Keep on Truckin’
By Mr. G
Tattooing, in many ways, is no different than other trades or crafts. To be successful at any endeavor takes hard work, commitment, constant focus and dedicated vision. For example, tattooing may be compared to driving an eighteen-wheeler. We tattooist all need to keep our hands on the wheel, eyes on the road and a routine glance to the rear view mirror. We need to stay focused on what we are doing, mindful of the wild, congested road ahead. Like a seasoned trucker, we need, above all, to focus on the basics with minimal distractions.
Some of the best advice for staying on the road of tattooing came from Lyle Tuttle at a tattoo gathering years ago. I was loosely yakking about the extra-terrestrial endeavors of our blessed industry, tattoo retail crap, building machines, writing books, documentaries, etc., you know, Mr. G talking about Mr. G. A center stage conversation all about myself. We all talk about our successes or dreams, when we are comfortable with our audience. We let our hair down. It’s just human nature.
During this enthusiastic, self-centered rap about the potential of one day being a millionaire, maybe becoming a celebrity, a movie star or common household icon, I was enthusiastically unveiling grand plans of pipedreams far down the road. Eventually, I came up for air and it was the next tattooist’s turn to talk about their MySpace hits or traffic on “tattcrap.com.” It was then that Lyle pulled me aside and wisely addressed my verbal meandering. To paraphrase Lyle, I recall these words: “Remember, G, physically doing tattoos is the key to all the rest of this shit (writing, retail, fame, whatever). Don’t forget. Don’t get lost in the bullshit. Keep tattooing first and foremost, actually doing tattoos, being in the chair and working. And, most important: take care of tattooing and it will take care of you!”. Great advice. Simple advice. Advice that I must often remind myself. Guidance that I must pull to the forefront of my trip. Advice I would pass on to anyone in this trade who has the sense to understand.
Another piece of advice I have clung to that fits the eighteen-wheeler story is to never be fucked up on drugs or alcohol when tattooing. I was taught the very first day of my apprenticeship to never tattoo while being intoxicated or hung over. I was warned that I would get a severe ass-kicking and exit my tattoo career through a plate glass window. This was a fact, not a threat. Truckers don’t drink and drive, shoot up speed or heroin. Neither should a dedicated tattooist. With so many people jumping into this trade without proper guidance, the lesson of sobriety has noticeably been tossed to the wayside. It has taken decades to get tattooing out of the gutter and it is drifting to the wrong side of the road again. Many in our business are young and in the prime for partying. Sex, drugs and morphed-out rock ’n’ roll has been around since the dawn of humanity. It is a as normal as a infant putting a hand in fire to discover that it burns like hell. Reckless, youthful, wild partying has been around forever, because humans like to ingest rotten fruit or magic mushrooms and dance around fires to screaming bongos till the sun comes up. There is no stopping this natural behavior. It’s a cold, hard fact of life. “Party on, Garth.”
Again, like the truck driver, we need to be clean and sober, when we get behind the wheel. Tattooing ,to me, is a great privilege, so, show some respect and class. “Yeah, but Shakey the Sailor tattooed drunk. In fact, he was never sober.” That was then, this is now. We often find ourselves in a modern-day, high-speed trap of multi-tasking at an ever increasing momentum, a heavy load of tasks that pull our attention from the mapped road before us. Reckless behavior and erratic interruptions trying to divert us from our obvious trail. The ability to tune out the crazy traffic jams and nerve-racking rattle of the non-essential chaos happens when we get behind the wheel of our tattoo machines. It is in the now of tattooing that we will find our safe destination.
In this day and age, our trade has ballooned into a freeway rush hour of tattoos, a mass media mainstream boom, a society taking us into a tattoo frenzy. How we handle our beloved trade depends on our ability to watch the crazy road all around us, honing our skills at keeping the high speed eighteen-wheeler going forward and out of harm’s way. Be here now! Focus with tunnel vision on the tattoo that we are doing this minute. Do not be distracted by a thousand projects. Keep a keen mind, Do the tattoo with commitment.
Like caged lab rats in a horrific, old, black-and-white hygiene film we saw in high school. The rats were climbing and clawing each other, trying to be at the top of the cage. We are outgrowing our planet, overpopulating our environment. The tattoo industry, at times, is manifestating this. New shops are popping up daily, like weeds after a summer rain. There’s at least six, new, get-rich-quick suppliers a week and a dozen conventions a month. Crazy, baby!
So, remember: keep your foot on the twelve-volt foot pedal and your sober, healthy eyes on the tattoo highway.
Tattooing; as ancient as time, as modern as tomorrow.
Mr. G
