The current interest in body art and piercing intrigues me.  Body jewelry can be a mixed bag in my mind, some of it is "OK" but much of the piercings through the tongue, nose and eyebrow really make me cringe just looking at the darn stuff.  And tattoos are a real wonderment for me.  I just think about what all that colored skin will look like in the nursing home setting, with hanging folds swinging from the arms, blazing in all their multi-colored glory....eeewww!  It seems as if tattoos take on a life of their own, one small tattoo grows into a whole body part covered in ink.  I had an opportunity to chat with a tattoo artist who owns his own studio.  He said normally, the going rate is $100 per hour.  Gosh some of these designs are so complex, they'd take my entire life's earnings to pay for the darn things.  He said he likes to take his time, so he charges by the "piece"....my heart wasn't strong enough to ask what that might be.  So if we consider someone who smokes a couple packs of cigarettes a day, with say tattoos on 1/3 of his body...I darn well think the person could have paid for a month's cruise and supported a hungry child for a year!