Reading Response: People as Pictures/Irezumi

       This article was creepy in the sense that it focused on two current interests of mine. It seems almost like one of those weird little coincidences in life that may be more than a coincidence... I am hoping to obtain a bachelors degree in foreign languages with my first language being Japanese, and I am also a tattoo enthusiast. Yeah...odd eh?
        While this may not seem to be something to take any special notice of , it was not only the overarching theme that caught my attention but one of the main focuses. The contradictory idea of tattoos being incredibly painful, which Irezumi exemplifies with precision, and the commonly heard phrase that tattoos are "addicting." The very first thing I had ever heard about tattoos was that they were addicting and being young, I did not understand how in the world something like that could be addicting. Besides the fact that I was and am terrified of needles, I have always had a bit of a low threshold for pain...or in laymen terms I'm a wuss. I always thought this way: why in the world could pain be addicting? But of course what I was missing was a vital part of the equation, which could only be discovered  by getting a tattoo. 
          I got my first tattoo at 17 and after I looked at it in the mirror I understood why tattoos were/are addicting (for myself at least): the pride that comes with such an intricate work of art permanently on my body and that I, someone well known by those around me to be a wuss, had toughed it out. The moment I looked at the healed product on my right shoulder in the mirror, I was addicted. I wanted another one immediately. But self realization babble aside, the article brought something to light. What I had done was nothing compared to Irezumi. 
         As the article progressed it mentioned masochism, and sadism. Now, being a self proclaimed wuss, I was and still am, very sure I am not a masochist which is what supposedly the tattoo victim should be, at least in theory. This made me think what is the relationship being the pride I felt after the tattoo was done, and the ability to tough out the pain I felt while my tattoo was being done. I tried to think about, and still am but I cannot figure out the connection between the two concepts. I thought maybe it was similar to why a soldier takes pride in fighting for his country, but a missing link there is tattooing isn't nearly as noble, but there were similar points in both. But similarities or not, they weren't comparable. Then I considered maybe the relationship of tattooing, pain and pride was similar to a professional fighters love for the pain of getting hit and the pride of winning or putting up a good fight. This seemed a little more likely...
       Then I continued to go off on a mental thought path of all kinds of things. I still don't know quite what the relationship is but I know it is significant for me because the only way I may ever figure it out is to get more tattoos. I consider something if worth reading if it sets its reader off on a tangent of thought, and indeed it did just that. :)