WEST COAST BLOGGERNAUGHT

Crew Rolls Deep

2010-12-30T22:50:00.000-08:00

well, moving again. after a crucial/surprise decision, savannah and i are moving up to johnston street, in the former cross meats building. i just could not let this place pass, its my homie cams old flat. and those who have been there would unequivocally agree, its a brilliant place. very tall cielings, big private deck, rooftop kinda cutty ass hangout spot, loft, big bedroom blah blah. had to jump ship, as much as we love our chinatown clubhouse. aaaand the big ole gorgeous pine divider/shelf/clothes rack that justin bones built for me less than a year ago( see previous blog post for picks) it actually breaks my heart to leave that piece, and at the least im fixin to sell it to the next tenant at a cut rate just to clear the supply cost. so! as any of my blog reading pals that have seen the place, and are interested in moving in for feb. 1st, please email me for details. this place has been so so great, and it will be greatly missed.
anyway, since i got a lovely iphone a coupla months ago, ive been lazily taking photos on it, and directly uploading them to flickr and facebook, thereby cutting the fun right out of my blog. enough of that, the thrill is gone, honeymoon over, and i miss actual camera ass, note-giving, infromative pictures and posting, so im back again. i have alot of catch up to report, for my friends.
christmas was great, spent mostly with savannahs warm family in black creek. little sisters and everything. very special, and i felt incredibly grateful to have been able to participate like i did. also, lucky enough to spend time with my cousins and aunts additionally, whom i love dearly.
my dude, Morgan Francis was wed, with the beautiful Amanda Rae Foxcroft, and their reception was inspiring and funny. its been incredible seeing morgan grow, and im proud of him and what he is, proud to be buds even. amanda is a flower, and they are destined for destiny no doubt.
the wedding was an excuse for our mutual close friend curt to come and hang, and it was fucking fantastic to see him as well.
tattoong has been great! funny season, slowed abit through december, but i stayed busy enough right. loving the Zoo more every day, and the people i work with there. im beaming to say i call them all close friends, as i look up to them all, and find them inspiring and fun. i feel like a tease with no real tattoo photos to post on here, so i will post a link to my flickr account as mentioned before, for proof that i am indeed a tattooer, not just a half-assed shelf selling blogger.
fuck am i excited/trepidatious for our upcoming move! although we packed in the good memories, its a shame we only had this spot as short as we did, but i am confident this is a real move up for the better for savvy and i. this new place is bananas, a quiet urban sanctuary. ill keep my homies updated! next time more pics/tattoos too. love!

ps- as a real visual treat, im putting up a good little batch of pictures taken by Big-Tiny Smalls, fucking rad guy

new tattoos..... http://www.flickr.com/photos/koadrock/

conventional

2010-10-18T00:08:00.000-07:00

I'm back, pretty wiped, but rejuvenated and full of feverish fervor! and alliterative run-ons!
i get so inspired and jacked up on tattooing after something like this, and ive managed to build up a massive head of steam.
Calgary tattoo convention was awesome, gerry and i went with excitement and high hopes of tat-bro-downs, laughs, and super crazy tattoo marathons. we weren't disappointed. more than a great way to really connect and hustle with gerry, it was a full-on circus. clearly, I'm not a shy man, i love convention tattooing, and working in that environment is wildly crazy, fun, and mega tiring. i re-acquainted myself with tattooers i only really see once a year, while also having the pleasure of making rad new friends. many of whom Ive looked up to for a long long time, and i was all stoked and honored to hang. WHAT A FUCKING BLAST!!!!!!!
ok ok, besides the bro-down element, i got do do some fun tattoos on some great people.
holy shit though i have to say, i missed my girl. i mean lots. we're one of super faggy , "close" couples, so even a few days can drag without my partner. we skyped!. shits nuts, technology. I'm talking fully convention skype parties and everything. crazy right! ha!
i cant fucking wait to tattoo, more and more.
the more i tattoo, and am around tattoing, the luckier i feel to have the opportunity to do so. i have been tattooing for 3 and a half years. i have wasted so much time on arrogant bullshit, and biting off more than i can chew, and taking shit for granted, and sleeping in. the guys i look up to don't just happen upon their success, and talent isn't a magical pixie dust powder, these guys work hard, draw tons, then draw more.

alot of women want feet script in calgary

Bruk Out

2010-09-24T22:11:00.000-07:00

fall is kicking in good and heavy now, and its bringing with it the motivation to paint and draw that ive been lacking during the sunny season. it feels so good to have some creativity back i guess, or at least be accessing it to a degree or whatever. for the last couple hours of the day, Gerry, Bryan, Colin and I all had our heads down straight drawing and painting on the extra-curricular tip, flash sets, rap sprays, nude dudes, whatev's. for me, im trying to get a page or two of flash going for the calgary convention, in fact Gerry and me are splitting a set. included is some super hot off the press type sneak previews our our split sheet, and some sketches ready to transfer.
tattooing has been fun! a hoot! tattood my favorite, hottest, toughest client named savannah, who im also having sex with, and got off a neat-folky-girly-kinda funky piece. tattooing her is always funny and casual, and almost every time i say "nope, never again Boo, uh-ugh no way"...buuuuut it ends up turming pretty rad.
its a strange thing, girlfriend tats, because you dont want to look at it every day for fucking 50 years at the best of times, especially when there is bits you may not love. i have to let go to a degree rather, its still fun that way.
rifflandia is going on here. not feeling it, im just as happy working and cuddling. reading and hanging.
as usual some visits from some homies, whom i love and have missed.
muh-fucking group home status in this bitch.
oh! tattood Turnbull, which was rad. a little quickie, but its always an honor for me tattooing tattooers. i look up to my co-workers greatly, and always jump at that kind of opportunity.

