Monday, August 31, 2009

Stuff

I'm about to take off on vacation for a week and probably won't be posting much. I did set up the feature that lets you post from your phone, but I'm going to be visiting relatives and wandering around at the beach with a (very active) toddler, so I probably won't have much time for blogging. In the meantime, here's a little fluff post and an open thread where you can go on about anything you'd like.

The fluff:

Here is my latest piercing (top right), which I got last Friday. As I sat in the chair waiting for my friend to organize all his gear and pierce it already, it occured to me that I use piercing as a coping mechanism. When I'm sort of discontented with things in my life but am not really in a position to change them, I get a piercing. There's a clearly visible pattern in my life along these lines. And it occured to me that most of us probably have little things like this that we do to restore some sense of control over our lives when things aren't going exactly the way we had planned. So I'm curious...what's your coping mechanism? Have you developed different coping mechanisms during different stages of your life? On a related note, I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on piercings and tattoos and your experience(s) with them.

7 comments:

  1. Anonymous8/31/2009

    I drink....

    Hang out with family...

    Loose myself in work and my graduate classes...

    And maybe go fishing (seasonal).

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  2. I cut my hair off. Like in a drastically different style than I previously had. I hadn't thought about it before you said this, but I do think I do this to get a sense of control and change. When you change your hair it does make you feel a sense of newness for a few days. But I'm too chickenshit to get piercings or tattoos.

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  3. I don't think I've ever even seen two of those piercings you have. Does the one in the middle go through to the back? Ouch. It seems like the cartilage would be really thick there and hard to pierce.

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  4. I have three tatoos, and all of them symbolize some significant event or transition in my life.

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  5. Heather29/01/2009

    I collect tattoos and piercings. The piercings tended to be more spur of the moment; let's do something exciting things. Although several of them are now closely related to who I am (in the sense that being without them makes me feel awkward).

    Tattoos have a much more central role in my self-identity, part of it is claiming my body as mine, part of it is marking my journey through life and part of it is coping with change.

    I also used to have the habit of dying my hair drastically to cope but since I've started growing it out and cutting it off to make wigs, the dying has stopped.

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  6. Bailey9/03/2009

    I used to dye my hair too. Also, I have one tattoo that sort of symbolizes my recovery from the depression I experienced after sexual assault. My other tattoo (a dream catcher) that symbolized my native heritage for me when I was much younger. Now I sort of wish I had chosen a different symbol, but I also like the fact that my skin reflects my history and my frame of mind when I was 18.

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  7. Serendipity9/09/2009

    I lose myself in books and movies for a few days when I'm stressed out by things I can't control.

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