal seal, and has become the symbol of Lutherans worldwide. 

The text above the seal "Here I Stand" is a quote from Luther, from when he was made to appear before the German "Diet", and Charles the 5th, the Holy Roman Emperor.  Luther had been branded as a heretic by some, and was brought before the Diet, The Emperor, and the representative of the Pope in order to be questioned and forced to recant his teachings. 

Naturally, Martin Luther, being the total badass that he was, refused to recant and ended his appearance before the Emperor saying "Since acting against conscience is neither safe nor right, I cannot, and will not recant!  Here I stand. I can do no other.  God help me, Amen!"

Now... I don't have to give you a lesson on medieval european history to tell you that only a true tough guy could stand up to the Pope AND the Emperor.  I mean, people like that tend to end up being burned at the stake.

If I can be anywhere near as hard core in my faith as Luther, I'll be doing it right.

Anyway, here are a couple of other images of Luther's seal, to show you the evolution of my new tattoo:

Once again, kudos to Paul Roe.  I'm telling you, he is a fine artist and an engaging conversationalist, even while tattooing.  We talked about everything from guns to old testament scripture, to family and classic cars in the 90 minutes it took him to do this piece.  Paul and all of the artists at British Ink are top notch and shouldn't be missed if you or someone you care about wants good, high-quality, custom tattoo work (no, I'm not getting a discount on future work for writing this... it's just the truth).  

You can visit Paul's shop here! 

 

 

 

In Case You Were Wondering.

Verbum Domini Manet in Aeternum
The Word of the Lord Endures Forever

Verbum Domini Manet in Aeternum is the motto of the Lutheran Reformation, a confident expression of the enduring power and authority of God’s Word. The motto is based on 1 Peter 1:24-25 (also Isaiah 40:8). It first appeared in the court of Frederick the Wise in 1522. He had it sewn onto the right sleeve of the court’s official clothing, which was worn by prince and servant alike. It was used by Frederick’s successors, his brother John the Steadfast, and his nephew John Frederick the Magnanimous. It became the official motto of the Schmalcaldic League and was used on flags, banners, swords, and uniforms as a symbol of the unity of the Lutheran laity who struggled to defend their beliefs, communities, families and lives against those who were intent on destroying them.

Stream of Conciousness?

I listened to Led Zeppelin and The Who on the way into the office this morning... at volumes suited to making the ears bleed. Don't hate me because I like it loud.

I drove past a guy changing a flat tire while I was driving through that Springfield Interchange... I kept driving. Does the fact that I always stop to help a woman with a flat tire make me a sexist?

Adam Lambert has more talent now, than Kris Allen will ever have in his life... even if he lives to be 723 years old. He was robbed.

I used to be a Republican, but couldn't stand the stink inside of the party after the 1994 take-over by the crackpot wing... which is still in charge. I wish them confusion in the wilderness.

I have little time or patience for people who think that killing Al Qaeda leaders/operatives is a bad thing. What else do you do with a rabid dog? You can't reason with it, so you have to kill it... and just because these particular rabid dogs walk upright on two legs, doesn't mean they have to be treated humanely.

I'm listening to the theme from "Rocky" as I type this.

My new tattoo is healing nicely, and I have to tell you that IT. FREAKIN'. ROCKS. Believe it!

"If you carry a gun, you always have to be thinking about who it is ok to kill" Yes, that's true, but not necessarily wrong.

I still have the origami Jesus that one of my Sunday school students made for me two years ago. He is pinned to the wall of my cubicle, right next to my Jerusalem cross (from Jerusalem, no less)
I have shooters everyday this week, but I just put in a leave request for Friday. I'm playin' hooky. Well, not really, I have a Doctor's appointment, but it will feel like a hooky day when I don't get out of bed at 0415.

Not all warriors are soldiers. Most soldiers aren't warriors.

When blogging becomes a chore, instead of a joy, you ought to quit doing it.... unless someone is giving you money for it.

Time to pull out the ammo for today.

Tattoo Story (2)

How can it be Sunday, already???