good song (fuck ive gone so soft, and thank christ)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7SSC3ex-bA

Cold-Flanks and Hi-Jinksss

2010-09-18T00:01:00.000-07:00

as usual, alot seems to have happened since i last posted, and i havent photographed as many tattoos as i would have liked.
savvy and i , along with gerry and sarah kramer, went to see Cirque de Soleil. ive wanted so badly for so long to check it out live, and it was crazy rad. maybe i expected more even, but thats being pretty fucking harsh of me, frankly it was very hard to give a bad review of the whole thing. super fun.
the tattoo zoo crew,(excluding the Turnbulls) and our partners, attended beer fest en masse, posse'd right up with shirts and all that. was fun, ridiculously. also just plain ridiculous. everyone got pretty faded, and by 8:30 its straight up bed time.
Bryan said it best in regards tol beerfest shenanigans.. "giving douche bags carte blanche to act like assholes..", which was true to a point. alas, no wigs were split. close though
tattooing has changed in its flavor a little the past week, but for the better for sure. what i mean to say is that tourist walk-ins have slowed down dramatically, giving me space and time for custom, multi-session type stuff, as well as lots of fun small bangers.
at last!,our home-girl rudi-lee came for a short, hilarious, laugh filled visit. i had the pleasure of taking the gals, both looking so smashingly gorgeous i should add, out dancing.

kept my head on a swivel that night, i will say that much.

ohhhh shiiiiiit! i will be tattooin the calgary convention again this year, this time in oct. though. holler for details. tat-party!

THE VIRUS

2010-09-07T22:07:00.000-07:00

goddamn ive been sick, diabolically. to where my balls ache, im bricked up, confused and sore. other than that, its been a fantastic week. had a great tat party with my new homeboy/guest artist roberto before his return to Switzerland, sang karaoke with the tattoo zoo squad, had a very special visitor, even got some tickets to cirque de solieil for next weeks show. (for which i am beside myself with excitement)
since ive begun working at the tattoo zoo, ive been hearing about johnny goodvibes, giggle factory, and all around tattoo juggernaught, Roberto Seifert-Fäustlin. he didnt dis-appoint, and my time hanging with him was fucking rad. one of those super comfortable, known-him-forever type of dudes. great tattoo artist as well, and i was lucky(painfully) to get a nice big one from him.
he also lived up to his other, more norious repution. THE BRUISER
his send off was a super hootenanny complete with bolty salad, fake shooters, and smashdown kareoke. gerry fucking killed it! it was rad to blow off some steam like that with the crew. bryan, colin, sarah, even roberto was stepping up and shredding mic's. next time nova cant shine.
i sang enrique!
and the stones!

day or two after that, savvy's sickness, THE COLD SWEAT MALAISE, set in strong and has had me hobbled up.
didt stop my wonderful, super funny and loving aunty Kath from coming in from ladner for a short but sweet visit. she is my late mother's sister, and i spent alot of time under her wing growing up, when my mother was unable to care for me in that regard. i feel so lucky and grateful to have her in my life, and she treats me and even refers to me as one of "the kids"
every time we hang out, she seems to pull out a new tale of my mothers-her childhood, or even my own infancy/toddler years. sometimes sad, sometimes poignant, usually funny. or distrubing. lets say both, as is custom in my family.
my family comes from very humble, poor, violent, dysfunctional, and even mentally ill beginnings. i am lucky to be where i am, happy. ive been close enough to the edge to never go back, and failure isnt an option for me.
i dont come from royalty and i cant forget that shit, when im feeling snobby, and pretentious. i dont deserve all the good things in life, no one really does. if your lucky enough to get them, you enjoy them fully until they arent around anymore.
i do want to have a healthy, financially secure, and emotionally/gastronomically well fed family... its all i want.
i can do it for sure, no need to stress yet, too young. i found a winner in savvy no doubt.
clearly feeling a little rambly here, ill chock it up to super strong sicky drugs. lots of em.
also! had a good visit with my dude curty pants, my ace. fucking guy cracks me up, in the best way. love him too.

ill be feeling better in the morning, i know it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5SHOX6eomk

BACK, WITH SOME ULTRA FLAT BLACK

2010-09-02T22:16:00.000-07:00

well! shits still riding, and its been a minute.
summer is winding down, i feel like i can setlle down abit here and get back to blogging, focusing...also, my facebook tattoo group is busted up without the ability to upload new pictures.
more than that, ive had a confusion as to what this blog is about. there by letting it die.
ive decided this is to be a straight up personal blog with a business chaser. not the other way around. im going to express things that are not the view of my shop, or even me as a professional. personal views. i may be a grump, an asshole, or just complete jokes.
of course though, i will mostly be talking about tattooing, uploading pictures, and generally smashing on tat-zap related shit, NOT just bitching about how jersey shore fell off, and how these fucking new cop cars look like a transormer is going to conjure itself up and lazer beam cuffs on me.

