Chinese and Japanese Speakers Share the Dumbest Things They’ve Seen Tattooed on Someone

Tell me if this sounds familiar…?

Have you ever met someone who thought they were being really deep and spiritual with a Chinese or Japanese character tattooed on their body, but then they later found out that symbol meant “beef with broccoli”?

Lol,

It actually happens all the time, my friends. And these AskRedddit users shared some really good ones.

1. Actually, that means…

“Saw a girl with 魚 tattooed on her shoulder who swore up and down it meant poison… It means fish.”

2. Do you lift, bro?

“I was on the subway in NYC and there was a guy who clearly lifted a lot. He was wearing a sleeveless shirt and on his jacked arms in chinese were the words “牛肉麵” or “Beef noodle soup” for everyone to see. Man looked ready to get the rest of his favorite restaurant’s menu tattooed on his body.”

3. That’s a bummer.

“He thought it said “Love my grandson”. It translated to something like “I love fat boys”. I think it was a google translate failure of epic proportions.”

4. Not your name.

“”Tiny chicken” my friend got that thinking it said his name.”

5. Major eye roll.

“Chinese speaker here. In high school I worked at a CVS. A white woman showed up at the register with a very poorly drawn 力 tattoo, and I said “cool tattoo, means power”. She scoffed and replied to me like I was satan himself, and said “you obviously don’t understand Chinese “letters” the tattoo artist told me it means the strength to overcome anything, even breast cancer…” then she rolled her eyes at me and walked away.”

6. You blew it!

“My friend got a tattoo that said “veni vidi vici” in chinese, well so he thought. The tattoo acutally said “three small dishes”.”

7. Strength and courage…maybe.

“I was scrolling through the web at some tattoos for fun,a person said they got a tattoo that said “Strength and courage” in japanese. It actually said “Little animal, big mistake.” Great quote imo, but I dont think they thought so after they got it permanently marked on their skin.”

8. Uh oh. That’s not good.

“Not my story but a friend of mine.

She had a classmate in college with a kanji tattoo, confused she asked her what it meant.

“High princess”

Turns out it actually said “pig princess”.”

9. Might want to get a cover-up.

“I once saw this middle aged dude wearing “金魚佬” on his shoulder (the rough literary translation is “Goldfish Man”), which in cantonese means a sleazy older man who creeps on younger girls/children. Basically a pedo. Wonder under what circumstances he got that inked…”

10. Lookin’ tough…oh wait…

“机 on his fist. I haven’t taken Chinese but in Japanese it means ‘desk’.”

11. The Fat Man.

“”Kitchen” – confused the kanji, what he wanted I have no idea. “Fat man” – he wanted “big guy” (tough guy?) apparently.”

12. Opposite day?

“Gets a tattoo in google translate Japanese thinking it says “fear no one” but it really means “I fear everyone”.”

13. That’s…me?

“I once had a roommate placed with me in the apartment our company ran for us here in Japan. He was loud, obnoxious, and I generally didn’t get on well with him. But, you try to get along, so we’d go to the izakaya up the street from time to time with other friends to drink and have a good time. The owners were this wonderful old Japanese couple who loved having all these weird gaijin come and entertain the locals.

Anyway, somehow we get talking about tattoos and the roommate is showing his off. He then says that he got the kanji for “friendship” (友) and “peace” (和) tattooed on his back and lifts his shirt to show everyone. There’s a bit of silence, broken by someone asking, “Who’s Tomokazu?”

What Roommate didn’t know, of course, was that those two kanji in that order was a man’s name.

He reacted well, though, taking a beat and then announcing, “I’M TOMOKAZU!” which became a running joke while he was there.”

14. Hahaha, that’s good.

“40+ year old bald white guy with Chinese characters that translated as “I’m a cute little princess” on the length of his forearm.

Had a good laugh the rest of that day.”

15. Didn’t have the heart to tell him…

“I met a guy in the air port when I came back from living in Tokyo for 2 years who had just visited Japan. He had 2 symbols on his shoulder I noticed that were “off”. I stopped him and asked him what his tattoo said. He said ” It means strong will bro.” I didn’t have the heart to tell him….. his two symbols he picked in order were “dog poop”.

If you find this online…. im truly sorry bro. Ha ha.”

