I like to use my 30+ year old tattoo as a reason to not get a tattoo. For the first 10 years or so it was brightly colored and looked pretty sharp. The colors have faded away and the black is spreading out. If I could go back in time, I wouldn’t have gotten it. The 50 plus year old tattoo on my father’s shoulder is a figureless blob now.
I think they are monumentally shortsighted, and not particularly attractive. So many of the sexiest female lower backs are spoiled by inane ink.
I think maybe 5% of the tattoos I have seen I thought looked nice. The odds of me being able to choose something that will look nice on me? Well, not very good, especially with a body as hairy as mine, just about the only places I could get one and not have it covered in a mound of hair would be my face, hands, or lower back.
Don’t any of you people watc America’s Most Wanted? Why give the authorities one more identifying mark?
If I’m going to waste money on something painful and permanent I have people other than myself in mind.
I find them unattractive, and in certain situations I think they become hideous (visible tattoos at weddings are the worst in my opinion; there is nothing that can spoil the beauty of a bride for me quite so well as so-called “body art”).
Also, times and fashions change, and I know that what I find quite attractive and interesting now will seem dated and boring in a few short years. I have never seen a phrase or image that I could imagine wanting to display on my person for the rest of my life.
So, mostly, what everyone else said.
I have trouble finding a piece of art I can keep on my wall without getting bored with it. Not much chance I’m going to find something I want to stare at for the rest of my life.
funny story…one of my old roomies got a spelling error on his tattoo…“god bless” turned into “gob bless”
…of course, we gave him HELL over it. he was a large guy, too…but i did it just the same.
um, to answer the question though…i’ve thought about it. i just don’t know what i’d get. i’m not a fan of needles either…as a matter of fact i hate hate hate HATE hate HATE needles. i’ve got my bellybutton pierced, but i don’t think i could go tattoo-crazy.
yes. i’m a guy.
I saw the thread title and thought ‘good question’.
A lot of people seem to think that vanity is the main reason people get tattoos. I wonder if that’s true. I know I want mine for entirely personal reasons. I don’t work square jobs anyway, so I’ve thought about getting a stylized crocodile with its tail around my wrist for a while now.
Two reasons - no money to get one done (see no square jobs, above) and this other thing, which is that…right. I have a really high tolerance for all kinds of pain. I enjoy most kinds, in fact. But there’s one kind in particular that makes me go batshit insane, and I’m kind of worried tattoo pain might just be that kind.
There’s no question of enduring enough to get my croc, if it is. Just thinking about it is making my eyes water. Oddly, it is not what most people would think of as a particularly horrible kind of pain.
When I think of the needle going into the skin, I imagine that kind of pain, and it’s a bad idea to attack the person with the needle. This is sort of a problem. :o I understand that the pain is part of the process, and I wouldn’t expect to enjoy it, but if it’s like I think it is I’m SOL.
I have always looked upon tattoos and piercings the same way I do body mutilation and deliberate self-injury . To me, they are a visible sign of incredible low self-esteem. I may have issues with my life from time to time, but not so many that I am willing to mutilate myself over them.
You don’t choose not to get a tattoo, not having one is the default state. Therefore your question is invalid.
I have a thing about pointless bodily adornment: I don’t like it, at least for myself. If something has a useful purpose, like many articles of clothing, that’s fine, but I refuse to wear things that serve no practical purpose. I have no piercings, the only jewellery I wear is a crucifix that remains under my clothing (I don’t even wear a watch, when a cell phone keeps the time just as well), and I have no tattoos.
I cannot think of a single thing that I would want on my body permanently. Also, I’m not into needles and pain unless they’re necessary. And lastly, nowadays I don’t find them attractive at all.
I don’t find tattoos hideous or nasty, although they can be poorly done. I certainly don’t think that having a tattoo is a sign of low self-esteem or a symptom of self-injury. That may be the case for a few people, but it doesn’t apply to the majority of the tattooed population.
I don’t want one because there’s nothing in my life that I feel strongly enough about that I want to pay homage to.
Couple reasons:
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No interest. I’ve never seen one I like that much.
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I’m somewhat(read: VERY) private, which runs rather counter to the whole putting perament things on my body. I have enough problems wearing some of my shirts in public.
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The Military seems to have a dim view of it, and I’d rather not jepordize my future career over one.
Most tatoos don’t bother me, but “shirts” and “sleeves” are repellant to me. For that matter, so excessive piercings in wierd places.
I didn’t get one because I don’t like the way the ink fades and turns blue over time. Blech.
I didn’t get one for the same reason I didn’t study journalism at university.
I’m not particularly afraid of the pain part, but I can’t even commit to a bumper sticker!
A combination of things - mostly not wanting to spend the money just yet and not having a design I’m sure I would want. That may change soon; then I would need to find an artist who I had the confidence in.
Well I would like this this on my body permanently. 
However, I can’t think of any tattoos that I would want.