its been a busy, busy, fun, confusing, social, change filled summer. tattooin at the Zoo has been a real dream come true for me, and im fucking thrilled and grateful to be at home in a shop like it is, with the people that work/tattoo there. met some rad guest artists from portland/germany and been tattood lots. tons of walk in traffic which i love and have been happy to make tattoos for.
painted graffiti lots, too much at times.
chinatown is hemmed up.
so much dancing! savvy and i (among others, new and old homies) are happily rediscovering our love of killing it on the late night dance adventure kick. gets me hyphy every time. i love dancing, its ridiculous.
in fact at every turn savvy has been right there hanging. through some early summer stress, mid summer heat, and now late summer cuddles. fucking love that gal.
im feeling now my clientele at the shop steady building, and its the best, most rewading feeling ever after hustling for the past couple months.
friends of friends, return clients, courtenay visitors, homeless crack vagrants, i adore them all and am thankful for all the visits! im feeling settled now, and its comforting. this fall, im looking forward to really hunkering down, focusing more on drawing and painting again, big custom stuff. my heads been on a swivel all summer,, going bananas.
the Zoo puts up with me, and my chattering, redundant, repetitive jokes that tumble out of my ass like sod from a burlap sack. i love the Tattoo Zoo

ill try to keep on top of posting and getting more pictures again, got my head on straight. thanks for the occcasional "wheres the blog ya nut?!" , and " hey fuckface! havent seen that blog in abit old boy!"
appreciate that

ps, credit where its dude, that rad little skull in rose guy is 95% ron henry wells flash. google his shit, its rad

zoo animals

2010-06-27T21:34:00.000-07:00

been busy as usual. was in a funky bit week or two ago, feeling back on top. huge personal life changes got me liberated, confident, happy. summers being weird but i dont mind at all really. being at tattoo zoo is great, and im grateful to have found such a solid group/shop. i am self aware enough, just barely, to understand i can scare people at first, when i get going. with the stories, jokes etc. so im doing my best to show my personality, yet not too much, too soon. hahahaha hoping they wont think im a crazy person. everyone there is rad, great at tattoos, easy to get along with. tons of walk ins, killing it. lots of fun stuff too. ive been remiss on my photographing lately. that will stop.
momentous shit in my personal life, to the good

got some fun tattoos coming up this week. stay tuned

dynamic fashion

2010-06-15T14:50:00.000-07:00

goddamn weather still not making rank, bummed on the rain today. other than that, happpy to be joining the crew at the Tattoo Zoo as of Thursday. been painting alot of funny russian(ish) watercolors lately.
come on summer
and come by and visit your boy at the Zoo!

http://www.facebook.com/index.php?#!/group.php?gid=17902763983&ref=ts

http://www.tattoozoo.net/

oops on the twisted pic, cant erase !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SD-PGMz1lUU&feature=related

bookstores, museums on smash

2010-06-08T21:58:00.000-07:00

the shop has been great, challenging. learning lots, trying to learn lots more...lots. been hunting for alot of books. vintage tattoo flash, obscure reference, folk art and shit. came into another russian tattoo encyclopedia, volume 3 this time. totally bananas. trying to add more and more imagery into my brain-bag, to dispense when needed (constantly). the jame-dog's been dropping science as per usual, and i try to scoop it up. im thinking of tattooing in completely different terms, and what i dont know could fill a dozen encyclopedias, russian and otherwise. anyway its my weekend, and ive been squeezing quality time out of every minute of it with my girl, sometimes to her chagrin. went to the museum today! so rad, i love it in there. of course right of the hop i tried to jump in with the seals in the natural history exhibit, fucking alarms started going off, and a security guard called me a "fuckin idiot!? whattya doin in there!!". the plus side is the alarm startled savvy to thoroughly that she jerk-snapped a photo of me jumping off the seal kings rock. the first nations collections/video/pics are always my favorite, but i get bummed that some of the masks and shit arent where they should be, which i suspect is with the people that hold them dearest. the chinatown exhibit is a hit, shit hasnt even changed, other than more people smoking opium. after all that excitement, my and my girl tripped around uptown, hitting bookstores again, savvy true to form displaying much patience. while in munro's books, i told a clerk of my failed attempt at stealing books 10 years ago, and how it resulted in old man Munro sitting me down in his old ass mahogany ass smoky ass office, and how he made me buff the two big ole brass signs on the marble storefront as penance. they laughed, said 'hes in right now, old man munro, in ....HIS OFFICE', i was all shook so i bounced. muhfuckas tough.
im full stokes on my new books though! studying up!
yeah yeah! tomorrow off too, more studies, good food, and bro-downs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoMPxSi9iUM

ps-took a ride with D-Boy in his notorious as fuck Mustang 5.0, my sphincter hasnt yet recovered from fear clenches. on some steve mcqueen shit.

