Taking Tea in the Kasbah



To Pause or to Rewind, that was the question last week as suggested by the 13 year-old. It was a question that challenged you to consider the pros and cons of altering time with either an almighty Pause button or an almighty Rewind button. Those who favored the Pause option gave these fine reasons for doing so:

* while watching T.V. on demand, you can run out and get a dish of ice cream

* a) I don’t believe in regrets or do-overs; everything serves its purpose as a learning experience; and b) I do like to have the opportunity to pause to contemplate the correct course of action, to weigh all the options

* Take a deep breath. Ask yourself “Is that really a good decision?”

* I don’t want to be responsible for making Michael J. Fox disappear.

* I think we should learn from the mistakes of the past.

* Cats once out of a bag are incredibly difficult to stuff back in said bag. So, pause, take a nap, eat something good, and then go about fixing what needs to be fixed. Plus, I think there is some Einsteinian theory that says we can only travel forward in time, not back…

* Maybe we need some mistakes to learn from. Otherwise we would be continually EDITING reality. We’d never PUBLISH…

As you can clearly see, those who commented employed a completely logical and wise set of reasons for choosing to take time to pause. Lessons would be learned, options would be weighed, cats would remain in bags, Michael J. Fox would not be at risk of suddenly disappearing, naps would be taken, and ice cream would be safely procured during T.V. watching. All important things.

And then there were the Rewinders, united under an equally compelling reason the Rewind button would be the preferred choice:

* Sometimes, it’s too dang hard to fix a mess. A do-over is much easier.

Hard to argue with that. Oh, the times a rewind button would have come in handy…

*sigh*

So what did I choose? Actually, this one was easy peasy for me. Knowing my tendency to over-think and analyze everything to death, my go-to button would have the word Pause etched on it. As much as I would love to rewind and do-over a dozen or so instances in my past (a VERY tempting prospect, I assure you), I would get so much more use out of the Pause button. To be able to reflect on a good course of action, or to really give my intuition a chance to speak up, or to actually take a moment to be present in the moment and really let ideas and feelings just be before having to act on them would be divine.

***

And now, for this week’s question:

Assuming you wake up with no memory of the night before, would you rather

discover a part of your body had been pierced

photo credit: kylepost via photopin cc

photo credit: kylepost via photopin cc

– OR –

discover you had a tattoo?

photo credit: jazzmodeus via photopin cc

photo credit: jazzmodeus via photopin cc

***

Which will it be, adventurous readers? Will you suddenly have a new excuse to buy some jewelry for your piercing? Or will you have a reason to buy that new outfit that shows off (or covers up, as the case may be) your new ink? Any true stories out there amongst kasbah readers that are similar to this week’s question? Sit, sip, and let’s dish. I always love hearing from you.

26 thoughts on “Wednesday’s Would You Rather Question: Holes or Ink?

  1. on ,
    Marcia said:

    I’d go with the piercing rather than the tattoo. I’m too big a germaphobe to chance the ink!

    • I think both have germ potential but maybe the piercing has less compared to the tattoo. 😉

  2. I think I’d go with the piercing, because it’s a little less permanent. I’ve toyed with getting a tattoo before, but always held off because I have such a short attention span that I’m afraid I’ll wake up in six months or six years or whatever and decide I hate the tattoo that meant so much when I got it. With a piercing, if I hate it, I’ll just take it out. I might end up with a bit of a scar, but that’s better than the name of that guy that one time…

    • I was thinking along the same lines with the piercing being slightly less permanent. And also like you, I’ve not been able to settle on a tattoo design that I thought I could live with my whole life. The tattoo above has some hilarious appeal to me, though I’d have it read “author” instead of “librarian”. Just sayin’. 🙂

  3. I love this question!
    I seriously am far too much of a wimp and a conservative to get either of my own volition, but if I got to skip the decision-making and PAIN…. and I could have a totally awesome funky adornment in a really cool place… I’d go with the tattoo. (I believe I have a secret yearning for one — although I’d never know what to choose and am terrified of the pain.)
    BUT, the provisos are only if it’s cool and in a good place; otherwise I think Liv’s reasoning for the piercing is very sound!

    • The only rules with this week’s question are no memory of the night before and you must choose one or the other. Given that, it sounds like it’s a tattoo for you! Where would you put one? Would it be words or an image? I’m curious…

      • I have absolutely no idea. Probably something very small and symbolic… maybe the back of the shoulder.

        • Back of the shoulder is a popular location for kasbah patrons. Small and symbolic would be my choice as well. With a whole world of ideas to choose from, I find it nearly impossible to settle on just one image to have permanently brandished on myself. Thus, I remain woefully lacking of a tattoo.

