Today's fortune: January 6, 2011

Today's fortune: Do something unusual tomorrow.

Yesterday's fortune: Now is the best time for you to be spontaneous. Serendipity!
Okay. I have to publish this before I chicken out.

Tomorrow, I'm going to do something both spontaneous and unusual. Something I never thought I'd do. Something I hope my mother doesn't read about (although I know she will, and I know I'll be getting a phone call soon).

Tomorrow evening, after work, I'm going to get a tattoo.

This may not sound spontaneous or unusual to you, but to me, it is. I never imagined I'd have a tattoo. When my wife told me she wanted to get a tattoo a few years ago, I freaked out. I thought they were gross and disgusting, and I came damn close to uttering the words, "I forbid you to do this!" But I stopped myself when I remembered she is fully capable of kicking my ass.

Jamie got the tattoo. I think it's really beautiful. But up until today, I never fathomed getting one myself.

This is a huge leap for me. And it makes this project seem much more real.

After I thought of a tattoo this afternoon, I struggled a bit with the idea. Not because of the pain, or the permanent disfigurement of my body, but moreso because of the expense. I can afford a tattoo, but I think there's a little more purity in following fortunes for free.

But I've been doing this project for a week now and I haven't really done anything. I need to do something big to prove to my readers, and to myself, that I'm in this 100 percent.

So a tattoo it is.

No, I'm not going to get a tattoo of a fortune cookie. That wouldn't be spontaneous enough.