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A Study Shows That Tattoos Can Strengthen Our Immune Systems

Even though tattoos are pretty trendy at the moment, they’ve actually been around for over 6,000 years. They’re made to express a person’s thoughts, feelings, and or cultural beliefs. Some get them as a source of strength or healing, while others may get them just for fun.

Whatever your reason, have you ever thought about what tattoos do to your body? Like, for example, how might your immune system react to getting your skin dyed?

Funny you asked…

Christopher Lynn has been studying Samoan tattooing culture “and the impact of the big traditional pieces called pe’a and malu — tatau in general — on the immune system.”

The Samoa study is actually the fourth phase of his research about how tattoos interact with a person’s immune system. He first started with a group of mostly women in Alabama, and he found an interesting outcome.

“What I’d observed among that group suggested that tattooing could help beef up one’s immune response.”

But one study was not enough to gain a solid understanding of how or why. So he explored further, and that led him to Samoa:

“That’s why I traveled in 2018 with fellow anthropologist Michaela Howells to the Samoan Islands. Samoans have a long, continuous history of extensive tattooing. Working with contemporary machine and hand-tap tattooists in American Samoa, we wanted to see if we’d find the same link to enhanced immune response.”

Photo Credit: Unsplash, Allef Vinicius

What happens to your body when you get a tattoo?

Whenever you sit for a tattoo, you are allowing ink-coated needle pricks to penetrate your epidermis. This sends a warning to your immune system that these small “wounds” need healing. Your body responds in two ways. First:

“…getting a new tattoo triggers your immune system to send white blood cells called macrophages to eat invaders and sacrifice themselves to protect against infection.”

It will also send a level of adaptive responses to the area in the form of proteins. These proteins help the skin heal, but they also keep an eye out for this to happen again in the future.

“There are several classes of these proteins — called antibodies or immunoglobulins — and they continue to circulate in the bloodstream, on the lookout lest that same invader is encountered again. They’re at the ready to quickly launch an immune response the next time around.”

It’s like these little antibodies know how addictive tattooing is!

How is the level of antibodies and white blood cells measured to understand the immune systems reaction?

Photo Credit: Unsplash, Joel Muniz

“This adaptive capacity of the immune system means that we could measure immunoglobulins in saliva as approximations of previous stress caused by tattooing.”

During the study, Lynn and anthropologist Michaela Howells sampled 25 tattoo recipients, both Samoan and non-Samoan tourists to the island.

“We collected saliva at the start and end of each tattoo session, controlling for the tattoo duration. We also measured recipients’ weight, height and fat density to account for health. From the saliva samples, we extracted the antibody immunoglobulin A, as well as the stress hormone cortisol and inflammatory marker C-reactive protein. Immunoglobulin A is considered a frontline immune defense and provides important protections against frequent pathogens like those of the common cold.”

They determined that immunoglobulin A remained higher in the bloodstream even after a tattoo fully healed. Also, if one of the recipients received a larger tattoo, leaving them under the needle longer, the saliva produced more immunoglobulin A than those who experienced smaller tattoos

It seems that getting a tattoo for the first time primed the recipient’s bodies. Meaning, it ramped up their immune system to fight back in case there is a next time. Even if they chose not to get additional tattoos, their immune systems were still heightened in case they get sick. It’s the body’s way of preparing for future ailments due to body stress.

“Stress’s bad rap comes from chronic forms that really do undermine immune response and health. But a little bit is actually good for you and prepares your body to fight off germs. Regular exercise provides immune function benefits through repetition, not necessarily single visits to the gym. We think this is similar to how each tattoo seems to prepare the body for vigilance.”

Even though these findings sparked more interest on what tattoo can do to keep you “healthier,” you may want to wait before going out and covering your body in ink. Lynn is still exploring the ramifications.

“Our Samoan findings supported the results of my first study in Alabama. But of course correlation does not imply causation. Enhanced immune response is correlated with more tattoo experience, but maybe healthier people heal easily from tattooing and like to get them more. How could we find out if getting tattoos could actually make a person healthier?”

I guess we’ll have to wait and see!

The post A Study Shows That Tattoos Can Strengthen Our Immune Systems appeared first on UberFacts.