The last thing I remember, I was getting a new tattoo on Thursday evening.

Where was I ?

Oh, I remember, it was Thursday night... date night for me and Mrs Gunfighter.  SoccerGirl was at summer camp, riding horses and so forth with the Girl Scouts in the hills of central Vriginia.  Since SoccerGirl was out of the picture (we really missed her... you know we did!), I had planned to get my new tattoo from the aforementioned primo custom tattoo artist, Paul Roe, of British ink.

Well, let me tell you... when Gunfighter does date night, he does it right, full stop.

Here's how it went down:  After teaching all day (and I could tell you what a pain in the ass last week was... but I'll spare you), I left work a wee bit late, but in plenty of time to pick up the Mrs.  We immediately headed to the Washington National Cathedral, because we hadn't been there together in months and months.  We spent a lovely little time chatting as we drove to the Cathedral, and after parking the the brand-spankin'-new underground parking lot, we went to the Cathedral gift shop which always has some great books, CD's and other treasures. 

Both of us spent a bit of money there, with me buying a new book on living life according to the Benedictine rule, which is awesome, and Mrs GF bought some books on Christian art.

Anyway, we left the Cathedral and proceeded back to the Washington Navy Yard area, where the ARTOMATIC festival was being held.  We got there in short order, having driven through some areas of the city that we used to enjoy when we were in our youth (seeing some of those people made me feel positively ancient!).

We felt a little nostalgic passing by the old news agent on Connecticut avenue, and the area where Rumors lounge, and The Sign of The Whale were/are.  Does anyone here remember the Mad Hatter?  Dude, I used to rule those places in the late 80's!

Ahem (ask me the stories later!).

So, we arrived at the festival, and parked a block away, near Nationals Park.  Securing a parking space, we walked to the ATM so I could score some cash to pay Paul, and while we were getting said cash, a woman walked past us, wearing what would have been a long t-shirt, if she had been eight years old.  As it was, she couldn't honestly be considered dressesd, what with her backside hanging out and her rather ample boobs exploding out of a bra that was clearly two sizes too small.  Mrs GF, can I get a witness?  Holla!

Anyway, we got to the festival about 30 minutes before my scheduled appointment with Paul, and had the chance to browse through the exhibits on the second and third floors.  We saw some of the performance artists setting up, and one young woman who was clearly there with her parents, was setting up her cd's for sale... she looked like a nice enough sort, so I bought her cd right there and then..... hey you have to support your local artists, right?  So, here is a free plug for Margot MacDonald, of Fairfax County, Virginia.  Her latest CD is called Walls.  While a couple of the songs on the cd are covers, most were penned by young Margot herself.  Give here a fair listen... I think that you will like her music.

After buying Margot's CD, we saw some really interesting art... as well as some things that I could have done without.  I'm not a prude by any stretch of the imagination, but some of that stuff was downright out of hand!

No need to catalog the weirdness, but I will say this:  To the "Guns Into Art" guy:  Good on you, my friend, but you'll probably never see the artistry that goes into a long-range headshot in a crosswind with unenhanced sights.  'Tis a thing of graceful beauty, indeed.  Violence isn't always evil or morally wrong.

So, eventually it was time.  Time to go visit Paul nad get my next piece of...  art?  Art, for sure, if you are an artist like Paul.  Art, if you are an artsy type of person.  This is art, even if you are like me, a not very artsy kind of guy.

If you know me at all, you know that my tattoos have stories behind them.  You know that all of them mean things that are deeply held and important to me in the depths of my soul. This tattoo was to be no different.  I told you a couple of months ago, the sketchy basic design for this piece, so you already know most of what it was going to look like.

Paul greeted us warmly, and invited us into his shop away from his regular studio.  When we got there, we were greeted not only by paul, but also by his lovely wife, his son, as well as Liaa, his new apprentice.   British Ink is a family affair, my friends... believe it.

So, we got down to business right away, and Paul cleaned and shaved my forearm, and immediately be began my stencil.  If you have never been tatooed before, please understand that this isn't just some crap that the artist dedcided to scrawl on your arm.  This is serious stuff, and since you will likely carry this to your grave, you had better make sure about what you are looking to get!