sprung

2010-06-05T10:45:00.000-07:00

O.G. morning post today. almost morning.. had a busy, fun week. got my homie justin back for the cabinet, drew and tattood lots, even went late night swimming at oak bay pool and shit. trying to really put in the work i need to at the shop without losing my private and social life. i think thats the hardest shit, when i see people i look up to like Bill and Jamer putting in 12 hours or more. tattooing is very very important to me, and i strive to be a dedicated tattooer, the only way to do is it to take it seriously. there's sacrifices im willing to take to put in work right now, and im grateful most of the people around me understand, but i need to make more. more and more! as long as my girl is ok, and our relationship stays strong, im good. i wont sacrifice that. thank christ she understands, and is willing to make compromises. i better learn to make them shits. there is aslo many tattooers i look ip to that seems to lead full ass private lives outside of tattooing. im sure ill find a balance that suits me eventually. until then work hard.
for my homies that pop in and say hello, love yall!

jean pool

2010-05-29T02:17:00.000-07:00

ive been busy! ok, mad busy. and loving it. im immersing myself in a encyclopedic pool of tat knowledge, treading water among some of the most tremendous swimmers and hardest workers on this coast. i feel so so lucky to be where i am, no dole. the crew here works hard. jamers evening naps enable him to literally be in the shop until 3 or even 4AM some nights. this is real. chris comes in and slays, absolutely anoints a dudes rib piece, big beautiful colors, no choppiness, gorgeous. no worries. d-boy rocking a top knot, killing it, studious, skilled and helpful. all of them super helpful. enjoying bro times among some evening drawing "class"es. to say class in unfair to the teacher, as the jame dog smashes through japanese dragon anatomy while i, my brain picking up as much as it can manages to, miss probably 80% of it. for now that is to say...being in this environment is highly conducive to a healthy lifestyle for me, inasmuch as helping me really devote the time necessary to draw,study and learn more within tattooing.
pretty stoked, i even managed to miss the harshed out diarrhetic shitstorm thats been circulating. the past week has mostly been me waking, walking around the corner, tattooing, coming home late. fucking rice and bbq pork son.
as usual, im dramatizing.
but! still purely catching quality time with my girl. most important.
ive been mad remiss on the blog tip too, im guilty. i was politicking an awesome one the other day but lost the whole thing due to paranoia. serves me right, it was about graff missions, and a bag of crack i found. funny shit.
im mass tired. ive got a coupla pics here, more en route. im off to bed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_aNG6Uz9u8

SETTLIN

2010-05-20T00:10:00.000-07:00

been watching 2-3 hard-wired junkies loiter(clocking) the corner a block and a half down off my window. as i sit here typing i can watch em even. not as i type right now i should say, as its mad windy, kinda shitty, whatever. but it is "Welfare Wednesday" after all and i was expecting a little more. im going to be honest and rude and confess my objectification of these birds. animalization as it were. tracking their movements, giving them quippy broadway musical names like "jimmy walker" and "2-shakes". i pray for a dance fight battle, but with more of a Rosencrantz and Guildenstern type thing.
in reality though, i watched the young looking red faced one get shaken down by a couple of beat cops.
its great being here, our place is mad nice, rigged up well, custom wood stuff and all that, courtesy of a Mr.Justin Bones esq. a talented, prideful creator of woody goodies.
this isnt a braggy fluff piece though, as we are both feeling a little at a loss, missing courtenay. im actually surprised at it. nothing serious i should add, for myself of course. savannah can speak for herself, but from my angle is doing pretty fucking well considering.
standouts of the past week include; an epically fun,sexy dance-off of the first order with my darling, and some of our besties at a very cheesy, probable gay bar. saturday night.
running into super rad buddies! who are for the most part, killing it!
hanging out at my new place of employ, and getting all stoked up on total bro downs.
eating. staining the pine of the shelf.
lovely, sunset drive with Savvy. who for the most part is full-on killing it!
cycling my ass off around town everyday having so much fun.

other than that, lots of other neat shit that makes me happy and lucky to be hanging again. to say the very least.
keeping a mass low profile. just now had phone and internet installed.
miss yall
miss tattooing as well, time to get back to

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCfRcgoPxTw

(g)lock busting

2010-05-10T22:39:00.000-07:00

in the midst of a waist deep shitstorm that is our moving/packing/sally-ann strewn house, weve been having a roller-coasting hootenanny. we are feeling a little cagey, savvy and i. that is to say with the horizon of our moving deadline looming larger and larger in our view, and it being so fucking nice out, its taking all we have not to box each others ears in. other than that! shits been so so good. visits from super new homies, lots of sun, bicycles, and lock pickings.
ive recently had the pleasure of a diabolical,one on one, lock picking tutorial. turns out, tactile as i am, im excelling in the field. was kindly given me own set of picks, and even today came into a bogota style rake. as you can see, im even comfortably using crucial pickin' slang...
i jumped in the puntledge river yesterday. fully dipping on smash. too early turns out.
i traded a skookum pair of jeans for a vintage(ish) bike for my darlin, looks damn good on her too.
im going to miss courtenay so much. so so so much for real. its rad here, and im trying my goddamnest to pack in colloquial memories, suspecting when i arrive in vic, its gonna obviously be a whole other jam. i really dont want to take living in a place like this for granted, and as ive mentioned before ive got my full summer-head-crazy-guy on full bore.
love is in the air! my friends, many of em, with the springiest fevers. warms me to see it. and when it comes to my own spring fever focus, it warms me even warmer. especially one part of me.
sun, savannah, smashing success
alas, my good friend, and former front end girl mellissa packed up all my shit for me at black rose! hahahah i was grateful among other things. so, no tattoos for a few days. i miss it! awesome
here are locks ive picked, with a variety of difficulty

