Year Of Change

Only we can affect the environment and society in which we live. Many near me of late have probably heard several references or jokes coming from my mouth about "my reality" and how nothing can exist in my reality without my recognition and approval of its existence. To some extent I do actually believe in this mindset. The dispute here lies within the understanding of the subconscious and the power and hold the mind has over us despite our level of consciousness. But all of that aside, and despite whatever personal beliefs you have, it seems to me that dominion and shepherdhood of our social and conscious existence depends greatly upon our level of participation within that existence.

In other words, there can be no change without those who are willing to make change happen. There can be no leaps without those willing to take the first step. In order to reach great heights man must often stand on the shoulders of the giants before him. And further, we must become directly involved in being the change we wish to see around us individually.

On more than one occasion I have been told by friends how anxious they are to relocate. How life will be better in a new town, a new state, a new country... maybe simply just a new neighborhood or job. I try to humbly express my personal motto learned many years ago by virtue of punk rock and veganism (and the relatively difficult task of finding either in late 1990's rural Midwest America - another story for another time). Put simply, "a place is only as good as you make it." No matter where you go, there you are. The thing that differentiates between most locations for me is the people located in each, their morals, ethics, values... the lengths they are willing to go to in order to progress their local communities. Even today I have to take inventory and look around, I ask myself what are WE doing to better ourselves, our environment, our community. What battles are we willing to fight what efforts are we willing to support.

Of late I have taken to catching an episode of the television series The Tudors in my spare time. Some may say that quoting or referencing a popular television show over the history it represents is juvenile and ignorant but I feel the medium has become for better or worse a relevant part of our culture. In the third season of the show, the commoners from the North of England start a rebellion of sorts in an effort to save their holy houses of worship from desecration and to maintain the right to honor ceremony, rite and ritual of a belief system that was under the threat of complete reformation, in this case Roman Catholicism (If you don't know the show is essentially about Henry VIII and how his insatiable lust changed politics and religion forever). The thing that really stood out most to me was the reoccurring theme that these men were not only willing to fight for their beliefs, but willing to die for them as well. And die they did, most without any recanting of their forthright beliefs.

I do not ask any of you to die for your causes, quite the opposite. I ask you to live for them. I ask that in this coming year we ALL do what we can to execute a change for the better in our lives, our communities, our cities and states and countries, and our world. If we all apply ourselves in this coming year of 2011, the effect will be monumental. Here at ANOMALY we have already taken a head start, and are looking forward to continuing with pride.

I personally have made a change for myself and my health to a macrobiotic diet, one that requires abstinence from refined sugars and processed ingredients along with a healthy intake of balance in all things in life. We as a shop just had our annual Jeff Edgarian Bowl-A-Rama which raised $500 for the Glendale Humane no-kill animal shelter. We have plans in the works to do fundraisers for the Pasadena Bad Weather Shelter (a high tolerance homeless shelter here locally), The Pasadena Ronald McDonald House, a charity that houses families with children hospitalized far from their homes, a holiday portrait event for the low income families of the Pasadena Area, and we also plan to host an art show and donate a percentage of our daily sales in January to help raise funds for relief in Haiti (it's been a year and things are still ridiculous there). We will update and announce more information for each of these events as they progress on our website at www.anomaly2.com, you can also find information on our facebook fan page at www.facebook.com/anomalypiercing. We are very interested in what you are doing, how you are making change, and if you need our help... what we can do to assist you. Please feel free to tell us by commenting on this blog or by emailing us at anomalyart@gmail.com. I apologize for any typos, this netbook loves to drop letters and add extras when I'm hunting and pecking.

Happy New Year to you all, let's make 2011 the best yet of our lifetimes. Remember, according to some it may be the last full calendar year we have. :)

Sincerely,

Brett Perkins

Explanation of Body Piercing Services and Cost

Explanation Of Piercing Hierarchy

At ANOMALY our piercing fees vary depending on which piercing artist is performing the service. In addition to our regular staff, we have a network of qualified and educated piercers the world over who occasionally grace us with their talents. These guest artists all have their own skill sets and are evaluated just as our full-time staff to determine where they fit in the pricing hierarchy. We hope this little blog helps explain it all a little better.

• Apprentice Piercer

Apprentice Piercers are training for a profession in body piercing. They have usually taken countless hours of continuing education pertaining to body piercing. In some instances an Apprentice Piercer may have been a piercer for years at another studio but due to ANOMALY's strict environmental criteria they may be spending a probationary period as an apprentice until they have been qualified to pierce at ANOMALY unsupervised. Apprentice Piercers practice under the supervision of a Senior or Master Piercer on an appointment only basis. They may not be extremely experienced in many piercings and allowing them to work on you gives them the hands on experience they need to transition into becoming a Junior Piercer.

ANOMALY currently does not have an Apprentice Piercer on staff.

• Junior Piercer

A Junior Piercer is a piercing technician who typically has less than six years of professional piercing experience. They are competent at standard body piercings and in rare instances may be qualified to perform more advanced piercings. The Junior Piercers at ANOMALY are usually more educated in their field and more experienced than many head piercers at some other shops, so please do not fear they are inexperienced.

ANOMALY currently has one Junior Piercer on staff, Kenneth Crespo.

