More and more stories are coming out of small tattoo parlors in every Chinatown from New York to San Francisco about authentic Chinese tattoo artists who have recently decided to have a little fun with what they perceive as the “gullible and boastful American male.”
A man recently discovered that the Chinese symbols for strength and power he had requested to be tattooed over his left and right pecs were not even close.
“I was at the gym a few days after having my tattoo done and some Chinese fellow standing across from me in the locker room started laughing out loud. I thought there was someone behind me so I looked over my shoulder and realized we were the only two people in the locker room. The man started looking at my chest and saying ‘boobie, boobie.’ I thought WTF? Was he gay? When he finally calmed down a bit, he asked me whatever possessed me to get those symbols tattooed on my chest. I told him in as manly a voice as I could that I thought strength and power were two attributes I could relate to seeing as how hard I worked out at the gym to build up my chest.”
“The Chinese man then explained that perhaps the tattoo artist misunderstood what the man wanted in a tattoo because above the pecs, instead of symbols for strength and power, there were the words Boo and Bee.”
This isn’t the only story coming out of Chinese-American-run businesses. As the Chinese become more and more aware of the nonchalant way Americans are using their symbols for peace, love, harmony, power, strength, etc. as a “cool” tattoo or home accessory adornment, they are fighting back by using symbols to embarrass the Americans at every chance they can. One woman recently found that the Chinese symbols adorning her set of lovely black-and-white dinner dishes didn’t quite display what the box showed, i.e. enduring beauty, but instead the symbols spelled out deceased cow.
So next time you want to get a Chinese good luck symbol tattooed anywhere on your body that will eventually be seen by someone who can actually decipher it, be sure you are getting the real deal or you could end up with the symbol for little prick displayed proudly below your Semper Fi.