You Get What You Get For Your Birthday

Last summer on my birthday, my family and I headed to Crown Hieights, Brooklyn, and celebrated the day, in part, at Electic Anvil Tattoo:

My daughters, Jolee and Shayna, had decided to treat their old dad to a new tattoo. What was I getting? It was still undetermined:

What's this? To those who aren't familiar with the concept, a customer pays for a token that they drop in the gumball machine. A little plastic ball drops after twisting the handle, and inside the bulb is a drawing. That's what you've just selected for your new tattoo. What happens if you don't like it? You can pay extra for a second chance, but you can also walk away. This rarely happens, I am told. Most people who are game enough to take the chance, are not going to walk away.

Needless to say, I liked my design and, as a bonus, the tattooer available to me was none other than Jason Monroe (@jason_monroe), who had tattooed me eight years earlier at a special Sailor Jerry event (read about it here).

The design I got it was this cool little Reaper, which now graces my left leg, just above the ankle. 

When Jason asked if I wanted color, I deferred to him, so he was able to add the red he thought was best for the design. I thought getting a grim reaper tattoo on my birthday was pretty iconic, and the fact that it was a gift from my kiddos made it all the more special.

I should add that my daughter Shayna also "got what she got" - the family concluded she got a better design (although I was 100% happy with the outcome):

This tattoo, on Shayna's inner left forearm, was done by Josh Arseneau (@josharseneau) and was also a "Get What You Get" special.

Thanks to my kids for this awesome birthday gift and to Jason Monroe and the rest of the Electric Anvil crew for making it a memorable birthday!

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