Shie Ji Li

although most of you saw this when you made me stand up on a bench in the middle of a crowded restaurant, here is my tattooed leg. yes, i got a tattoo. yes, it hurt like hell. yes, i fucking love it. yes, i will probably get another one. who’s got the tattoo fever? i do. once you break the skin the first time, the fear of what it’s going to be like is pretty much over. and if you’ve already got some defacement of the body action going on, what’s really standing in the way of “ruining” it a bit more? when really the ruining could also be considered as ‘enhancement.’ grins. no but really, i honestly don’t think it’s a bit deal. but then i am fairly adaptable to things. sure people can talk all they want about how in 5 years or 10 years or when i’m old i’m going to hate it and question my sanity and wish i’d never done it. but who the fuck cares. i wanted to do it RIGHT NOW. and that’s all that really matters. i’m not going to look back to this time in my life and be regretful about the things i’ve done, especially not when it was something as important to me as this is.

i got jason fong to translate it for me. it’s pronounced Shie Ji Li and stands for, ‘appreciation,’ ‘chivalous/rightous,’ and ‘strength/energy.’ i don’t think any of you really saw my father near the end of his life, but i did. and i can say that he tried really hard to be strong for us and showed my mom and brother, who were primarily taking care of him, how grateful he was and how much he loved them. he didn’t like feeling helpless and he didn’t want a lot of fuss, but he made it all the way thru our last christmas day together before passing away quietly in the night.

Shie Ji Li is the chinese name that he was given in Hong Kong, which was one of the foriegn lands he went to work in after first being diagnosed with prostrate cancer. Even though perhaps his going away was a cowardly tactic at dealing with the problem, it was his way of coping and he certainly never forgot us. And while he was working overseas he definately left a legacy of works to be proud of: the new international airport in Manilla, the railway connecting mainland China to Hong Kong in preperation for the Turnover, and the re-designed highways around London. So, my tattoo and Adam’s tattoo are in memory of our father. Shie Ji Li.