One Friday night in the summer my teenage friends and I reunited.

We stayed up until the sun rose to join us and drove to Rein's deli for breakfast and got there right as they were opening. That morning I drew a lady lemur on the back of the placemat. Three months later on another given Saturday, this time in the night, I had the animal tattooed over my heart. It means a lot to me, so please don't tell me I'm kinda dumb.

First Ken scanned my image and stenciled it on my body:

Then they turned on the DVD "A Bronx Tale" to distract my pain with Robert Deniro and doo-wop songs.

Ken is an awesome artist and a really nice guy. He was excited to do the monkey, exactly as I'd drawn it.

I was nervous he would touch the lazer-knife blade to my nipple and that I'd bleed to death.

Ken's girl had her dog in the tattoo parlor. It was cute.

I stared into the overhead light as he inked the lemur tail painfully into my armpit....

...and was very happy when it was over and done with.

The finished production:

Ink & blood are interchangable on the bandage after the art.