Tattoos are a form of body decoration among primitive people and are a tradition with sailors. Pricking the skin and rubbing ink or other coloring into tiny punctures produces a permanent design. Professional tattooers use electrical needles, which pierce the skin and inject the dyes.

Andres Flores, a Palo Alto student majoring in Kinesiology, has a self-designed tattoo of his nickname “Boog” on his shoulder. “I decided to get a tattoo when all my friends were getting one,” Flores said, “but mine was going to be unique.”

Tattoos cost a minimum of $40 and can cost quite a bit more depending on the size you choose. The health risks involved with tattooing are minimal. Surprisingly, you are more likely to catch hepatitis at the dentist's office than at a tattoo parlor. By law, tattoo studios use required safety products; however, make sure the tattoo artist uses new and sterile instruments and inks.

Ruben Garcia, a Palo Alto returning student majoring in Criminal Justice has three tattoos. “A tattoo is a story about you,” Garcia said. It doesn't matter how old you get, it is still the same story.” Garcia, now married with five children, said his kids will be allowed to have a tattoo when they turn the appropriate age. “It is personal to each individual who has a tattoo.”

Getting a tattoo is a big decision in one's life because the results are permanent...NOT! Now, there are places where they remove tattoos. According to http://www.skinbiology.com, successful removal of the professionally applied tattoo depends on the number of inks and technique used as well as the size and area of the body. Using new lasers, the color of the laser light is chosen dependent upon the color of the ink.

The removal procedure, which costs $195 for ten minutes and $10 for each additional minute, can take and average of three to eight treatments. You are allowed one visit every six to eight weeks. The wound should heal within four to ten days.

Jessica Garcia, a Political Science major at Palo Alto, got her tattoo when she turned 18 years old. She thinks the tattoo of a daisy with vines on her lower back is tacky. “I want my body to be `pure' again,” said Garcia. Removing the tattoo is not an option for her. “Why go through all the trouble to have it removed,” she said. “Mine only cost $40, and I think the pain would be a lot more intense.”

It has been said that getting a tattoo is a form of self-expression and may help you find your true identity. Hopefully, it will be the same identity you want to have 10 or 20 years from now.