On October 25, 2014, I made one of the most permanent decisions of my lifetime: I got a tattoo. I did all the research needed before getting a tattoo. I found an artist, who has since done all of my tattoos since then. I found a design that I knew I would love, a geometric turtle with my family members initials etched into the shell. Ever since that moment I haven't been able to stop getting tattoos and I haven't stopped getting questioned and hated on by people who don't understand "why I would harm myself like that." I'm here to tell you about some stereotypes and discrimination that I face.

First, the idea that every tattoo needs to have a meaning is very frustrating. The first thing people ask besides what it is is what's the meaning behind it. I don't need to have a meaning behind every tattoo as long as I want it.

Next, I get told all the time that I'm gonna regret my tattoos when I am older. If I had any inkling of a thought that I would regret what I'm getting then I wouldn't have gotten it in the first place. Also, why does it matter to you if I got a tattoo... it's not on your body. It's my body and I won't regret it, no matter how much it may hurt!

The biggest discrimination I face is never being allowed a decent job with tattoos. There is nothing in tattoo ink that make me less smart than I was before getting a tattoo. Professionals all around the world have tattoos and their tattoos don't mean that they are any less of a business person than the man to their right. I can be a zoological veterinarian or pathologist with a bad-ass Shaak Ti or Panda tattoo.

In the end, I really don't care what people think about my tattoos. I get them to make myself happy and to express myself. I have hope for the world that it will eventually be normal for people to have tattoos but, until then, I will keep getting tattoos when and where I want, because why not? They're really fun to get!