In Loving Memory

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    "Our society has grown to be one that has seen people from only one perspective. What is meant by seeing people from one perspective is the fact that we have become people who tend to judge others from one particular viewpoint. Nowadays if we see a punk kid walking down the street we think right away that she or he is crazy. However we personally don't know them and what they have been through so we shouldn't come to the conclusion that they are simultaneously crazy."

            Karen Lipczynski is the most kind-hearted person you will ever meet. I still remember my first day working at McDonald's and seeing this punk-dressed short lady walking in and automatically I thought to myself, "Who is this crazy person?" Therefore this explains the mind set  that everyone always comes to and the judgemental beings we are. After working with her for more than a year I have gotten to know her and the obstacles she had to overcome in past years.  She would always give me an insight on her life growing up. Karen would always tell me about her dark past such as her trouble with battling her addiction with drugs, attending a High School located in a bad neighborhood to having a rough time living at home.

             While attending High School she didn't really have that many friends. Until one day she met a girl named Mandie who would change her life forever. Mandie would always take the initiative to find time to hang out with her and get to know her personally. By the time Karen was seventeen Mandie passed away due to a blood clot that trapped to her heart in her sleep. To honor Mandie Karen decided to get a tattoo that quoted Angelina Jolie in their favorite movie Girl Interrupted. Karen then stated, "There's a scene where one stiff upper crusted women is pointing at one of the girls and Angelina Jolie tweaks her finger back and says you don't point your fucking finger at crazy people and that was Mandie's kind of thing for me because she was a bit normal looking and I was the punk kid in High School so she was always  like no one fucks with you when I'm around."

             My initial assumption of the tattoo was that it was probably one of those tattoos that people get just because it was cool. At first sight  I Thought right away that the purpose of it was to honor an important character that played a huge impact and shaped  Karen to the person she is today due to the fact that "Mandie" was placed at the end of the quote. There are many assumptions that our society comes up with when the topic of tattoos is brought up in a conversation. Many of those assumptions include that it is a way of rebelling, sense of freedom, way of expression and even a way of referring to criminal history and cultural and religious practices. Different connotations and denotations often influence our opinions about specific tattoos. Media often plays an important role in influencing our opinions about certain items such as the topic of tattoos. However in this particular case I believe that Karen's tattoo has reinforced my pre-assumptions of positivity. This particular tattoo was made to commemorate a person that played a huge role into shaping the person Karen is today.