Check out the Amazing Pop Culture Mashups from This Tattoo Artist

This guy is goooooooood.

If you’re not following a French tattoo artist Mat Rule on Instagram, do yourself a favor and do it immediately.

Rule specializes in taking pop culture characters and mashing them up with cartoon scenes and vice versa. They’re super impressive, and the detail on them is incredible.

Take a look. I think you’ll like what you’re about to see.

1. Alice in…wait a second….

2. Eminem and some M&Ms.

3. Lisa Simpson is always a good choice.

4. Marvin the Martian.

5. Half real/half cartoon coyote.

6. This one might be my favorite.

7. Crash Bandicoot.

8. This one is trippy.

9. Actually, this might be my favorite.

10. Pretty cool mash up.

11. Hockey tattoo for the win!

12. No mistaking that face.

13. Mia Wallace from Pulp Fiction.

14. The one and only Kurt Cobain.

15. Stallone in Cobra.

Pretty awesome, right?

Tell us what pop culture mashups you’d like to see in the comments below!

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Aside from the Ink, Getting a Tattoo Can Permanently Change Your Body

Tattoos are obviously permanet…but what if that alteration is more than skin deep?

A new study published in the Particle and Fibre Toxicology Journal, alleges that some people with multiple tattoos end up with a microscopic sprinkling of metal in their lymph nodes.

Scientists have known about the metal particles for some time, but have assumed it was a byproduct of the ink filtered out by lymph nodes in the neck, armpit, and groin. This study, though, points to a different culprit.

Now, researchers have discovered that traces of nickel and chromium found in these lymph nodes actually come from the needle of the tattoo gun. Hiram Castillo, one of the study’s authors, explains what they found: “There is more to tattoos than meets the eye. It is not only about the cleanliness of the parlour, the sterilization of the equipment or even about the pigments. Now we find that the needle wear also has an impact in your body.”

The team of researchers, out of the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment in Germany, began by studying tissue from deceased people with and without tattoos and found particles of iron, chromium, and nickel in the lymph nodes of those sporting ink. Those aren’t common metals found in inks, explains Ines Schreiver, another scientist connected with the study.

“We tested around 50 ink samples without finding such metal particles and made sure that we hadn’t contaminated the samples during sample preparation. Then we though of testing the needle and that was our ‘eureka’ moment.”

The real culprit is probably a white pigment contained in green, blue, and red tattoo inks. It’s called titanium dioxide, and it can wear away needles.

The discovery could help explain why some people experience allergic reactions to tattoos – and lest you think that the nanoparticles are no big deal, I’m sorry to tell you that smaller sized particles can often release higher amounts of toxic elements.

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Artista @derbylablonge

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That said, there is no evidence to suggest that tattoos are associated with wider health problems…for now. Researchers are, Schreiver says, going to keep digging.

“Unfortunately, today, we can’t determine the exact impact on human health and possible allergy development deriving from the tattoo needle wear. These are long-term effects which can only be assessed in long-term epidemiological studies that monitor the health of thousands of people over decades.”

Just one more thing to think about before you choose the shop – and the color – of your next amazing piece of body art.

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15+ Hidden Tattoos You Should Take a Look at

Did you know that 29% of Americans have tattoos? It’s pretty common these days to see people all around us with visible tats, even big pieces like full sleeves.

The artistry on display can be pretty amazing, but not all tattoos are for the public to enjoy – many private people prefer to keep their ink to themselves.

So if you’ve ever been interested in see what’s lying underneath, this is the post for you. Because we’re going to take a look at 19 perfectly hidden tattoos that you might want to try on for yourself sometime.

19. Heard of Project Semicolon? It’s a suicide awareness organization. The tattoo represents a pause to a sentence, but not the end. This is a powerful statement for many who have faced thoughts of suicide before. Learn more about the organization here.

