- `Title:` [[= 2021-01-16 People dont ask about the meaning behind your piercings only your tattoos]] - `Type:` [[🌲️/=]] - `Tags:` [[Tattoos]] - [[Body Art]] - [[Fashion]] - [[Social Skills]] - [[Societal Norms]] - `Formation Date:` [[2021-01-16]] --- - `The Thought:` - People don’t ask what the meaning is behind a piercing some people just get tattoos because it makes them feel more hole and more themselves not everything has a special meaning and even if they do have special meetings often their - private and just to make the person feel more whole - `tl;dr` - People ask you what your tattoos mean but not your piercings - `Chew On It:` - Seeing Jewelry as pure decoration - wedding rings have meaning, but its a commonly understood meaning, we don't ask what a person's ring means because we know it signifies marriage. - What we may do is use that symbolism to ask about their partners or marital status, arguably just as rude but in my opinion less so. - The ring can also be a social signal of unavailability in social contexts like a women in public trying to reduce stereotypical harassment via the wearing of a mock wedding band. - Tattoos however are treated different than this as there is no common understanding of many potential tattoos. - Certainly some tattoos have solidified meanings, several negative ones come to mind, but many do not and even if there are assumptions, often the meanings are too personal to be easily gleaned. - Hence the rudeness to intrude on someones privacy about their body and it's adornments - tattoos are images that are perceived to have more significant meaning that just pure decoration - many just get tattoos for adornment and decoration - many tattoos are highly personal in meaning and to ask can make people uncomfortable - it would likely be more appropriate to say "If you don't mind, may I ask what your tattoo means?" v.s. "what does that mean?" - the former allows a polite rejection "sorry, it's rather personal" "oh no problem!" where as the latter is so direct and domineering that it's a demand, not a request for an - Some people get tattoos because it makes them feel more themselves to have specific images adorn their bodies - `Refined` - [[People generally believe that tattoos innately hold meaning beyond just decoration]]. Though sometimes they might just be decoration, people still feel entitled to an answer to "What does that mean" when in truth many tattoos are deeply personal, and may just be something that makes the bearer feel more themselves and comfortable in their skin. - Just because the tattoo is visible on your skin, doesn't mean you're inviting questions about it. - I got it for me, just because you can see it doesn't mean it's there for your benefit or inquiry - `Relevant Context:` [[Tattooing is a form of blood magic]] - `What Led Me Here:` Thinking about people asking me about my tattoos