So, the stencil being done, it was time to get my outline done.  The outline took practically no time at all, while Mrs GF whiled away that time snapping pictures. 

I spent a little time getting to know Liaa, since she had become part of the British Ink family, it only made good sense.  I won't go into Liaa's professional life without her permission, but she is an educator who works with multiple media, which should serve her well in the world of custom tattoo artists.

Now, with the outline done, it is time for the shading and coloring... which is always the least comfortable part of a tattoo... at least for me.

In a fairly short amount of time, Paul was finished.  I have to tell you, this tattoo was the most pain-free (relatively) of any of the four that I have.

You might notice that we departed from the black and grey that we usually do, and opted for  a little red shading to make that image pop out at you just a little bit.

The picture that you see here was taken as soon as the tatoo was done.  It still looks a little angry, but since then, it has begun to heal quite well.  I will attempt to post a picture of the finished product in a few days.

I've said it before, friends.  If you want good custom tattoo work done, here in the Washington, DC are, go see Paul.  I promise you that you will go home happy.

Mrs Gunfighter and I plan to interview Paul at his studio later in the week, so please, when that happens, give it a read and pass it on to your friends.

OK, it's 1230 and I have to be awake in less that 4 hours... I have to go to sleep.

Good night all.

New Ink Tonight!

I've been patient.

I've been selective.

I've waited.

I'm not waiting anymore.

I'm getting a new tattoo tonight.

Not only am I getting a new tattoo, I'm getting inked (again) by primo custom tattoo artist Paul Roe, of  British Ink! 

Now, as if getting a new tattoo by Paul (who really is a cool guy) wasn't enough, I will be getting this new tattoo at ARTOMATIC , Washington, DC's annual, month-long, art festival... and Mrs GF is coming with me!

Talk about date night!?!

Awwwwww yeah!

Expect photos (and even video) of the event soon!

Pictures From the Past Year

I don't have a single bloody thing to talk about today... mainly because I am not in the mood to rant about the lowlife campaign that John McCain is running, which is as plain as the nose on your face.

Instead, I thought I would clean off the photo card that I have here, and share some pictures with you from the past year or so.  Enjoy:

 

The next President of The United States

How I feel about Republicans in general.

Some of my rosaries, for sale at The National Cathedral (They are all gone now, by the way).

The Washington Monument, and the Bureau of Engraving & Printing, seen from the tidal basin, next to the Jefferson Memorial.

Latest Ink

Pizza with leeks and roasted rep peppers.  Sooo good!

With my girls!

Are YOUtalkin' to ME?

Once again, The next President of the United States

'Nuff said!

A Work In Progress

Asian crusted salmon with stir-fry salad of jasmine rice.

Taylor Ham & Egg on a kaiser roll.  A delicacy for a boy from New Jersey.

Soccer Girl takes the throw-in!

Well now!  I hope I haven't bored you, too deeply.

I hope you all have a nice weekend.  We are off to Fredricksburg  to watch the opening of the Olympics (it's a family tradition, I'll explain it next week).

Big hugs and pink puffy hearts to all.

GF

PS:  In case any Hillary die-hards are reading this

Tattoo Story

By this time, I think that all of you know that I have tattoos... three of them. 

Today I am going to take a few minutes to tell you about how and why I have them.  This is being done in conjunction with Sonia Sunshine, who blogs at "..And The Pursuit of Happiness".  Please give her a look, because she is doing something rather cool on the subject of tattoos this week.