Photo Credit: instagram/emm_godin

18. Inner lip tattoo? Or Wakandan tattoo? Hmmmm…

Photo Credit: instagram/jktat2

17. Armpit area code, so you’ll never forget where you’re from!

Photo Credit: instagram/tattoovasquez

16. Mandalas are so hip these days… especially on yours!

15. PAC-MAN and pizza on your posterior? Perfect!

Photo Credit: instagram/swingneedles

14. A perfectly placed pendant on your breastbone!

13. Love your life with this skull and hearts at the base of your own skull!

12. Paw on the toe because you love your fur baby!

11. The very popular inner-finger mustache!

10. Flock of birds for your upper back!

Photo Credit: instagram/dl_silva_rv_

9. Interactive stick figure tattoos!

8. Cosmic orbs in the mid back will keep your love for the stars safe and sound!

7. A trio of celestial bodies are A-OK with us!

Photo Credit: instagram/ast.beautyyy

6. Always have France on your mind with this Eiffel Tower in the ear!

5. Never grow up – get this Peter Pan shadow on your heel!

Photo Credit: cocollins1994

4. A beautiful bouquet below the collar!

Photo Credit: instagram/kikinoland

3. Always have a floral secret whispering in your ear!

Photo Credit: instagram/kikinoland

2. Make waves! Rock the boat with this tasteful, tiny tat!

Photo Credit: POPSUGAR

1. An Inguz! It’s a rune symbol that represents new beginnings!

Photo Credit: Gothic Life

Alright, which one are you getting?

Inner lip tattoos for everyone?

? ? ?

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Embroidery Tattoos Are All the Rage Right Now, and They’re Gorgeous

The latest trend in tattoos? Embroidery. Yes, tattoos that look like they’ve been embroidered into your skin are all the rage right now, and it’s easy to see why: they’re freakin’ gorgeous!

Take a look at these unique works of art.

1. Homage to Homer

2. A classic

3. Canvas

4. Cool

5. Pulp Fiction

6. Interesting

7. Beautiful

8. So realistic

9. A little birdy

10. Stitched

11. Olive Oyl

12. Goofy

13. Mermaid

14. That’s a good one

15. Shoulder piece

Those are great! Which one is your favorite?

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14 Tattoo Artists Admit the Tattoos They’ll Judge You For

Being a tattoo artist has to be kind of weird. They probably get to do a lot of cool tattoos…but they also get stuck doing a whole lot of weird/lame/embarrassing art.

These 15 tattoo artists shared the tattoos they actually judge their customers for.

1. Bridget

“I try not to judge but I have a difficult time not doing so sometimes.

The most interesting tattoo I’ve ever done was on a guy who came in wanting the words, “Bridget, I’m sorry. I was wrong. I love you.” I would say it was the most dumb tattoo I’ve ever done, but…well you just have to have the full picture.

The story goes like this: 38-year-old guy was dating and living with his girlfriend of two years. She wanted to get married. He was reluctant because she didn’t fit some ideals he had in his head for his long-term partner. They were all superficial things: she was shorter than he liked, and blonde. He preferred brunettes. So she left him. Two months later he realizes he made a huge mistake. The only problem is that she’s moved on and is dating someone and has made it clear that she’s not interested.

This is when this gentleman comes to get the tattoo that is going to solve all of his problems. He tells me that he’s arranged to have dinner with her in a week. He intends to plead for her to come back to him, and when she inevitably doubts his sincerity, he will reveal his tattoo as a sign of his commitment. I try to talk him out of it, but he’s an adult, sober, and of seemingly sound mind. I do the tattoo.

Cut to that very next day. It’s my off day. I’m at my friend’s subdivision pool and I notice this guy who is remarkably attractive. He’s also playing around with some of the kids there and I lean over to my friend and inquire as to Hotty McHottypant’s identity. She tells me about how he’s the new boyfriend of her pretty blonde neighbor who had just gotten out of a long term relationship. Her name? You guessed it. Bridget. In the flesh.

At this point I’m wriggling with the excitement of seeing this girl in person, and the anxiety of having knowledge of what is about to happen to her without being able to reveal it.

Over the next few days, little billboards start popping up around town. “Bridget, I’m sorry. I was wrong. I love you.”

We all know how this is going to end. Bridget sees the tattoo, freaks out, and this guy leads the rest of his life with an uncomfortable tattoo.

But that’s not what happened!

He has dinner with Bridget. She sees the tattoo, and she completely changes her mind. She breaks up with her boyfriend, gets back together with her ex. And three months later, they get engaged. They have a destination wedding, and are still married today. I know this because I saw both of them at that same pool three and a half months later and they both came over and Bridget gave me a big hug and thanked me. Also, the billboards earlier that month all over town that said, “Bridget, I love you. Will you marry me?” helped tip me off.

