A little about me and tattoos

For those who know me very well, I am obsessed with tattoos. I am constantly looking at tattoos on Instagram. LOL!  I currently have 18 tattoos and have an appointment made next month at Mpls Tattoo Shop with the artist Bunny (my new favorite tattoo artist, locally and nationally). I discovered Bunny awhile back on Instagram and was truly impressed with her work. Last week after realizing pigs would sprout wings and fly before I could get in an appointment with one of the women at my favorite shop Jackalope, I went over to Mpls Tattoo Shop and booked an appointment with Bunny for next month. I am super stoked about it.

Originally I wanted to book a session with one of the women at Jackalope Tattoo but it is extremely difficult to get in for an appointment especially for new customers. I would have had to wait until mid summer just to book a session and I wouldn't even know how long I would have to wait for the appointment which is frustrating to say the very least. I will say that I am fortunate to have been able to go into the shop on one of their walk in events and had some work done on the back of my left ankle. I may just go into Jackalope whenever a walk in day for smaller tattoos. That might be the best way to go for me.

I have been getting tattoos for 18 years off and on through out the years. I did not plan on getting any tattoos when I was in my early 20s. I believe I was 24 when i got my first tattoo which was the WWF panda logo. I will admit that thing hurt like hell. LOL! Over the years with each tattoo, I found my tolerance for pain to go up. The more tattoos I got, the more comfortable I became with the needles.

For me, I love the idea of using my body as a live canvas. Many of my tattoos are pop culture related like Garfield the cat whom I have always loved since I was a child. Garfield to me represents my childhood. I also have the skeleton holding the martini glass from Social Distortion because SD had a huge musical influence on me as a teenager. They got me to stop listening to that crappy hair metal shit. Still one of my all time favorite bands. Being a big fan of Miyazaki films, I have both Totoro and No Face on my legs. My Neighbor Totoro and Spirited Away are two of my favorite (animated) films ever. Of all my tattoos, Totoro attracts the most attention. Who doesn't love Totoro?  My personal favorite tattoo is that of a xenomorph from the Alien films. I went to Saint Sabrina's to have Bleach Methane work on my right calf. For a 2 1/2 hour session, that went pretty fast for me.

As far as negative experiences, I just have one but I won't say what. where or who. I will say it was one of my most painful experiences while getting it done as well as during the healing process. It left a pretty sour taste on my lips and I have no desire to go back to the shop where I got the tattoo.

Shops I would love to check out (not sure if I can get to them):
Black End tattoo Atelier
Tailorbird Tattoo
The Holy Mackerel Studios
Lowbrow Saints Tattoo Collective
4 Points Body Gallery
Twilight Tattoo
Steady Tattoo and Body Piercing

I love my tattoos. I take pride in them. I have no regrets. I get tattoos for myself. If people like them that's great, if not, that's not my problem. I did not get them for approval. That is my story.

My 10 favorite pop songs

In general I am not a fan of pop music. Well at least today's pop music but I do think not all pop music is atrocious (like Justin Bieber). So I am currently listening to one of my favorite playlists on Spotify. It has some pop songs that has really stood the test of time and I can never get sick of hearing. I thought I would post my 10 favorite pop songs.

10. Billy Joel: Piano Man


09. Sarah McLachlan: Vox


08. Belinda Carlisle: Leave A Light On


07. The Bangles: If She Knew What She Wants


06. Bette Midler: The Rose


05. Cyndi Lauper: All Through the Night


04. Air Supply: All Out of Love


03. Williams Brothers: Can't Cry Hard Enough


02. Lauren Christy: Steep


01. Sophie B. Hawkins: As I Lay Me Down

My current favorite band: Autumn

Normally I would post this in my music blog but I already posted today's blog post so why not post it here?

Last night I went to the Day Block Brewing company over on Washington Avenue for to see a couple of local bands UZZA (which is pronounced "ah-zuh") and Autumn. It was a great show. Hung out with some great people, had a few drinks (beer and gin and tonic do not go hand and hand), and saw some great live music. The room was really packed for UZZA but by the time Autumn went on the room totally cleared out which irritated me a bit. I found it disrespectful. I was talking to a friend last night at the end of the night and how underrated the band is which inspired today's post. Since I have a couple of blogs, I thought I would take the time to give them some free publicity. After all the band has been around for 20 years. They deserve some credit and respect, and if this is what it takes to give them some exposure, so be it.