rubber band man

2010-05-05T23:54:00.000-07:00

so overwhelmed. this is what i get for fucking around i imagine. our shits all over the house in piles on the floor, throwing away the majority to fit for the new place.
went to vic coupla days ago to take possession of our apartment. super stoked, but it is smaller than i remembered. my handsome, talented, and consummately professional friend J bones will be helping us customize the studio flat, with built in cubicle style shelving and cool sunken in gable-pot kinda lights in the bathroom. he and i had a little walk through while my lovely lady was nesting in a bundle of blankets looking on, and had a wonderful bullshit session. hes like super man to alleviate our worries and stress at the layout and size issues. im forever in his debt with this thing. saw the crew at gov st, and as usual me and savvy left feeling very happy, relaxed, and accepted. what a great group of guys, i am now shitting with excitement at starting both @ the tattoo shop, and of course our new life in victoria. it feels so good to be back there already, and returning to courtenay is weirder and weirder. im driving back down for a night next week to help bones assemble his masterpieces, then driving back up to fill the cube truck we're borrowing from savvy's grand's and driving back down. then back up to drop off the truck, back down. that should be it with around a dozen drives back and forth this month. some record setting bullshit right there, all to the good. amongst all this stuff, still trying to tattoo when i can, and finished a really fun black and grey ribe rose filligree thing today. ill post healed pics with this one. also, as usual ive had the pleasure of running into rad people, whom ill miss greatly, and trying to get pictures of them.

ps- i posted two pictures of that goon dan by accidentals. and shit, someone please message me if you have the "link posting" html info! ya bastards!

pps-included is a pic of a really fun heart i was working on, it was in two stages, with the lines being healed. picture sucks and looks washed out!

henry link letter

2010-04-28T17:56:00.000-07:00

yesh yesh yall, enough of the self serving type ish bull, been tatt zapping up a veritable whirl-wind of mean little tats and letter tatts. outlined a neat horsey kinda triple crown winner on my girl, but unfortunately didnt have the opportunity to fill it. this is my last week or full time tattoing here and im feeling awesome, ending it with some of my best clients and fun tattoos.
the carnival is in town, and i managed about 4 and one half minutes before i almost freaked right out. the girls on the other hand love the stuff. riding the zipper literally 4 times in one night. shits ridiculous.
lots of blogs popping up on friends walls, makes me stoked. thanks for the input and support on all the stuff as well friends!
ps, someone please message me if they know how i can post links and stuff!

full clip

2010-04-24T23:44:00.000-07:00

looking at old pictures all evening with my girl, crazy ones, uploaded by my boy, and bff: scotty. its wildy entertaining, these images and memories. i feel so positively nostalgic, with a dark undertone of guilt and shame. i was a wild dude, violent, funny, expressive, cavalier. i didnt think id have the life i do now, or i wouldnt have done alot of that shit. my girl laughs and calls me handsome in these pictures, and i remember feeling so full of confidence, vigor, carelessness when they were taken. and so happy to be photographed by my friend, which was often. i love love love my old friends so hard, and miss them. but the pictures dont show my downward spiral, or my inability to make healthy choices, but they do just kinda stop. in a grey area. when even i think my closest friends had a hard time being near me. volatile and unpredictable. when i went to jail the first real time i just wanted to be free, drinking, fighting and being the guy i thought i was born to be. more things happened, i hurt more people, jail again. then more things etc etc. this goes on until i disappear for a time. then, these last few years somewhat reinventing myself and giving all of my energy into doing shit that wasnt retarded, i have successfully built a foundation upon which to assemble a real ass, healthy living ass life. some of my closest friends have chosen different paths. many of them have gone on to become talented and awesome artists, hard workers, mothers and fathers, and im so proud to know them and to see them succeed. others though, my heart fucking breaks when i see them, not of judgment but real sorrow when i know and can relate too honestly to their struggle and their inability to escape from it. i cant dwell on that bleeding heart shit for long, its not right. my girl now, my life. im so lucky, i survived karma. im so in love it aint even fair, im sorry. i love her so much i could never explain it. shes so smart, strong, mysterious, healthy! and shoot,i couldnt ever manipulate her, shes smarter than me and i adore it. and the funniest shit, the best shit is that, she doesnt know the old me! hahahahaha i mean i wasnt a different person or anything, and i love telling her stories, but that is what make life so funny. you can actually do whatever you want and be whoever you want, you just got to invent it and fucking do it. i often these days reminisce on that old shit and lament, thinking ive gone soft, i dont fight anymore, all this shit like that. but no no no its horseshit. im harder than i ever have been mentally, i still have my edge, and i always will. thats just me misunderstanding my memories. AND the best part of my life, the MOST potent, is all ahead of me. if i hadnt sharpened my teeth on that i would have the tools i need to kill it.