He works Monday through Saturday from 1 pm until 4 pm.

• Senior Piercer

A Senior Piercer is a piercing technician who has six or more years of professional piercing experience. In addition, Senior Piercers have been qualified by the Master Piercer to perform most advanced piercing techniques. Senior Piercer is an achievement level that many professional body piercers aspire to reach, with few actually obtaining the rank.

ANOMALY currently has one Senior Piercer on staff,

scheduling varies through the month of October 2012.

• Master Piercer

The title Master Piercer was introduced by Gauntlet, the first professional body piercing establishment in North America. Though Gauntlet closed many years ago, ANOMALY keeps this tradition alive in an effort to reward outstanding piercers and pay homage to our forefathers. ANOMALY's Master Piercer is an individual that has 10 or more years of professional piercing experience with special focus on advanced procedures and techniques. The Master Piercer usually has experience working in various situations in numerous studios and is good at troubleshooting piercing related problems. Master Piercers have an extensive knowledge of jewelry composition and aftercare and often teach seminars and classes in an attempt to advance the industry as a whole through dissemination of education. The Master Piercer is the most knowledgeable and senior piercer on staff, and all other piercing technicians look toward him/her for professional guidance when in doubt.

ANOMALY currently has one Master Piercer on staff, Brett Perkins.

He works by appointment booked in advance.

Explanation Of Services

Different services require different lengths of time to perform. For instance a genital piercing may require a certain amount of "comfort time" in order for the client to feel secure disrobing and continuing with the piercing in front of a stranger (namely, the piercer). Some piercings because of technique may require a little added talent or special devices to perform them. The price of services vary because of these factors. In addition we also charge different prices based upon the level of seniority and experience of the piercer performing them (as explained in the previous section). The following gives some examples of services and their fees, not including jewelry (that's another blog entry of its own for the future).

• Standard Piercings

Most piercings including: navel, eyebrow, tongue, ear cartilage, ear lobe, nostril, lip, nipples. Any pair is considered two standard piercing fees (both nipples, both ears, both sides of the lip) as it takes approximately the same time and amount of supplies to perform each one. There is no discount for getting two of the same type of piercing (including ear lobes).

Apprentice Piercer Standard Service Charge, $10 each plus jewelry

Junior Piercer Standard Service Charge, $35 each plus jewelry

Senior Piercer Standard Service Charge, $50 each plus jewelry

Master Piercer Standard Service Charge, $70 each plus jewelry

• Surface Piercings

Piercings that have an entrance and exit point on the same plane or surface of the skin including: nape (back of the neck), wrist, sideburns, anti-eybrow, clavicles (below the collarbones), sternum (bony area in the "valley" between the breasts). Surface piercings may require more time, more supplies, or specialized tools.

Junior Piercer Surface Service Charge, $50 each plus jewelry

Senior Piercer Surface Service Charge, $75 each plus jewelry

Master Piercer Surface Service Charge, $100 each plus jewelry

• Single Point Piercings

Single Point Piercings are a newer form of surface piercing where the jewelry only as one barbell rise above the skin, and some type of base secured beneath the skin. Some other names for these are microdermals, or surface anchors. Single Point Piercings usually require additional time, tools, materials, and an advanced skill set in case of variables.

Junior Piercer Single Point Service Charge, $50 each plus jewelry

Senior Piercer Single Point Service Charge, $75 each plus jewelry

Master Piercer Single Point Service Charge, $100 each plus jewelry

• Genital Piercings

Male or female genital piercings require a special set of skills all their own. There is also more time needed and sometimes more supplies, especially if bleeding exists. Common male genital piercings include: Prince Albert, Apadravya, Ampallang, Dydoes, Guiche, Frenum, Hafada. Common female genital piercings include: Vertical or Horizontal Clitoral Hood, Inner or Outer Labia, Fourchette (perineum), Triangle, Christina (mons pubis), Princess Albertina (female urethral piercing).

Junior Piercer Genital Service Charge, $50 each plus jewelry

Senior Piercer Genital Service Charge, $75 each plus jewelry

Master Piercer Genital Service Charge, $100 each plus jewelry

• Etching

Etching is a form of scarification created with a standard electro-magnetic tattoo machine. The process is similar to getting tattooed, without any external pigment involved. The intention is to leave behind a very subtle or intricate design that heals in an ever so slight variance of the skin's natural tone. This form of body art was made extremely popular in New Orleans at Elayne Angel's studio Rings of Desire.

Etching by Brett Perkins, $200 per hour

EXACTLY ONE YEAR LATER!

Well I seem to have consistent timing this go round, it was exactly a year ago that I last posted on this blog. I was never able to get it to function properly with our website at anomaly2.com, so I have given up on that. Now what I'd like to do is save a plethora of information on this blog, like aftercare suggestions, and biographical information about ANOMALY employees. Then link specifics from our website to the blog post related to that information. Surely you tech nerds out there know an easy way to do this.

Anyway, we are preparing for several things coming up: bowling event on the 28th, new year's eve on the 31st (Christmas is in there too)... so much going on and the next year will only be busier. Let's see if I can actually start using this blog for something besides complaining about never using it. I changed the layout on it today, much happier about that.

Soon we'll get it all going and linked together.