Autumn. This band is so grossly underrated and overlooked in the local music scene. By the time they went on last night, people started leaving. Damn shame! #autumntheband #postpunk #darkwave #goth #minnesotamusic #localmnmusic #concert #concertphotography #livemusic

A photo posted by Erica Anderson (@eanderson1974) on Nov 19, 2016 at 4:04am PST

My favorite photo of Julie from Autumn I took last night. #autumntheband #darkwave #goth #postpunk #minnesotamusic #localmnmusic #concert #concertphotography #livemusic #igers #igphotography #igshotz #instagram #phototag #photography

A photo posted by Erica Anderson (@eanderson1974) on Nov 19, 2016 at 4:09am PST

I have been a fan of Autumn since 2009 at their final show at the time for Faith and The Muse. That was the very first time I had heard of the band and their wonderful music. At the time I had heard nothing like their music in my own little corner of the world. The band reminded me of Cocteau Twins and The Sundays but darker. After the concert, I had to scrounge around online for their music. I was able to find a cheap ass copy of their second album Return To The Breath. I definitely was not disappointed.


Unfortunately the band's first album is not so cheap online. I probably will still buy it eventually. I do like listening to CDs still despite the fact I stream a lot of music nowadays.


Both The Hating Tree and Return To The Breath are excellent darkwave albums. Right now The Hating Tree is my personal favorite of the two albums. "How It Came To Be This Way", "...of Moondrop Tears",  and "Desert Winds of Jezebel" are my personal favorite tracks.

At the moment the band's plans are to continue working on new music which will be out next year and possibly tour during the summer according to their Facebook page. In the meantime, go listen to their music. Their music is awesome! 

Riding the bus

I swear riding the bus becomes more challenging the older I get. This week I have had to deal with people talking loudly over their phones, fail at comprehending on how to push open the back doors on the bus, or behave obnoxiously during the ride. The lack of manners and common sense is driving me insane.  If you need to talk on the phone, that's fine but make it brief and keep the volume of your voice down. I don't enjoy listening to your damn phone calls on the bus.

After going to the eye doctor and making a trip to the grocery store this late afternoon, I got on the 6U and there were a group of unruly teenagers whose manners was sorely lacking. I really didn't like that the bus driver allowed these teenagers to behave like they were on the playground.

I will say this about riding the bus, boring it is not. Personally I rather take boring over the bullshit I have to put up with lately.

My 5 favorite albums to help me cope with current events

It hasn't been a full week and I am still rocked by the fact that Donald Trump is going to be the next commander in chief. The more I read about him and the potential candidates for his cabinet, the more depressed I become. Lately though I have found great comfort in music. Music has been my saving grace for me in what is going to be a very long four years. I thought I would share my favorite albums I have been helping me cope with the current events.

Right now I am a big fan of the new Leonard Cohen album You Want It Darker. I first listened to it on Friday night after reading about Leonard's recent passing. I immediately fell in love with the album. I bought a copy yesterday and have been listening to it constantly through out the entire weekend. His vocals, lyrics, and music is so beautiful. I have been taking great comfort in this album.

The same can be said about Tracy Chapman's greatest hits compilation from last year. Absolutely love Tracy Chapman. Her song "Change" really resonates with me at the moment. This country definitely is in for a change come January and for me not in a positive way.

Call me weird but I love ABBA. Been a fan since my college days in Milwaukee, WI in the '90s. Their brand of pop music is a good distraction. Sometimes I just need to some music that is less serious and a little more silly to get my mind off last week's election.

American IV: The Man Comes Around is my favorite Johnny Cash album. Like Leonard, I take great comfort to listening to the man in black sing. He gives me the same fuzzy, warm feelings as does my favorite pair of pajama pants.

I have been a fan of Sarah McLachlan since high school. I recently listened to her album Solace. This will always be my favorite album by Sarah. Such a beautiful album. I think that and Touch are both her most underrated albums.

Self-Care and the importance of taking care of one's body, mind, and spirit

I don't listen to a lot of podcasts but the one podcast I listen to is the feminist podcast Another Round. Tracy Clayton and Heben Negatu are two black feminists are both highly intelligent and hilarious. On their podcast, both women often talk about self- care. You can read about what self-care at this link. 