  4. I want the tattoo.

    Did I say that out loud? I confess. I do. I would want one that is symbolic of my books in some way. I’d be afraid to do one of books I love. Then I’d be covered from head to toe. I’m really a nerd, aren’t I ? No skulls or anything like that. Just a book related tattoo. 🙂

    • A bold, daring, and off-the-cuff answer. Love it. I also love that you’d get something related to your books. I think I’d do something book-related as well, though like you, I’d be covered in tattoos if I did my favorite reads. 😉

  5. on ,
    Gloria Richard said:

    Tami, you did not tell us whether our black-out mad adventure would give us the option to choose the size, location, or style of the tattoo. Even had you told us, the only place I’d want a tattoo would be on a part of my body that might kick sand over the PG13 line.

    Parts of my body that might *gasp* sag and turn a perky heart into a funky looking phallic symbol.

    With those visuals in my mind, I definitely go for the piercing. No harm, no foul unless I choose to keep the piercing. And, I could invent a credible lie story. Something along the lines of being attacked one night by an addled woman with a phallic symbol on her right cheek, and pointy knitting needles as her weapon of choice.

    Yes. My decision is final. No need to call a friend or use my lifeline.

    • I think you need to brush up on your kick boxing/karate/ninja moves to evade the likes of crazed women with cheeks adorned with phallic symbols wielding knitting needles. That, or stay away from any knitting groups in your town. They sound pretty badass.

      The tattoo could be of anything you want anywhere you want. Even in areas not normally mentioned in the comment section here in the kasbah due to PG-13 rating. That said, I’ll put you down in the piercing camp. Just be sure you’re lucid enough to make sure you get the piercing in the body part of your choosing. 😉

  6. Like Liv, my knee jerk response is the piercing. The whole will heal over in time. However…

    There’s this little secret side of me that would love a tattoo. If the tattoo were one I’d have picked in a place of my choosing (and likely would be since, even though lost in a blackout I would still be me) then I could have my tattoo without having to take responsibility.

    Yes. That’s a cop out. What’cha gonna do about it, huh?

    • Nah, you’re not copping out. You clearly chose the tattoo option. BUT, your answer begs these questions be answered:

      What would your tattoo look like?
      and
      Where would you put it on yourself?

      Time to ‘fess up. A skull and cross bones? The geographical coordinates of where your children were born? Your favorite pick up line? Do tell…

      • Is it too late to choose the piercing option?

        Dang, Tami. You caught me. I have not thought this out at all. I don’t have a ready answer, so perhaps it is the taboo element of the tattoo that attracts my subconscious, and not the ink. First that comes to mind, a Celtic cross, but where? So many places would seem sacrilegious, so I’d have to say my shoulder. My daughters are princess therefore I am queen, but I don’t see myself with a crown tattooed on my keister.i like wine, but a cluster of grapes on my ankle might look more like a rash. Earl grey tea bags would be just plain goofy, no matter where the ink was set.
        Perhaps a favourite quote? A treasured Bible verse?
        Now I’m back to sacrilegious. Oy!

        • Keister crowns? Grapes of rash? Yeah, probably best to avoid such things. But given the extent of your rational, thoughtful brainstorming session on tattoo options, I’m gonna hold you to the ink. I think you’re subconscious wants you to figure this out.

  7. Piercing for sure unless it’s a very small blue butterfly on your shoulder blade. I wouldn’t like a huge tattoo all down my arm or anything.

    • A friend of mine has a tiny blue butterfly on her shoulder. It’s quite lovely. Good choice. 🙂

  8. The fact that we “wake up without realizing we had the ink or hole done” in the first place tells me there had to be serious lack of good judgement involved. I mean, what if you were REALLY hungry and decided a double-double cheeseburger tattoo was the best idea ever?!!!
    I’m going with the piercing. Thank you very much. 😉

    • Yes, by choosing a piercing you have much less chance of getting a cheeseburger – or if you’re a vegetarian like me, a garden burger – tattooed on oneself. 😉

  9. I’ll go with Catherine’s choice. A very small butterfly on my shoulder. Only mine will be pink.
    However, if I don’t have any control over the location and size, then it would have to be a piercing that would heal over. So put me down for the butterfly 🙂

    • It is assumed that you get control over where and what you decide to tattoo on yourself. Pink butterfly on the shoulder? Excellent choice. 🙂

  10. Having had both, I’m going with the tattoo. Maybe a small one on the inside of my left wrist. The piercing, although less painful for me, leaves a displacement of your skin if you choose to take the piercing out. Tattoos can be an expression of specific art and I think that’s pretty cool.
    Good question!

    • You’ve had both? And you didn’t share what and where? Now I’m very curious what you chose as your expression of art…

      A small tattoo on the inside of the wrist is one of the locations I’ve considered getting one. I just can settle on one idea for any length of time.

      • I got the tattoo about 15 years ago and would probably choose a different one if I were to get it now, but it’s a small daisy flower with a ribbon coming out of either side on my hip. About a year before that, I got my belly button pierced with a friend of mine. I loved it. When I was pregnant with my first daughter, my belly got so big that I had to take it out and could never get it back in once I had her without having it re-pierced. Bummer..

        • That is a bummer about the belly piercing. And your tattoo sounds lovely. You are a far braver woman than I to have done both. 🙂

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