The Who, What, When, Where, Why and How

A Facebook friend (who I knew in kindergarten!) asked me to explain to him the who, what, where, when, why and how of my tattoo. I realize that it is a pretty small group of people who might be in the tribe that I'm in - feeling so passionate about a band's music to actually get a tattoo. So, if I have to explain it...is that person really gonna get it? I don't know.

But I'm willing to give it a go. This is what I wrote to him:

Why: I love Pete Townshend's music. It touched me deep in my soul when I was around 16 and just grew from there. He's a kindred spirit, and I see eye to eye with him on spiritual matters. His music just has deep meaning for me. The Who and their music came to be something I had so much passion for - I have seen them in concert so many times I've lost count.

Almost 10 years ago, I was having a particularly troubling MS attack and was numb from my knees up to my shoulders. I thought, gee, this might be a good time to get that Who tattoo I always wanted. It still hurt like hell! At the time, I was in the middle of a lot of fear, not knowing how MS was going to play out. So I did some things that were meaningful to me, like the tattoo, but that I might not normally have done. The MS thing kind of gave me the "what the fuck" energy I needed to do them. The reason for the tattoo was that it was something I felt so passionate about, it made me feel glad to be alive and I liked to be reminded of that.

Where: It's above my right hip. I'll post a picture (and Citizen K - this is for you! :-)


When: About 10 years ago.

How: Boulder tattoo parlor

I love it and I have never regretted it. Now, if Pete and Roger totally blow it at the Superbowl in a few weeks, I might have to rethink things!

....NOT