For me, self-care plays a huge important role in my life especially as a single, working woman with no children. It is imperative for people to take care of him or herself which is what Tracy and Heben emphasizes on Another Round which I really appreciate hearing them say. I think it is good to take care of one's body, mind, and spirit, if not one will burn out and end up in not so good of a place. If people do not take care of their body, mind and spirit, it will affect not only them but others around them. When one person is happy, everyone is happy. If one person is upset, everyone is upset.

Even stressful events can affect a person's physical and mental well being, in this case this past week's election. The results of this past Tuesday's election was not one everyone wanted. I had a couple of friends who were beyond devastated. Me? I felt like I was kicked in the stomach several times. To say I was shocked is putting it mildly. As time went on this week, my shock slowly wore off but my anger remained.  What has helped me get through my anger and other emotions from Tuesday's three ring circus is listening to music at work and focusing on my job at hand. I found focusing on my job while listening to some politically inspired playlists I created on Spotify acted as a form of therapy for me in some odd way.

Yesterday I decided that this weekend I would go out to my favorite art museum and to Como Park Zoo and Conservatory (with my DSLR camera) as my external forms of self-care. I find doing activities like going to an art museum, movies, parks, or zoos are great stress relievers. Reading and coloring are also my favorite activities that I enjoy that relieves stress. I almost forgot to mention that I love a good hot bath before bed. I like to gather my thoughts at the end of the day with a good hot bath.

I hope in times like Tuesday's election, people will take the time from their day to just chill. Listen to some of your favorite music, turn off all electronic devices, and chill with a good book or mediate. Taking care of yourself is important. No good comes out of ignoring your own well-being and happiness.

My thoughts on last night's election

Today I decided to create a blog to post my thoughts on current events and whatever else is on my mind.

Since I work 6-2:30 and work out in the 'burbs, I went to bed last night before knowing the final results of the 2016 presidential race. I am not going to pretend that I am a huge fan of Hillary Rodham Clinton. I find her character deeply flawed. I took issue with the fact that she had taken campaign money from the private prison industry and money from Wall Street. I also didn't like her ability to flip flop on issues and inability to tell the truth. For a long time I swore I wouldn't vote for her but as the campaign went on, I found myself loathing Donald Trump more passionately than Hillary Rodham Clinton. I really do dislike voting based on the lesser of two evils premise. I really do. I have in the past voted by conscience but this year, this year was different. I am not sorry for voting for HRC. Yeah she wasn't my idea candidate by Johnson and Stein wasn't any better. Stein lost my vote and respect when she started pandering to the anti-vaxx crowd. Johnson? Well the only thing I liked about him was his stance on marijuana but that is about it. Am I sorry or have any regrets for voting for Hillary? Absolutely not! I do though have absolutely contempt for the DNC for the way they have treated Bernie Sanders and sabotaging his campaign.

I came to this country in 1975 as a six month baby  part of Operation Babylift, a program created by late Republican president Gerald Ford (RIP) to bring orphaned children by the war (many of them fathered by US soldiers). If it wasn't for Gerald Ford, I would not be a naturalized US citizen. I have no idea what my life would be like had I not been dropped off at a hospital outside of Ho Chi Minh City (i.e Saigon) by my biological parents (or parent). I have no doubt though my life would have been more difficult had I remained in Vietnam. I take pride that I am an immigrant to this country and when Donald Trump began his presidential campaign by ragging on undocumented workers in this country, I took great umbrage towards his insults. I have never been so turned off by rampant xenophobia than during this horrible election cycle. The mean spirited comments and actions of Trump and his supporters is absolutely vile and despicable.

As Trump's campaign continued on, I really found his temperament to be unsuitable for presidency. Being president is not the same thing as being on a crappy reality tv show. This is an utmost serious job that requires a lot of patience and maturity which Donald Trump has demonstrated during this campaign that he has neither.

As a woman AND feminist, Donald Trump's comments about Hillary and women have been a slap in the face to me. Then there are the allegations and charges of sexual harassment and rape. I don't take those very lightly. How any woman in this country could forgive Trump for being a misogynist is beyond me. Most of these women I should note are white, few women of color. This man does not respect women. He does not deserve one vote from any woman but yet women still voted for him.

I won't even get into the fact that Trump NEVER served in the military (he avoided the draft) or worked in politics. WTF?! Being the commander in chief of this country is not one of those jobs that you can learn on the job nor a reality show.

So when I woke up this morning to find out that Trump had won the presidential race (and the GOP gained control of both house and senate), I felt like I just got kicked a couple of dozen times in the stomach. I am still at a loss for words. The next four years are going to be the four longest years of my life.