Oh man, are we on diametrically opposed positions on the tattoo scale. I fucking hate that sacred celtic shit and I'm Irish. I even have some knotwork from almost 20 years ago so I know the allure.

But to each his own.

I'm not sure how experienced you are with tattoos, but you do have a bit of a dilema. Seattle has way too many shitty tattooists. ESPECIALLY shitty tribal/celtic/whatever tattooists. The style requires far more attention to geometric consitency and percision than it does to artistic interpretation and technique (imho, natch).

In short, it's way easier to fake celtic images than it is more traditional american or asian stylings. And the bigger the bullshit about spiritualism etc coming out the mouth of the inker the more likely you'll wind up with a shit tattoo.

But I dig where I think you are coming from. You want something as authentic as possible coming from someone who fucking means it. Good on ya. Just beware. It leaves you ripe for the plucking and you can get ripped off.

Having said that and having just insulted you a wee bit (in fun, I hope you take it) I recommend going to down to Under the Needle to talk to the Joel there that does the tribal stuff. Not the Joel that does the tradional stuff. I don't know that he does celtic but his tribal is very good and the work holds up over time. He would at the very least be able to point you in the right direction.

I'll also ask some inker friends later and see waht they say.

Good luck

http://www.amazon.com/Read-My-Pins-Stories-Diplomats/dp/0060899182

Perhaps to dowager-ish?

Speaking from very recent (and not so recent) first-hand experience I can honestly say there are few things that squash a man's sex drive like having a baby. I ain't you, it's him. And the baby. He’ll be back up to snuff in another few weeks. Our baby is 3 weeks old and right now I can't even find my penis. He's like a scared turtle. Just over 9 months ago he was cutting diamonds and swinging around all over the place.

There's some pretty solid evidence that men's testosterone levels drop pretty dramatically following a new baby. Good on ya, evolution! Lets the ladies recoup a bit after being savaged by partum. Since, one can infer, all men are biologically inclined to be rapists. Apparently. Or whiney douchebags at the very least that won't shut the fuck up until they at least get some head.

So chill the fuck out. Enjoy being able to drink booze again. And then, in a few weeks, get the old man loaded and do all those crazy sex things you kids do these days.

What's the bike?

Craigslist is the go to place for local bike sales.

Not yet. Last year my first was mid April so expecting them soon.

Pine siskins are taking over my sunflower feeder. they and the house finches are very messy eaters. Juncos are digging it but the chickadees are bumming.

Vyvyn has been around forever...
http://www.vyvyn.com/

Fred Meyer ain't horrible. But this qeustion makes me miss chubby and tubby's which always seemed to roll out the cheap 1/2 cask barrels at this time of year.

I've used leaky galvanized cattle tanks that can be purchased fairly cheap in the more rural areas of WA. I like the look and they come in several shapes and sizes. I'll be looking for some myself shortly.

When farm supply places get shipments of these in there are often several that leak. These are sold a bit cheaper rather than sent back to the manufacturer. I've used them as planters and worm bins.

Here is their costume designer: https://www.facebook.com/kirston.mann

Maybe she can help.

Wussy.

Dr. Numb type products mostly use lidocaine AFAIK as the active ingredients. Seems to work for some people I am told. At $25+ a pop it oughtta work.

Prilocaine and benzocaine are other drugs that numb skin. One may work better for you than others. Burn spray may be cheaper.

none of them work real well for tattoos in my opinion. the one thing i know of that does work is xylocaine which is an injectable form of lidocaine but not over the counter. I've heard of some tattooists using it but I never met one who claimed to. from what I can tell it's something of a secret among medical professionals who collect tattoos. I think it's a pretty standard drug in emergency rooms.

Being a wussy myself I've tried a few things from being pass-out drunk (I woke up) to seriously fucked up on an OC/opiate cocktail. That worked pretty well. Still hurt but I was in a zone of not caring. Dangerous, though. I don't recommend it. I happend to pain meds at the time from an injury.

For how long do you plan to be under the needle? I've gone 8 hours and it sucked.

I'm not sure what you mean by herbs that "grow naturally" here in Seattle. This is herb heaven climate wise for many herbs, though, and I think UW still has a an interesting medicinal herb garden- but that is tended.

For herbs that grow well in wild(ish) untended areas the ones that come to mind are fennel (everwhere), rosemary (very common ornamental that is found in wild settings) and foxglove (everywhere).

the list can get quite exhaustive. I'm sure the Master Gardeners can provide some great resources.