Hey welcome back to another installment of Chris’s deep thoughts. A lot has changed since my last blog post. The biggest obviously is becoming a Dad and living in Colombia. Acclimating to raising my son to be a man has been by far the toughest things I’ve ever done. Pretty conflicting as a person that does not like telling people what to do and in an industry that is the ultimate freedom to do whatever you want. Im now in a position of telling a person what to do  everyday and guiding him haha. Granted hes got complete freedom of doing whatever the hell he wants (within reason) that won’t piss me hell off. It didn’t start off sunshine and rainbows but we’re in a really great place now and has been the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done. Reflecting at the end of the day on having great day with him has been so rewarding. I don’t think I’ve ever felt that in tattooing in my entire life. The reward can’t be explained. I love tattooing but I’ve never had that feeling after finishing a cool piece to completion or finish a painting I’m working on. Thats just filling in some bullshit ego void all us beings have. I figure id have a lot to write going on this crazy journey the past 6 months but its too much to write. If you get tattooed or reach out to me I’ll tell you all about it. Living in Colombia has shifted a lot of perspective on life and beings. Forever my wife and I will have a permanent attachment to that beautiful country. I would not be in the place I am if it weren’t for my amazing wife. She’s a very special and amazing person to watch become a mom. A true gift. We’re in a great place right now. Im trying to cherish my forced preschool bus stop hugs with my son until he’s telling me “FUCK YOU DAD” in a few years. Hopefully my next blog I’ll talking more about tattooing and not my forced drawn Superman portraits of my kid. One last thing I’ve watched every super hero movie in Spanish these past 6 months like 5 times each. From Superman to the Avengers. All of them. Everyday. If you’re an adult and into this shit you’re a fuckin Loser. I don’t get it im sorry.

HEY YOU WELCOME BACK! I DIDNT THINK ID BE ABLE TO WRITE ANOTHER BLOG BEFORE LEAVING THE COUNTRY BUT HERE I AM! LIKE USUAL I REALLY DONT HAVE MUCH TO SAY CURRENTLY BESIDES BEING IN ADOPTION PURGATORY. WE SHOULD BE LEAVING ANYDAY NOW. BUT.. I FIGURE ID CHIME IN ON THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM THAT “TATTOOING IS DEAD”. THE TATTOO INDUSTRY CURRENTLY IS VERY SLOW ACROSS THE BOARD, IM FOREVER GRATEFUL PERSONALLY TO BE BUSY DURING THIS TIME. IVE BEEN TATTOOING FOR OVER 17 YEARS SO MAYBE ITS NOT IN MY DNA TO FREAK. THE FIRST 10 YEARS OF MY CAREER THIS WAS FAR TOO NORMAL. IT WAS CALLED “WINTER SEASON”. IT WAS 3 MONTHS OF JUST SURVIVING LIKE A LAID OFF LANDSCAPER. LOOKING BACK AT THOSE TIMES I FUCKIN LOVED IT.. ALWAYS A GREAT RESET ON THE YEAR TO IMPROVE IDEAS/DESIGNS, PAINTING A TON, AND WORKING EVERYTHING OUT ON PAPER.  WITH ALL THAT BEING SAID I SEE INSANELY GOOD TATTOOERS SLOW BUT TAKING COMPLETE ADVANTAGE OFF THIS DOWN TURN MAKING BEAUTIFUL THINGS AND TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL. THATS WHAT ITS ALL ABOUT AND REMINDS ME OF WINTER SEASON DAYS. NOTHING COMES GOOD FROM JUST FEELING BAD FOR YOURSELF OR MAKING THE PUBLIC FEEL BAD FOR YOU THAT YOURE NOT BUSY. IVE SEEN ALOT OF HOT TAKES BUT REALLY LIFE IS EXPENSIVE. PEOPLE HAVE ALOT LESS MONEY AND IF YOURE NOT FEELING IT… MAYBE YOU MAKE TOO MUCH MONEY HAHA! WHICH IS GOOD! BUT I DONT THINK ITS ALL SLOW BC OF “TOO MANY TATTOOERS”. MAYBE….. YOURE NOT PUTTING YOUR ALL IN? MAYBE YOU TREAT YOUR CLIENTS LIKE SHIT? MAYBE NO ONE WANTS YOUR JUVENILE DRAWINGS OR RIPPED OFF GRIMM FLASH(PRETENDING TO BE YOURS) ?  