PV community reflects on its tattoos
Dayna Lane
Mrs. Dayna Lane, a PV special education teacher, has a tattoo of a key on the back of her calf. Branded across the key says “patience.”
Lane received the tattoo at Screamin Ink in Fair Lawn when she was 26 years old to remind her to have patience in her professional and personal life.
“I had actually seen it [the design] on a t-shirt,” Lane said. “It really spoke to me, my life, and what I do for a living.”
Lane’s husband, Jim Lane, went with her, but this was not his first tattoo. Lane’s husband has many; his first tattoo is a portrait of his late father as an angel and his most recent tattoo is an eagle across his chest.
“[When getting a tattoo,] go to a very reputable place because it is not something that you want to cheap out on,” Lane said.
Anthony Judilla
Mr. Anthony Judilla, a science teacher at PV, has a tattoo of Po the panda from “Kung Fu Panda” on his upper right arm.
Judilla got the tattoo at 18 years old as freshman in college. The idea of a panda tattoo started as a joke between him and his college friends. After thinking about it more and looking at different designs, he knew that this would be the perfect tattoo for him.
“All through high school, I was the panda guy,” Judilla said. “They’re fun and they represent innocence and gentle spirit. They’re not really racist because they are Asian, black, and white. It was just me.”
Judilla got his tattoo done at 12 Ounce Studios in Brooktown. He recalls the tattoo artists being really nice and the tattoo not being too painful. Judilla said that the shading of the panda was the most painful part of the entire tattoo.
He says that he is considering getting another tattoo in the future, such as the dharmachakra, a Buddhist symbol, and a bamboo stick attached to his original Po tattoo.
“As long as it [the tattoo] has meaning to you, get it for you,” he said. “Make sure it’s not something you would regret in the future.”
William Rawson
Mr. William Rawson, an English teacher at PV, has a tattoo of a raven with a golden ring in its beak, perched on a branch. The initials of Rawson’s late brother, RSR, are etched into the bark on the branch.
The tattoo is a modern representation of the Rawson family crest, which is the head of the raven with the gold ring in its mouth and a castle. Rawson thought of getting a tattoo of the logo for the band King Crimson for most of his life, but after some hardships in his personal life, he decided to get something dedicated to family.
“My other brother isn’t as big a fan of that band as I am, but I had mentioned it to him a while ago and then he went and got a tattoo of that.” Rawson said.
Rawson stated that the tattoo itself was very painful and took 3 hours because it is so detailed. Rawson got the tattoo done at Shotsy’s in Wayne because the artist was recommended to him.
“Think it through make sure that what you’re doing is what you really want to have on your body for the rest of your life and you will know when that idea comes,” Rawson said.
John Murtaugh
Mr. John Murtaugh, a history teacher at PV, has a tattoo of a shamrock over his heart, along with the words “Erin Go Bragh.” Translated from Gaelic, this means “Ireland forever.”
Murtaugh’s tattoo is a representation of his Irish heritage. His great grandfather came from Ireland and was a mercenary in the Civil War for the Rhode Island regiment. Murtaugh’s heritage is a very important part of his life, so he wanted to get a tattoo as a form of remembrance.
The night of his high school graduation in 1978, Murtaugh went to a tattoo parlor in Bergenfield. He spent $30 on his tattoo, which was all of his graduation money. The tattoo artist was a man they referred to as “Lumpy.”
“My brother was my role model growing up,” Murtaugh said. “He got an earring, so I got an earring, and he got a tattoo, so I wanted a tattoo. I lost him recently. He is gone but not forgotten. My sisters and I recently were considering getting a small tattoo in his memory.”
Although Murtaugh has no regrets about his tattoo, he does not think he will get any more tattoos, unless he were to get one in honor of his older brother.
“It hurt like hell and I’ll never forget it,” Murtaugh said. “I was smoking a cigarette and I remember Lumpy saying to me, ‘If you don’t put that thing out and stop blowing smoke in my face, I am gonna stop doing the tattoo.’ I did it one more time and he made me throw the cigarette out.”
Murtaugh believes that tattoos should be located in areas that will not compromise employment opportunities.
“For example, you shouldn’t get one on your neck or anywhere like that because not only can it cause you to not be hired, it will fade from the sun,” Murtaugh said. “Other than that, I think if you really know what you want, go for it.”
Sam Riley
Samantha Riley, a 2016 PV graduate, has many tattoos, including roses on her collarbone, a rabbit on her wrist, a small cartoon of a bear and a rabbit on her left arm, a portrait of two men on her thigh, a cat on her right ankle, and a small dot on each finger tip.
Riley’s first tattoo was the rose with leaves on her collarbone which she had planned on getting for years. Riley got the tattoo done at her cousin’s tattoo shop, Grit n Glory in New York City, 2 weeks after her 18th birthday.
“My grandma is a crazy hoarder and I never saw her house growing up because she wouldn’t let people come over,” Riley said. “She would always tell me about these roses she grew in her garden. She worked really hard on growing them and had them as a part of her house, so I wanted to get something that she really loved.”
Riley’s second tattoo is the bear and bunny rabbit cartoon on her left arm. Riley was inspired to get this tattoo after an artist that she had followed since middle school, @rubyetc on Instagram, posted a comic about three animal best friends. Since Riley loved the artist, she decided to get the tattoo, and her friend, Alex, got a matching one. The tattoo was done by Andrew Ozimek at Scott Hill Tattoo in Closter.
Riley’s third tattoo portrays two men kissing on her thigh, surrounded by flowers. Riley was inspired by the poem “a love letter from Lucifer to the only human he’s ever felt a deep connection to,” and wanted to get art that matched the poem’s meaning. She got the tattoo at Gristle Tattoo shop in New York City by Lili.
“I found an artist and knew I wanted her work because I saw it and her art had the right look for the feeling the poem has,” Riley said.
The fourth tattoo is an outline of a cat on her calf. Riley got the tattoo for an ASPCA fundraiser that was held at her cousin’s tattoo shop, Grit N Glory. The money collected from the tattoos was donated to the ASPCA. Later, for fun, Riley got tattoos of small dots on the tip of each of her fingers.
Riley’s most recent tattoo is of a rabbit on her right wrist. She wanted to get something that reminded her of the storybooks she read as a child. She found the drawing online after an artist she followed posted it and allowed customers to take the idea.
“Make sure you find the right artist and don’t just go to someone because it’s convenient,” Riley said. “Be really picky about who tattoos you, remember that your tattoo is for you, don’t get it because you think other people might like it.”
Ryan Muska
Ryan Muska, a senior at Pascack Valley, has a tattoo of a cross with Romans 10:13 and his older brother’s initials, MAM, for Mark Andrew Muska on his upper left arm.
Muska got the tattoo on his 18th birthday in honor of his brother who he lost to suicide.
“I was supposed to get my first tattoo with my brother when I turned 18, but due to his untimely death, we were never able to get one together,” Muska said. “So I decided to get one in honor of him instead.”
Muska got the tattoo at Revolution Tattoo Parlor in Pearl River, N.Y.
“It was weird. I don’t really like needles, the guy told me it was just a pin,” Muska said. “It felt like a vibration and it made my fingertips tingle.”
He believes that if you are planning on getting a tattoo, it should be something that has a great meaning to you since it is going to be on your body for the rest of your life.
Muska says that he does not regret his tattoo and wants to have more, including a shark on his forearm.