i forgot my cam atr work! ive been working on a real neat treat, stay tuned

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bn5tiuZU4JI

the Lurkernaught

2010-04-21T20:26:00.000-07:00

such a nice day, so beautiful i was feeling a little bummed to be trapped inside honestly. not that i dont love tattooing, but i feel something like a caged animal as soon as the suns beaming. i literally feel imprisoned if im not enjoying it completely. thanks alot prison!
no worries, had a good week tattooing cool people. i feel like im always going on about my clients, but for real these guys, these fucking young guys are killing it. getting rad tattoos. tyler and jordan. some of my raddest tattoos i feel like they have. i get so stoked when they come in and just want like a fucking anchor and an anatomical heart or whatever. these dudes are like 17-18 and their parents have to sign for them for christsakes, its nuts. when i was like 20 i was a mad retard displaying major antisocial tendencies. i still am. milk hormones have people being cooler, younger. its like manstruation.
anyway tattooed them again, lined a fun one im dying to finish on jordan, and did a cool jerry anchor on tyler.
also this week, tattooed some tough broads on the ribs, which as before mentioned are they new ankles. lots of fun.
for a week or two now, my good bud dussy and i have been steady perched in this new grocery store in town, in this lofty glassed in eating area. with savvy working nights im fending for m'self, eating at the food bar for mass, nightly even. this has become more than a passtime, its a habit by now. we sit up here, look at people and laugh and laugh. killing it with the monologues and snarky descriptions. were a couple of mean queens up there and i cant get enough. mouth-breathing troglodytes, good ole fashioned root-down-tramps, tapout board-short tough-dongs, its just so good.
im needing this right now especially i think, these funny steam blowing interludes. im feeling in this shitty, weird lurchy half life before we move and its super stagnant. i just want to shit or get off the pot here. couple of weeks to go.
get this new life going.

if your in QF, look up sucka

Homeward Bound

2010-04-17T20:32:00.000-07:00

so good, so so good lately. it started a few days ago, when i had the pleasure of again tattooing my good friend, and one of my first and most faithful clients, chaddo. it was such a great session; hes a tough one, a gentleman,and a funny one. tattooing people like him are what makes my job so fucking great. this week all around went swimmingly, lots of good times with my girl, who is steady on smash. shits like that rihanna video, only harder.
in other tatt-news, today, after a cancellation, i decided to give myself a real test.
i tattood a neat little butterfly/moth guy on my hand. i think turned out really good, and it was a challenging, rewarding experience. its right in my face all the time, my hand. nearly always in my peripheral, so obviously theres no real room for "incidentals". i mean, tattoos are never perfect, far from it, but if i gotta see this fucker everyday i better not shit the bed, or cut any corners. not to mention its hard to really commit your lines sometimes when them shits are smashing the webbing between your thumb and forefinger. ok ok, im being a little theatrical, it frankly wasnt that big of a bummer or even a test, just a funny thing to do on a slow day..
AND THEN my girl!, the lovely savannah, fucking poured mass pots and kettles of boiling water and gave me the hottest, most skin melting, diabolically infernal bathtub ever. awesome!

the phantom

2010-04-14T23:36:00.000-07:00

whoa! well ive been a real grump lately. old man style, bad company. thats dead now, its just been a hectic kinda time lately, savvy and i are a tad overwhelmed. tattooing lots.
my girl just tempted me to ghostwrite this muh fucka, but alas, i will not compromise!
anyway, a couple new flicks.
oh snap! been riding my bike lots lately, and its taking the edge off

the new daps

2010-04-09T20:16:00.000-07:00

finished up a fun one today on my homegirl teely, based on a stain glass window pane. lots of fun, and a neat challenge trying to make the image transfer to a good tattoo.
also tattood a tough young ladies ribs, didnt make a peep thank christ. ribs are the new lower back, exept for the fact that many young ladies cant take the heat.
couple clients been coming in wishing me well on the move! thanks! so stoked to hear it, and my clientele is the fucking best.

the barry pepper of this rap game

2010-04-07T22:39:00.000-07:00

with things winding down at black rose, it was super fun and a big honor to kick it, have a laugh, and tattoo my original mentor Van Potvin. Van took a big chance and even put his reputation on the line by apprenticing me a few years ago. even against the arguments of other tattooers, who naturally are an old-school and protective bunch, always wary of bringing a stranger into the fold. and one cant blame them/us, with the amount of hacks,kitchen scratchers, and generally mediocre tattoo "artists" out there. anyway i still feel i know fuck all about tattooing, let me be clear. and the little i do know has told me nothing but the fact that i have alot to learn. but!, i will always pay homage to tattooing, and try to give it my all so the people that brought me in will always be proud of their decision to do so... im grateful to van, for bringing me into all this, and giving me the opportunity to learn and grow in the tattoo world. i love tattooing so much, and feel so honored and lucky to do it for a living, and i dont know what the hell id be doing otherwise. anyway thats the thing, with van, all stoked to tattoo him today! im really gonna miss working with him
also did a fun kinda frog guy on my homie colby, great dude.
also, ive been really stoked and inspired by a few stockholm guys which i think ive mentioned before. their whipshading shit is off the hook and blowing me mind. im full on giving it my all. peep this guys flickr-
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bruceroos/

