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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at SBU chapter.

It’s a little late to be talking about something that I had done over Christmas break, but better late than never, right? 

Anyway, over Christmas break, I got my first, and third generation, tattoo. It’s a snake and dagger, but it’s not just any snake and dagger. Allow me to explain. 

When tattoos were first becoming a thing in the US, they used to give them away to volunteers at fairs to demonstrate what they were and how you could get one. Well, my grandpa on my dad’s side was one of these volunteers. He had a bunch of them on his forearms, and one of those was a snake and dagger. 

When my dad was old enough, he got tattoos as well. And one of those tattoos is, you guessed it, a snake and dagger. His is on his right arm, and was colored, not black and white, but it was still following the tradition. 

Well, about three years ago, I got the idea that I wanted a snake and dagger tattoo too. Mostly because I like tattoos and plan to get my arms completely covered in them, including my fingers, but also because it would be carrying on a family tradition.  

I’m very picky with what I want, so I had to think about what I wanted for my tattoo for three years, but finally, I got it. I had three bad reference photos of snake and daggers and my dad’s arm. The other reference photos I had were of the dagger I wanted. 

I have a dagger at home that’s a Celtic dagger and I absolutely LOVE it. Because of that, I wanted that exact same dagger on my arm for the dagger that the snake was going to be around. For that, I had two pretty bad reference photos. But I had what I wanted on my phone, and I was ready to go get it done, whenever that may be. 

Over Christmas break, about a week before I came back to college, my parents drove me up to the one tattoo parlor that we thought was the best in the area. We were just going to go in and talk to the people about making an appointment or something for when I was back home in February. 

Well, we walked in, and we were taken over to this tattoo artist. Before we walked in, the artist got a call that his appointment for the day would have to be rescheduled. So, he was free for the whole day. 

I sat down and told him what I wanted, and he got to thinking. He asked me for my reference photos and said to give him about 20 minutes to draw up the piece. I, of course, said that was fine. 

Now, there was only one rule with the snake and dagger tattoo: the dagger had to be straight. Which meant the snake had to be straight as well. But besides that, I could do whatever I wanted. So, I told the artist that I wanted the head a bit cartoonish and looking straight out, and a banner over the bottom part of the tattoo that said “3rd Gen.” 

He drew something up, and me being my picky self, I had him change it up. But the second time he drew it up, it was perfect. He went and printed out the stencil, and I sat in the chair for the next four or so hours. 

The tattoo I have is literally perfect and is exactly what I wanted. I couldn’t be happier with it. I can’t wait to get more! 

On another note, though, I had my ears pierced twice throughout my life, and both times hurt like hell. I remember crying for hours afterward and the pain lingered. Now, the holes are closed because I hate having my ears pierced and I was forced to get them pierced both times (that’s another story) but I can say I got them done twice. 

Anyway, compared to my piercings, getting a tattoo was painless. As soon as the needle was removed from my arm the pain was gone, and even while the needle was in my arm it wasn’t bad at all. 

In conclusion, I love tattoos and think they’re so cool, if you need numbing cream for a tattoo you’re a sissy, and if you have piercings kudos to you. You’re fricking tough. 

Brooke Johnpier is a contributor to the SBU chapter of Her Campus. She writes about the more "manly" topics of the site, including automotive, motorsports, mechanical, technical, DIY, and anything hands-on. Brooke is also using this platform as her personal blog, of which she will talk about more personal things that she feels the world should hear about. Besides Her Campus, Brooke is a part-time motorsports journalist for Speedway Illustrated, a columnist for Race Pro Weekly and Dirt Track Digesr, and a staff writer as well as a social media promoter for The Podium Finish, where she is interning. Brooke is also a writer for TAPinto Greater Olean, WSBU The Buzz, and PolitiFact NY. Brooke is also involved with St. Bonaventure's literary magazine, The Laurel. Brooke is currently a sophomore at St. Bonaventure University where she is majoring in Sports Media with minors in Native American and Indigenous Studies & English. You can also find Brooke working as an assistant in the Koop Lab and upstairs in the office, making her money. In her free time, Brooke loves reading, going to the local racetrack, riding four-wheelers, working on cars, and riding in tractor trailers. Brooke is a music lover, and will talk about most any genre, especially her favorites which are rock and rap. Brooke is also a percussionist, a published author, and a women's rights activist. Brooke is also a member of several lineage organizations, and currently holds a national position in one of them. As well as writing for campus media, Brooke is involved with Faith in Fiction, Jandoli Women in Communication, the History Club, College Democrats, and the Indigenous Student Confederacy. A fun fact about Brooke is that she was the only female to ever be in the top 5% of the Automotive Technology class at the trade school she attended in her junior and senior years of high school.