from: Kim B.
to: tiangotlost@gmail.com
date: Tue, Jun 29, 2010 at 8:43 AM
subject: Tattoo

Your blog is fascinating. I have attached a picture of the tattoo I have on my left shoulder blade.

I got it while in New Orleans and like the shape of it, I'm just not sure how it translates. When people ask, I usually tell them: Stupid American (although at the time I was told it means beautiful or beauty).

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Kim B.



If this character is intended to be "beauty", 美, then it is missing a horizontal stroke. However, the joke does not stop there.

Chinese character for sheep is 羊, and what Kim B. has on her shoulder blade does indeed look like sheep with a little dropping.

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from: mike h.
to: tiangotlost@gmail.com
date: Wed, Jun 30, 2010 at 11:28 AM

Hi,

I have a similar story to those posted on your blog, my sister allowed a trainee to practise his 'art' after a day of indulgent partying and likewise has no idea what this 'disaster' means.

I really hope you can help.

Many thanks.



Whoever got this probably over-stretched a book on a copy machine. The characters size are inconsistent. My favorite part is the tattooist even included the period behind 經.

妙法蓮華經 is Lotus Sutra.

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from: tim
to: tiangotlost@gmail.com
date: Fri, Jun 11, 2010 at 2:32 PM
subject: tattoo interpretation

A coworker of mine has a tattoo he got while he was out partying a couple a years ago and has absolutely no idea what it means. Can you tell us?

Thanks,

Tim



Why would anyone be proud of tattoo that says: "to commit any imaginable evil"?

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from: john r.
to: tiangotlost@gmail.com
date: Fri, Jun 25, 2010 at 2:58 AM
subject: tattoo translation help please...

Hi There

I have enjoyed reading through your blog a few times and this weekend talking to my girlfriends sister, I felt need to ask you for help. She was showing me her tattoo, that she had a few years back which is supposed to be Heavenly Girl in Chinese. Having looked at the characters, I recognised the first as being the Japanese Kanji for Heaven, Im not sure it means the same in Hanzi or not, but I could not recognise the last two characters as anything related to girl or woman. Although I can recognise the first character as 天 - (sky, heaven) and the last character which I think is 吏 - (government official, official), the middle character is awkward. I think it is 丁- (leaf, block, cake), giving 天丁吏, which I don't know how this would work combined, but all these are Japanese translations anyway. Any chance you can shed a little more light on this?

Thanks very much for your time

John



It is 天使 or "angel" with 使 not clearly written.

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Tatttoo Kanji - Kanji Tattoos

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