And that’s my story of how the dumbest tattoo I’ve ever done ended up being not dumb at all. I wouldn’t recommend anyone else trying it though.”

2. Hahaha

“I’m a welder, I have a coworker with a Miller logo tattoo. Non-welders, this is the equivalent of an office worker getting a tattoo of the PowerPoint start screen.”

3. Couples

“I particularly enjoy watching the couples that come in and want each other’s names or matching tattoos. They always seem like they just hate each other – lots of griping and b-tching, low talking and indecisiveness.”

4. Classy

“Not a tattoo artist, but during a regrettable time in my life I hooked up with a guy who had “make poop” tattooed on his knuckles. One word on each hand.”

5. Creeper dude

“My artist told me a story (one of the only tattoos he ever refused to do) was about this patchy creeper dude walking in the shop and asked for a tattoo of himself, naked, with clown makeup on, with a sock over his junk standing. Probably the most terrible/uncomfortable proposition I could imagine.. dude is probably dead or in prison by now.”

6. Scrubbed

“I’ve scrubbed into a few amputations. I cant give specifics, but if you ever find yourself in a position where you are going to lose a limb and want to make sure you’re getting the best damn medical treatment ever, tattoo something ridiculously stupid in that area. A lot of surgeons I’ve worked with try to just get through the day, but they will put in 110% if it means preserving a particularly stupid tattoo.”

7. Potato

“I wanted to get a potato on my ankle since I was a kid. I’m 34 now and I still want one. I had a tattoo artist flat out refuse because he thought it was stupid. I tried to explain the reference but he wouldn’t listen. So I’m pretty sure there was judgement there.”

8. No more stars

“I asked an artist which tattoo he loathed to do and he just said, “Stars man, f-cking stars.” “

9. Never got back to me…

“I had a guy message wanting a portrait of his son, his kid was about 4/5 yrs old in this picture, and he was putting his middle finger up and covering his mouth and nose with this hand. I thought it was different but showed some uniqueness to it so fair enough, I agreed to do it. Before his appointment he asked if I could remove the hand, I explained I can’t guess what his mouth and nose look like, he never got back to me with an alternative picture.”

10. None left

“I was in the chair getting part of my sleeve done when one of the dudes came into the back room and told my tattooist that there was a young woman at the desk who wanted some stars tattooing on her arm. He sighed loudly and told the other guy to tell her that sorry but they’d run out of stars so no can do.”

11. Two stories

“I have two stories.

My boyfriend is the artist so I hear a lot of stories. The two that come up frequently about what tattoos he has judged (at all) are these.

A woman comes in and wants an infinity symbol. Sure. Easy enough. EXCEPT, she wants it made out of other smaller infinity symbols. The artist who did it died a little inside.

This one my boyfriend did (and I was there for this one).

A guy comes in wanting his girlfriends name tattooed on him. Stupid, yet common.

But he wants her name, on his penis.

Her name:

Chastity.

There is a guy walking around with Chastity.

Also, the shop charges a 100 dollar penis holding fee on top of what the tattoo would normal cost.”

12. Genitals

“So a buddy of mine is a traveling tattoo artist– he just travels the world and works as a guest artist at tattoo shops.

So this time he’s in Thailand and an older white couple comes in, husband seems to have had a few drinks. Husband wants to have his wife’s name tattooed on his genitals. My buddy straight up denies the request (drunk, genitals, etc), but another artist decides to go through with it.

Next day, the couple returns, but they are instead arguing on the way in. Apparently it was a ‘if you do it, I’ll do it too’ kind of agreement, but the wife wants no part of it.”

13. Okay…

“A girl I know got a tattoo of a ladybug.

It wasn’t a normal ladybug. It was a ladybug with a 5 inch long human penis going down her arm.”

14. Irony

“I judged one girl hard when she came into dad’s shop. She had just turns 18 the day before, and wanted three tattoos at once. The first was a hand holding a cigarette, the second said something along the lines of “no regrets” in French, and the third was a lip print on her buttcheek. The irony was lost on nobody.”

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