Birthday Present 2007

I had been talking about it for a while, but I was still surprised and thrilled when Cass presented me with a gift certificate to Acme Ink before our awesome meal at 211 Clover Lane. She also found the perfect design of what I had been going on and on about. So, about a week later, with certificate and drawing in hand, I went to my scheduled appointment, alone. I had been contemplating shoulder or bicep, maybe smaller, but in the end, I went for it. I couldn't be happier with it.

And now for the three questions everyone asks. 1) yes, it is real 2) yes, it hurt like hell and 3) well three is "why" and that one is a little more complicated. There are a lot of "kinda about this" or "my feelings on that", but they all hinge around my love of food (and pig especially), my proclivity for things Southern, and my commitment to the career path I am following (no corporate golf outings with this baby). I also think of it as a reminder of the

undeniability between what we eat and where it comes from, a kind of slow food mandela.