Anyone have ink?

Let's preface this post with something. I was raised in a household where I was threatened within an inch of my life if I got an ear ring. "Ear rings are for girls, are you a girl?" Let me clarify that my parents were not domineering, this was just something they felt very strongly about. You can imagine that if an ear ring was looked on like that, how they felt about tattoos. It just wasn't something that you did.  We were good christian folk :-)

Anyway, when my brother went away to college, things changed a little. My parents eased up and gave me a lot more freedom then he had. Looking back, I realize that it was because all of my friends were from church or the youth christian choir (Maranatha) that I was in. They were still Mom and Dad, just a lighter version.

At some point, my brother got an ear ring. I remember my Dad talking about ripping it. Mom was always thin lipped saying "Oh I can't believe you got that thing". That was it. The world didn't end. I never got one. I just never had a reason to. So life went on.

Fast forward many years, and my brother got a tattoo. He is a die hard Steelers fan, and got a tattoo about his favorite team. Ok, thats cool. When Mom and Dad found out, they didn't like it, but they didn't make a huge deal about it. So now, I think I want one.

However, mine would serve a greater purpose. I have always wanted a black cross on my shoulder. Not sure why. Now, I think I want to incorporate that into a medical alert tattoo on my right forearm. I want to know if any of you have done this. Do you like it? Would you do it again? What do you think?