Ruth's Modifications

My name is Ruth Kneale. I am employed by the Gemini Telescopes Project in Tucson Arizona USA as the Project Librarian. I am also almost done (May) with my MLIS degree fromthe U. of Arizona. The modifications came first - had them all before I started classes, and before this position morphed into its current incarnation as librarian.

So, here's the stories.

First I started getting holes punched in my ear. I have one in my right ear and eight in my left; the first set (one each ear) was done in a mall when I was a teenager. The next five in my left ear I did myself. The top two I had done by a professional piercer. All this has occurred over the course of several years, starting in 1986; the last one was done in, um, 1996.

The tattoos are very personal to me, and they each celebrate a particular major event in my life. None of them have been "flash" from the wall; I have searched for each of them until I found exactly what I was looking for.

The first tattoo, the comet (scheduled for a reinking next month), I got to celebrate graduating with my BS in astronomy. It is on the middle upper curve of my left breast.

The second is the Oriental cat, on my right ankle between my anklebone and my heel (none of these "ankle" tats that are really halfway up the calf!). That one celebrates a personal epiphany I had in August of 1995... which lead to decisions and events in my life in 1996 which were very hard to deal with.

The third tat is the phoenix, on the point of my right shoulder. It celebrates _surviving_ 1996.

I have many future ones planned; next up is a modified Winnie-the-Pooh/book motif, for when I graduate next May. Others as life throws things at me.

I have no rant; most folks don't notice my tattoos unless I point them out (which I actually enjoy doing; I have a great artist now [hence the comet reinking]), and I have worked with folks for the past seven years who have just noticed the multiple earrings. It's not like I have long hair to hide them or anything!

Visit Ruth on the Internet

• Ruth's House of Fun
• The Gemini Observatory

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