Issue 064 (from the archive) | Getting that tattoo ;)
Dear Cosmos Community,
I got my first tattoo with Cassandra at Daredevil Tattoo in Chinatown, right before The Cosmos Summit in 2019. She's a baby tattoo, barely 5 minutes of needle on skin. But I still needed our former Creative Director Bianca to hold my hand and Cassandra to convince me I was going to survive it (sadly this is no longer COVID safe!).
The moment I got my tattoo, I tried to hide it. My parents were a firm no on tattoos!! I successfully kept my secret until I was home over the summer last COVID year. It was hot! My arm was outstretched over the plates of Asian food!
"IS THAT A TATTOO?" my mom half-shouted in the middle of my bite into steamed fish. My parents actually reacted better than I expected, which means my dad laughed and my mom made me swear I would never get another tattoo. NO MORE TATTOOS. NO MATTER WHAT YOU DO, NO MORE TATTOOS.
I got my second tattoo in March of this year -- a bright red peony on my right shoulder cap, pain level 9.
It was a 30th birthday present to myself, but let's be the real -- I spent half of quarantine making tattoo Pinterest boards. I am embarrassed to say I even made a powerpoint presentation about my tattoo. I went back to my artist, Soyoon at Daredevil Tattoo in Chinatown (an asian women tattoo artist was a must!!!), ready for my five-hour session. Just kidding, I made it through 2.5 hours and was in tears, seriously confused why I decided this was a good idea.
This tattoo was glaringly, unapologetically visible. This tattoo was a declaration of me, finally free of cultural and familial expectations at the ripe age of 30. This tattoo was a tribute to my mom and my grandmother's gardens. This tattoo meant too much.
I was estranged from my mom by the time I got my tattoo, and my grandmother had passed away from COVID. Clutching the side of the tattoo chair with my free hand, I tried to notice if I felt guilty, if I felt my old friend filial piety coming for a visit. But I could only feel the needle in my arm.
P.S. Send me your tattoo ideas!! And existing tattoos! And recommended tattoo artists! I'll put it all together into an Asian Women Tattoo Community Resource :)
it's tattoo season,
Karen
Cosmos Classifieds 🌱
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Community Events
COSMOS STAND UP PADDLE-BOARDING | MARINE PARK MARSH, BROOKLYN (AVENUE U)Sunday, Sept 12 | 3-5 PM ET
*Limited to 4 people, and we're paying for the rentals!*
Did you know 80% of the salt marsh habitat has been destroyed in New York but it's a vital ecosystem for our coast? I didn't know that either, but it's one reason why The Cosmos is taking Asian women paddle boarding in the Marine Park Marsh near Avenue U in Brooklyn. In this 2 hour tour, we'll see horseshoe crabs, osprey, and fiddler crabs! We'll learn firsthand how this ecosystem protects our shoreline and how to care for it :)You will be wearing a life jacket, and through our partnership with Merrell to make the outdoors accessible to Asian women, your rental is fully covered! No experience is required, but you will need to feel comfortable on a stand up paddle board!
RSVP below to get the full details, and for all the outdoors activities we're doing as part of Camp Cosmos '21 in partnership with Merrell!
Culture Corner
I've referenced this story by Stephanie Foo every time I talk about climate anxiety, so it's beyond time for me to share it! "It can be hard to love nature in New York", Foo writes, and yet, with the guidance of Braiding Sweetgrass by Native American botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer, Foo starts a journey to connect with nature in the city's parks. She becomes a Super Steward, a superhero-like role I did not know existed. Consider them nature protectors who protect New York's youngest and most vulnerable trees! The city can trap you in its concrete jungle, but stories like this show the natural world, and the ability to make a positive contribution, is closer than we think.
I am 10 years late to the AUDREY NUNA hype, but y'all, i have arrived. I've got Blossom on repeat -- in the last thirty seconds, you can hear her grandma telling her life story in Korean. I'm reminded of Frank Ocean's Be Yourself, an interlude by Ocean's mother, Katonya Breux Riley, which makes me feel some kind of way about the missed calls from my family...
A recommendation from community member Holly L!!
Eastwind Books (based in Berkeley, CA) is an an API mom and pop bookstore that specialize in Asian American Studies/Ethnic Studies books, but they offer a wide variety of genres by non-API authors too!
Drop your favorite bookstores (esp if they're Asian or BIPOC owned), and I'll feature them in a future Care Package!