The Famuan

Issue date: 4/12/06 Section: Opinions

To do or not to do, that is the question.

The other day, I was watching a television show where a mother and father were discussing how they didn't have enough money to support their children.

They spoke about how, in order to have just enough money to get by, they had to put in extra hours at their telemarketing jobs. But here is the problem-they both have college degrees.

The reason this mother and father ended up with telemarketing jobs instead of high-power careers is because of some silly mistakes they made in college by getting so many visible tattoos.

With four tattoos on the father's neck and one on his upper cheek, and the mother's arm and neck full of tattoos, these parents are now almost destined to only work jobs that require no face-to-face communication with customers.

These young people decided to ink their body while in school.

But now, because of their choices, they have put themselves in a position which will be very hard escape.

This story isn't too far-fetched from what is seen on campus.

It is very common to see guys with that infamous Lil' Wayne teardrop under the eye or the ladies with the love of their life's name tattooed on their neck.

But what they don't know is that all of the "artwork" they are putting on their body will one day come back to haunt them.

Face the facts, young people. A head full of dreadlocks and a mouth full of gold teeth are two other things which are not generally acceptable in the business world, but, at least, they are not permanent.

But when you have an arm and face full of ink, it is safe to say that you'll probably be hearing these words whenever you show up for a job interview: "don't call us, we'll call you."

Now, I'm not saying don't go out and get that tattoo you've been craving. All I am asking is that you be conscious of where you decide to get your artwork. You won't be a college student forever, so you will want to do something with your degree besides work in telemarketing.

Deidre Mathis is a sophomore broadcast journalism student from Jacksonville. She can be reached at famuanopinions@hotmail.com.