Great post.
Personally, I have about 16 tats. Almost quarter sleeves, upper back and lower left leg and ankle. No I was never in the military. Most are taken from my research of ancient Hawaii.
One tat I just found the origin the other day, even though I have had it for years. A guy at my gym taught ancient warfair of the Hawaiian islands at UH and informed me after asking me specifically about my one tat. You see, in the 1400-1500 a boy who wished to become a warrier had to pass a series of tests. One is heboy was and taken to the Na pali coast. From there, he had to make his way back across the mountains blindfolded. This often took months. This was a test of his knowledge of the land. Another was the next test was one of warfare. If, after passing the Na pali coast test, and before he reached the age of 17, he killed an enemy male in war he would be awarded a tat to show his courage. The mask is used to hide his identity.
Some people judge me by my appearance. No one guesses I'm an attorney.
