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Saturday, February 24, 2007

I Did What I Had To Do

I took advantage of a break in the weather and went to Crapchester on Friday to get my third tattoo treatment. It hurt. So bad. Easily as bad as the first treatment, and there was a lot more blood this time. (I'm squeamish enough that typing "blood" right there kind of gave me the willies. That makes it hard to change the dressing everyday, but I do.) (Yes, those are my baggy pants and house slippers. Once you've lived in Japan, you can't be in a house without house slippers on.)

My doctor, the one with the sick sense of humor, laughed as I yelled, and said, "Ready to go on the college circuit and tell them what alcohol leads to?" (I hadn't been drinking when I got my tattoo, but point taken.) I had the nicest nurse who told me I could squeeze her hand to distract myself from the pain. What turned out to be really distracting, however, is how she didn't flinch when I thought I was crushing her little bones. I'm a weakling, it's true. I can say that I haven't felt any discomfort since the treatment, so it looks like this recovery period could be another easy one. And I have my next treatment scheduled for mid-April. I hope it only takes two or three more.

I have to say that every time I go to Rochester, it's sunny and beautiful out. It just seems like a really nice area. And every time I head back east to my little town, it's dark and cloudy. Perfect. :/

While driving home on the Thruway I was talking on my cell phone and I got pulled over by a State Trooper. I rarely get pulled over, but when I do, I don't protest or complain. I hand over my license and registration knowing I'll gladly pay whatever ticket I get because I think of how many times I've been doing something wrong and haven't been caught. So when it actually happens I just feel like it's my turn. So the guy takes my information and goes back to his car, and then returns almost immediately and knocks on my window. He has a very sheepish look on his face.

"It's your lucky day" he says. "I just locked myself out of my car. Can I use your cell phone?"

So Trooper Dan and I sat in my car (it was about 20° outside) and talked for about 40 minutes while his buddy brought him an extra set of keys. It was hilarious. (I so wanted to say, "Dude, I am totally blogging this.") Sometimes when I get to laughing I just can't stop, and this was one of those times. He was so frustrated and embarrassed, and I was just giggling myself silly. It was such an absurd situation. Eventually he started to loosen up and see the humor in it as well. When he found out that I'm a former banker he had all kinds of financial questions, so we discussed his retirement account at length. And then I had a chance to ask all the police/trooper kinds of questions that I wanted to. (Does it get boring? What was my ticket going to cost? What is the most common reason for pulling people over?) He was very gracious, and when his buddy arrived, he said to Trooper Dan, "We are NEVER going to let you live this down."

So no ticket for me, and I met a really nice person. I call that a good day. And as soon as I drove away, I called my sister to tell her all about it . . .

Update: People, people, people. You all know me better than that. If he was cute and available I would have said it in the title of the post followed by twenty exclamation points. Or I would have just taken out full-page ads in all the major newspapers to make sure everyone knew. He was cute. And married. But don't think I wasn't picturing us telling the story to our grandkids before I saw the ring.

15 comments:

  1. So what was the reason that the trooper going to give you a ticket? Speeding, or better yet, talking on your cell phone?

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  2. So what exactly is involved in the tattoo removal process? As an aspiring health care professional, I'd be interested to know.

    As the owner of quite a few tattoos myself, I'd also like to know the story behind yours and why you decided to get rid of it. You know, just in case you're trying to think of something to blog about.

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  3. Was the cop hot? Sounds like a great way to land a date. Fantasy material.

    I'm from Rochester, btw. It's a great place to...raise a family. Park Ave. area is really cool and progressive.

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  4. Too funny. Great way to luck out of a ticket.

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  5. maybe it's time to move to rochester? :-)

    that cop story is so precious. i love highway patrolmen (guess that's your trooper?) ~ so different from city cops. i don't have a problem with city cops, either, just a little fight the power stuff left over from my hippie protest days. but i know that must have just KILLED him. very nice of you to make an effort to put him at ease. cops have that invincibility front they put up ~ to do something so completely human as lock the keys in the car would put big cracks in that macho perfection presentation. and then you provided banking advice! what a woman :-)

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  6. I can't even imagine what it must be like to get a tattoo removed. I have 5 and they'll be with me to the end.

    Funny story about the trooper, and what a great way to get out of a ticket and meet someone new.

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  7. I agree with durban bud if the guy was a hottie you should have totally asked him out. You already have a reputation of being a jezabelle. :) In my book anyway !!

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  8. "Dude, I am totally blogging this." LMAO at that one!

    Like Scott and Durban, when I read "State Tropper" I thought "Was he hot???" LOL

    As for Rochester, everyone I've ever known from that town feels absolutely passionate about it. They love it. It must be a nice town.

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  9. Bri - you've been reading me so long I feel like we're siblings. There's no blog to speak of? Come on, share a little.

    Durban Bud - the weirdest thing made me think of you today. I'll let you know as soon as I can snap an illustrative pic.

    Thanks for all the hilarious comments, guys. I'll try to share a little of the tat story soon. The removal process is gruesome and painful, but supposedly the skin comes out looking completely normal without any scars. It's all done by laser, and did I mention that it hurts? I think they're just basically burning layers away one after another. It takes several treatments - sometimes ten or fifteen - and tats that are colored are much harder to remove than black tats. (Mine was black. Actually, it is still black. It looks normal but quite light now.) The cost depends on size - mine has been $200 per treatment. And I do love tats! Just not this one.

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  10. LMAO is right! Oh my gosh, i can just see you giggling w/little hope for recomposure.

    What a reality check for trooper Dan. Take that from a girl who had about a full year of locking her keys in the car...most often with it running. *sigh* I'm glad THAT season is over!

    Thought of you many times today as i was out shoveling snow :)

    mucho love - drs

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  11. THAT story has to be shared, hope you don't mind!! My fellow dispatchers will laugh, laugh, laugh!!

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  12. Married, yes. BUT happily married? How about a brother, cousin, or buddy? Never hurts to ask.

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  13. I don't think you have any idea how much stuff happens to you that NEVER happens to other people (i.e. trooper story, pretty much 90% of your "100 things" list, etc.) Seriously, the rest of us would've just gotten a ticket ;^)

    Good story, and glad to hear the tat removal is going well. Everyone I've heard talk about the process says that it hurts WAY more than getting one put on, so I admire your commitment to getting that erased. If it were me, they'd probably hit me with the laser, I'd jump up about 2 seconds later, throw a $20 at them and say, "You know, I think I can live with it...thanks."

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  14. Rainey - share away!

    Choragus - why am I not surprised at your comment? One thing I like about you is that you're always thinking. :)

    CR III - interesting comment. I definitely don't have a sense of what you're describing, although I do feel like I'm a weird-magnet sometimes.

    And I loved your comment about the tat removal process. Several times my sister and I have said - maybe my new look can be a very light tat. It does hurt WAY worse than getting one. And I do a lot of jumping and screaming during the treatment. On Friday a nurse came down the hall and into the room (closed door) and said, "What is all the hootin' and hollerin' I hear from this room?"

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  15. FYI...I've never been to Japan and I love slippers!

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