the grand return

2010-04-05T21:36:00.000-07:00

back from victoria, again. second drive this week with a diabolical new time record. this trip though, we returned with a rental place secured. a big, open space. for real like a big ole studio flat in a heritage building on herald st in chinatown. we looked at lots of great spots, really great even. and we decided on this one for the next year. anyway whatever, lots to do now that we secured a place, time to fit a three room house worth of shit into one, big, one.
again, my friends came through for me in an incredible way, and im so grateful. in fact i better get my friendliness more on point in this cutthroat helping business, make it up to them all. we are so excited for this new period to begin, and im just overwhelmed at the opportunity around every corner in life. its so fucking funny how shit goes, and heres a story to whoever interested...the building were moving into faces a antiquated, even sacred(to me) graffiti spot on a certain roof in chinatown. growing up in the graff world, of course this place was known as "Chinamans roof" and as well as being a veritable wall bound encyclopedia of the original island graffiti pioneers (such as HOPI,DUEL,TUT among so many other, very influential dudes), and newer kings of the victoria 90's era (AMP,ALEY etc.)it was a personal oasis for me. id be there lots, too much even. i would more often than not paint, usually drink beer, and sometimes even read books in times of stress and shit. i had chairs i had pulled up there and stashed, all that. i eventually, like so many graffiti spots, people showed too many people, and they showed too many etc, and now youll find chinamans roof behind 3-4 barbwire fences and a secure parking gate. i cant say i single handedly got the place blown, thats just how shit goes sometimes. in the beginning you could have bbq's up there, friends, fucking no worries. eventually i was getting chased off every other time, police creeping up the rooftop and everything, in fact BEAR and I had to once even jump down the fire escape streetside in mid afternoon after a cop got the drop on us. if it wasnt for a squawk on the guys radio, curtains.. what im getting at is this, when i had no place of my own and was couch surfing, straight hobo'ing it, whatever, id go up there and look AT THIS VERY FUCKING BUILDING across the lot. i thought it was rad, even fantasized about what it was like inside. even when the people were reno'ing it and the workers started seeing me and phoning the cops (i can almost say from the actual suite ill be renting, no shit). so this is exactly exactly what i mean, life is a hilarious, ridiculous trip, and one has to jump at every opportunity, forever. you really never know where it will bring you and i love it.
ok enough horseshit. ill post more tattoos this week. not long to go at black rose really. then the move really begins, peace!

ps-i recently made a solo trip again up to the roof. after some strenuous and tricky, silent manoeuvrings, i was blown away come upon the spot, like a time capsule, exactly as it was left. i even took the front down for old times sake.

word savvy

2010-04-02T22:26:00.000-07:00

my girl is kiiillin it with the blog, heres a link... and a pic of my new bike build
http://word-savvy.blogspot.com/

barn storm

2010-04-02T21:43:00.000-07:00

crazy crazy days, mad windstorms and super homie visits. my dude and crewmate matt and his mom and close friend of mine sue came up. tattood em, hung, had a great day. back down to victoria for the second time this week to view places. hoping for the best. getting geaqred up for the move, overwhelmed and swamped at work.

studious

2010-03-29T23:21:00.000-07:00

turns out im moving to victoria for keeps. super stoked to return to the city on these terms, with my fiance, career, etc.. i feel like i left on such a shit note years ago. theres no doubt ill miss Courtenay and black rose lots, but this is one of those "opportunities" ive always heard about, you know the risky ones that if you dont do you regret for the rest of your life. its a huge trade off, and ill need to build a clientele in the new shop. reservations aside i know the gravity of this shop placement, and i couldnt be happier or more excited. looking for a place with my girl is going well, aside from being 3 hours away. i have every confidence things will not only work well, but end up being fucking awesome in no time at all. all this shit going on, and im tattooing my face off, being busy trying to square away large or in progress pieces, tattoo my regulars, and fit in lots of walk in's. beside that ive been trying to paint a lot, learn a lot i should say in watercolors. i wont say i think im getting too good a feel for them yet, but so fun a medium to use. im going through a big period of being very inspired by Swedish/eastern European tattoos/imagery. anyway, im off for now. ill post a link to the shop i will be moving to(im sure ive mentioned it before on here lately, the fucking sterling Government St. Tattoo of victoria)

