Cuatro Hijos

For more than a year now I've been sifting through old Spanish passenger lists looking to see if I could track down more information about my great great grandfather's arrival to the New World (i.e. Cuba) and I've finally found his name, Jose Antonio Hernandez Rodriguez, on a schooner traveling from Las Palmas, Canary Islands to Havana, Cuba in 1850. The ship was called Cuatro Hijos (Four Sons). The name, date, and locations all line up with the genealogical records kept by my family and it feels pretty cool to have added a bit to the record.

I've been corresponding with some genealogical researchers in the Canary Islands to see if I can trace my family further back than 5 generations and I'll post anything new that turns up.

Hey, Hey, We're the Monkeys!

So I finally got my "Thoth as a Baboon" tattoo and I figured I'd share it with you all. Thanks again to Korshi, for designing the tattoo, to Janin for recommending the tattoo shop, Dharma Tattoo, and to Loco for actually inking me up.

Three reasons for getting this tattoo: 1) I wanted something on my left arm to balance me out. 2) I wanted to commemorate three awesome decades on this planet. 3) I wanted to celebrate finishing up my masters. Don't ever let it be said I don't suffer for library science!

Here's an older pic of my right shoulder:

Tattoo of Thoth

It's time for another tattoo! 5 years ago I got a Thoth tattoo on my right shoulder in the form of a stylized ibis. It was my overly-dramatic way of demonstrating my commitment to the written word, whether as a writer or as a librarian. I asked my friend and talented artist, Korshi Dosoo, to design a cooler version of the hieroglyph for Thoth and he totally delivered.

Ever since then, I've wanted another tattoo on my left shoulder to balance me out, but I didn't really know what to get. I don't take these things lightly since they're going to be etched in my skin for life. So after 5 years of looking at the blank canvas of my shoulder and feeling a little lopsided, I realized that I was unbalanced because I was only displaying one aspect of Thoth. You see, the Egyptian god is not just a lofty scholarly ibis. He's also represented by a clever trickster... a baboon, and let's be honest, I'm probably closer to the baboon than the ibis.

So I turned to Korshi once again, bombarded him with references of hieroglyphic monkeys, and he knocked it out of the park again.

I haven't actually gotten this one yet as I'm still searching for a decent (and gentle) tattoo artist, (might need your help on this, Ingrid and Alli) but I will get it this month for sure, because part of the reason for getting the tattoo is to celebrate my three decades on this planet. I'll post pics of my actual tattoos once I get it. Stay tuned.