Anyway, I got my first tattoo in 1986, when I was stationed with the 2nd Marine Division at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina.  The tattoo that I chose was the Marine Corps emblem, which you can see here.  It is an eagle, globe, and anchor. The symbolism of which is the eagle, representing the nation, the globe, representing the world-wide service of U.S. Marines, and the anchor is representative of our ties to the Navy.  My Marine tattoo is in full color, and still looks pretty good for being more than twenty years old.  The colors have faded some, but the details haven't.  Back in those days, being a Marine meant a lot to me... and it still does today.  I have never regretted getting this tattoo, and will be pleased to take it with me to my grave.  It took me two weeks to figure out exactly which EGA design that I wanted, and once I settled on it, I took another two weeks to make sure it was what I really wanted it.  Once I was certain, I went to Zeke's tattoo parlor, in Jacksonville, NC and had it done.... and I was stone cold sober when I did it (just so you know).

When I got my Marine tattoo... one of the old sergeants (I swear, he must have been at least 35) told me to beware... tattoos, he said "are addictive".

Fast forward to 2004... I had been jonesing for another tattoo for a long time.  I wanted one, but I wasn't really all that sure.  Eventually it came to me that a tattoo is nice as body art, if that is your thing, but to tell you the truth, my body ain't all that great to look at, and I'm not terribly vain, so I decided that it was more important for me to get something that had personal meaning, rather than something to make me look/feel cool. 

Enter my second tattoo.

My military service was/is important to me, but that phase of my life is over, so I started thinking about tattoos that would signify the importance of my faith.  I played around with various crosses... Celtic crosses were pretty cool, I thought, but A) I couldn't find one that I really liked, and B) it seemed like everybody and their brother was getting a celtic cross, so I looked a bit further.

I have been particularly interested in men's ministry of late, because I can't help but feel that for many many years, the church has become "girlified".  In my opinion, too many men think that being part of the body of Christ means being emasculated.... Well, that's not me.  Anyway, I bought a book about men's ministry, that had a cool emblem on the spine... it was all black and it was the outline of some stout spikes.  The type of spikes that may have been in use at the time of the crucifixion of Jesus.  I made a drawing, and took it to a tattooist that I met a couple of years before, while we were being interviewed for Newsweek magazine.  I still had his card, and gave him a call.

When we met, he started asking me questions, and while we talked, he sketched.  His sketch was brilliant, and a week later, it was on my right shoulder.  It is a cross of nails... and the scroll (which Paul and I spent a lot of time on) says, in latin "A Cruce Salus" , which means: From the Cross, comes salvation"  Paul was REALLY good, and it took a relatively short amount of time.

Well, if you have been reading my blog for more than enough, you already know about the third tattoo, which was done in April of this year. 

I am more than passingly interested in the history of the early church, and I am particularly interested in the period of the Crusades.  I have read quite a fey books about the period and about the religious military orders of the day, including the Knights Templar (no, none of that DaVinci Code crap) I mean the Knights of THe Temple, also known as "The Poor Knights of Christ".  Also spent a fair amount of time on the Knights of St. John, who were also known as the Knights Hospitaller.  Anyway, I decided that my next tattoo would hve something to do with the Crusader era.  there were many reasons for this.. but to tell you the truth, it would take a lot of intricate discussion... so it will have to wait for later.

I thought long and hard about this tattoo.  I wanted Either a Templar Cross (also known as the cross Moline), or the Cross of St. John, also known as the Maltese Cross.  I finally settle on the Jerusalem Cross.  I settled on this one because of the significance of Jerusalem in Christian history and culture, as well as it's continued importance in the middle east.   The design came to me easily this time... I took a Jerusalem cross to Paul.  Indeed, I used one of the crosses that I use to make rosaries.  Paul took a look at it, and began his sketch.  A week later, and, well, you can see it yourself.... it's on my back, between my shoulder blades.   The text around the cross is in Greek,  from Phillipians: 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me".

I am very happy with all of my tattoos, and I have never regretted them.

There!  Now you know my stories... aren't you glad?

Hey.  HEY!  Wake up.

Jeez.

Note:  If you are ever in Washington, DC area and you want to get a tattoo, you MUST go and see Paul Roe, at British Ink.  You won't be sorry.  Paul does all custom work, all of the time.

2nd Note:  Barack Obama post before midnight, I promise.

New Tat, Completed!

Voila!

I'm quite pleased!

New Tat Design

This is me, tomorrow.