2010-03-22T00:20:00.000-07:00

russian originals photstream

2010-03-20T11:27:00.000-07:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jcruelty/3289488218/sizes/l/in/photostream/

a few of the original pages of this encyclopedia are in this link. im unsure now of how do make a more direct link, ill figure it out

day in

2010-03-20T11:13:00.000-07:00

under the weather today, going to try to use the time to paint. get at least something worthwhile done today. been re-working images from the russian tattoo encyclopedia, and watercoloring them. im super fascinated with these images and thier symbology. they can be funny, crude, and creative, but more often than not, they are wildly offensive. ill attach some links to originals, and then maybe even some of my re works of them. anyone interested should look for a documentary called "mark of caine"

new friends

2010-03-17T19:37:00.000-07:00

to all my new friends! love yall!
also, savvy and me entered her leg in a tattoo competition (small colour) anyway didnt win, whatevs... so cool to have her up there showing her thang. love her crazily, so proud/lucky/happy

i aint even done yet

2010-03-17T19:21:00.000-07:00

victorious convention

2010-03-17T18:54:00.000-07:00

im back! victoria was a fucking blast, thanks to all our friends and rad clients i met and tattood along the way. the convention was BANANAS, way busier then i or anyone reckoned, and super fun with a hilarious victorian eclectic crowd. tattood my balls off, networked, generally did my best to kill it. got an awesome sign painted by the super talented and rad chris dobell, on way short notice to boot. tattooing in a convention is a veritable meat market, and everyone goes a little tattoo-crazy. its not for everyone certainly, but i fucking love it. really contagious vibes i think. my homie jonny murdoch and i (who shared a 40 foot long giant ass both) made a good combination i think, with him doing working almost consistently on big custom pieces, and me smashing out flash, lettering, and my hybrid mix of bowery-ish kinda colorful funny shit that i love. my lovely girl savvy and our mutual super-homie rude girl KILLED the front end of the booth, taking appointments, cash, business, and everything else that could possibly be killed. that literally made the convention for me, thanks again gals. also, big ups to nomi chi @ the fall tattooing who did some super neat tattoos on the both of em. my dude ryan gagne blessed a couple people with his ultra bold style traditional tattoos, and it was a blast showing him and his wife around in the short time he wasnt working his ass off. hes a machine that guy.
i return with a head full of ideas and creativity, with a renewed and rejuvenated drive to tattoo even harder and better than ever. i love my job and i feel so lucky to get to tattoo people. its the biggest honor i can imagine and im grateful. awhile ago, a man i look up to greatly, and in my mind is the archetype of a O.G. tattoo artist told me, "if you be good to tattooing, tattooing will be good to you".
this couldnt be truer, and i when i give apply myself to it, completely, i see the benefits more and more. anyway enough waxing poetic, im blogging it out too much over here.
gotta keep painting, tattooing, creating, got alot to do.
ill be doing a guestspot at government st. tattooing in victoria in the summer. fuck im beside myself with happiness, honor, and humility. im stoked ive been invited and realize the richness of the learning in my experience there.
im out!

rose tattoo from yesterday

2010-03-08T10:42:00.001-08:00

big one on my lovely fiances thigh.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LONG ASS WEEKKEND

2010-03-08T00:00:00.001-08:00

god im blowing it lately on the posting, ive been tattooin and painting like a madmen this week. tattood my girl tonight, a super fun, super colorful rose on her thigh. ill get pics up tomorow. for now here is some graff stuff thats been going on.
also getting ready for the convention in victoria, lots to do, getting stoked.
conventions are bananas usually to both tattoo in, and even be a looky-loo. ill be documenting as much as i can for the blog smash.

maaad decent

2010-03-03T20:38:00.001-08:00

http://www.maddecent.com

ANOTHER SPACE JAM

2010-03-01T21:11:00.000-08:00

me and my homie OPEN opend up another wall at the old mill. great day painting, helped by my score of thrift-store cassettes to keep the jams pumpin. birds chirped, classical music played, and i pretended i was artsy.
artsy or fartsy, i feel like OPEN fully burned me with those hands

letter head

2010-02-28T22:21:00.001-08:00

www.behance.net/Gallery/Effing-Typeface/430218

space graff

2010-02-28T19:19:00.000-08:00

went for a wonderful drive today out to a fun and secluded old warehousey mine building structure and painted some funny ones. grabbed flics of some burners from abit ago when my boy RIZO was in town. KHBrothers

power tweet

2010-02-27T20:21:00.000-08:00

got fun and loose and textury on these little beaners on a "almost cop" from powell river. im hoping if im to be arrested soon, itll be a total bro-down

antiquated petals

2010-02-27T16:44:00.000-08:00

zapped some super fun, kinda old style tattoos lately, heres a couple, one in progress. i have the raddest clients in the world, and its super refreshing to see young men getting classic, big tattoos like this. stokes me up.
tattooing is going in the right direction to me when people still want the boldies

my flickr-doodles account

2010-02-27T00:21:00.000-08:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/koadrock/

dont get blam blammed

2010-02-27T00:05:00.000-08:00

im thinking im starting freshies with this blog. not alot of older flicks, just rad new ones.
in other news, tattooing at the first victoria tattoo convention and am super stoked, not only to make a grip, but just so happy and lucky to represent in my home city, one with which ive had such a checkered and turbulent history.! returning a champion, thats the thing... i hope

brand spanking bloggernaught

2010-02-26T23:51:00.000-08:00

wham! blog time. zapped the funny matching grenades on a couple young esquimalt thugs who walked in. had a blast, reminisced about esq, graff, and our washed up mutual friends. brawl city!