A costume like that still takes a few hours so I started getting ready in shifts. I put on all my tattoos (except the sleeves) and half of my make up and then went shopping with some friends. Halfway through our excursion I forgot all about the giant tattoo I had on my neck. As I'm walking around I notice people staring at me... but then when I look up they look away quickly. Or there were the other ones who didn't look away and gave me their best look of disgust. I couldn't figure out why people were judging me. And then I remembered the tattoos.
Anyone who knows me well or for any length of time knows I'm about as straight laced as they come. I have never before been judged by mass quantities of strangers. What started as a quick trip to find my friend a costume turned into a really great learning experience for me. I suddenly understood what it felt like to be judged completely by what I looked like. I was categorized because of a $5 stick on tattoo. It really felt awful. These people wrote me off without knowing a single thing about me. I knew it was a temporary tattoo and that tomorrow people would stop judging me on it...but to know that happens to people all the time just makes me feel kind of sick. And it's not just tattoos or piercings but we lump people into categories all the time. That's what people do right? I can't change that. But what I can change is the way I respond to people. I like to think I'm a little more open minded than my "friends" in walmart (yeah of all places right?) but I will for sure be more aware of my thoughts and action toward others. Maybe even smile at strangers. I like to give people to benefit of the doubt- you never know when they will surprise you.
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