So I'm sticking with this title "Cogito Chuck Robbins" because I like the way it sounds. So there. It will all make sense eventually.
I met Chris outside of Penn Station one Friday afternoon, intrigued by his forearm tattoo:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMRIZUMSjBnfOhOM68lrwViO38Lb2aqFR1lbIkSgWplXgRLwZ29fOFcGXQmLxz6kWBGB47vv73Vq_3F_U90FOy8oopdH9LNLL0-smEt-CaZTS5WVPIID1lkRTiekI6SKGMTiPZ2ZcuFJc/s400/Cogito+Ergo+Sum.jpg)
"Cogito ergo sum" is a Latin phrase that means, in English, "I think, therefore, I am." It is attributed to the 17th Century French philosopher René Descartes.
This was the first of Chris' three tattoos. He is a philosophy and creative writing major at SUNY New Paltz. This phrase is the "missing link in a belief system," or, in his words, "what I always knew, but never knew".
The tattoo was done at a shop in East Meadow, New York.
Chris also has this dead bird near his right elbow:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCiegvvLJ0R-YIz52JsDYX-r51bGJ67_RaWBYqQq9p2NlFBBMmPEHl8E4yt2l1smCKFgwcCuE1jtn1_ljdcjkvSMGHuqroQzwWJYrdE5hXQgNhKZJllOu0VVyGGjmP93Tl8X1j88voBy4/s400/Palahniuk+Dead+Bird.jpg)
Inked at Skin Deep Tattoo in Levittown, this is inspired by the art on the cover of Chuck Palahniuk's Lullaby.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG2bD-eSGUJMGtyZzYh7ChWm-j96jNdgPCsbIyRqF3Z_Qff-1FuszxskkrkZQMNXZePP-mt5n2FrGR_pe_C-gNvoOwRBwrITbVNHUgNLJl3UxJj-O_-YSYc58f-RG7azfIP78WEGSJhKc/s400/lullaby.jpg)
And Chris' third tattoo is based on the cover art from one of my favorite authors, Tom Robbins:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQxpoEb5mf4cPCmeiJ4fxVewbBzwVkq7eljwJ2K6r9QNJqUtBjdfuqhP5mQN_2aUmPenaysnDVwb-XuZT0f7aRPkHdGTY5Gl4lrNrT3b_qc6GSrg4bPCzIRsd4fH49tnH-vwBDpdlRbzM/s400/still+life+woodpecker.jpg)
This echoes the front of the great book Still Life With Woodpecker, which has made many people a fan of the writer.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsypph02aZem-Lt2ulk5l8dWTW4MNGajAjZeVhT6T5ENzoDUXYORLOjmiwJjpsVBkLXQ07tfiO9b6_0ByW6GBQRPZjZ46J77pry98zO4TVE8N2LPISzvdKJinETCW1Ssa6NHfLxRRWxKo/s400/Woodpeckerslw.jpg)
The piece, which was inked by Mike Vlad at Triple X Tattoo in Manhattan, is a subtle nod in appreciation of Robbins and his great book. Work from Triple X has appeared previously on Tattoosday here.
If you like these pieces, and are a fan of literary tattoos, you should certainly check out Contrariwise, a site dedicated solely to contributors' literary ink.
A hearty thanks to Chris for sharing his tattoos with us here on our site!
No comments:
Post a Comment