MAYBE YOU JUST STARTED IN 2020 AND NOW YOURE SEEING THE REAL SIDE OF THIS? OR JUST MAYBE WERE GOING DOWN IN THE SINKING SHIP OF THE US GOVT. FOR REAL USE THIS TIME WISELY SIT DOWN GO TO THE DRAWING TABLE AND KILL YOUR DARLINGS. THROW AWAY THAT IDEA/DESIGN THATS HOLDING YOU BACK OR NOT CATCHING. GO AFTER YOUR WEAKNESS. YOU KNOW HOW MANY YEARS I WANTED TO DO JUST BULLDOGS, HORSES, AND ROCK OF AGES?? NO ONE WANTED THAT SHIT! HAHA I HAD TO THROW IT AWAY. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS AND DONT MAKE OTHERS FEEL BAD. ITS PATHETIC. THE REAL ONES KNOW WHAT TO DO AND HAVE BEEN HERE BEFORE.  I GUESS THIS IS A LETTER FOR THE NEW AND WEAK?? THIS ALL COMES WITH LOVE BC I CARE ABOUT THIS SHIT. THANKS FOR CHECKING IN. PEACE AND LOVE.

Over the past few years of writing this blog, I’ve alluded to announcing “Big News Coming!”.  While many of my clients may already know, I’ve been waiting to announce that my wife and I have been in the process of an adoption over the past couple of years. So there it is… I’m going to be a Dad haha. I feel like I’ve been in purgatory of being a parent during the past few years of this long process. So very soon I’ll be trading in my gross tat boots for some New Balances . I’m very excited to put another thing first before tattooing. My wife might disagree that she’s first 👀 but that’s for another blog post. I’m not sure what being a father entails, but I’m sure I’ll find out real quick. Over the past year the one thing I’ve thought about for sure is if being a dad is the “Death of Cool?”. But is it? Will my Tat-cool license be revoked? Is becoming a Dad uncool? Are dads typically drill sergeants, assholes, corny drunks telling bad jokes? It might sound horrible to you, but that actually sounds awesome ! I’ve been pondering this for a while. What is cool? Truly. Being a Dad, tattooing, or neither ? Tattoos Rule! Getting tattooed is cool! But the commercialization of the tattooing industry isn’t cool. It’s quite the opposite . Sure tattooing looks cool from the outside, but it is physically and mentally taxing. But does a bunch of grown ass adults with mental illness hustling online look cool? Do I want to be a 50 year old tattooer begging for attention to stay relevant? That shit sounds horrible and pathetic when you lay it all out. It’s chick shit. Being a psychopath Dad on the sideline of my child’s football game because of a bad call sounds pretty sick. Thats cool! By all means I love tattooing, I’m just talking about the face of the industry. Tattooing is at the highest level in its history and continues to grow. The quality is bar none. But the state of tattooing has got to be the most Homogenized, Cringe, and Uncool time in history. Mouth breathers and unoriginality has taken over. I’m not trying to sound like a bitter old man, its just facts. By the way, I don’t exclude myself from this depiction! I am Him! Maybe I’ll have a different outlook when I’m providing for my kid. I can totally see myself stressing and whoring myself out, just to buy my kid Gucci loafers for their senior prom. I love to be proven wrong, mind changed. I’m excited to see where this new adventure takes me and my family. Thank you to everyone who has and continues to support me. I’m so grateful for every client that comes through the shop doors, and for all the awesome tattoo ideas you guys bring to me and trust me to do! At some point soon I’ll be out of the shop on leave for a month or so. I will keep you posted when that time comes. Please be patient with me . Any questions or concerns please reach out. All the peace and love. C-Dogg