I'm not a fan of "busy" sleeve tats. Some I've seen lose the artistic expression and just look like a blended mess of ink. Others are done so nice that one doesn't have to ask what it is or mean.
As far as people being judgmental at church, we have many over 80 and they can be stuck in their ways on what is appropriate. I don't hide them anymore. They are a part of me that have special memories of those who I love who have passed.
I'd rather people know me for me rather than for my tats and pass judgement. Which unfortunately some narrow minded people can do in all walks of life.
One thing I have noticed on these threads whenever the topic of tattoos comes up is just how extraordinarily defensive some people are about their tattoos.
It is entirely your choice - or an individual's choice - to get them, but do bear in mind that tattoos may well give rise to strong (negative) reactions.
Despite probably not being able to get one, I may take the leap if I ever get to Hong Kong. There is one old school tattoo artist there who does traditional Chinese animals and things that have captivated me for the first time in a long time. If I was going to get some Chinese phrase tattooed I would go to the source and KNOW what the heck the characters mean rather than presuming. I've heard way too many stories about folks getting Chinese character tattoos that wound up meaning something entirely different and thus are embarrassing.
My workaround for not getting tattoos is making sure my characters have them or design ones I probably wouldn't get.
For me, I love artistic tattoos and tattoos which have meaning. I ultimately judge a person by their character (nice, not nice) nothing else.
Now, that is an interesting post, and I can see where you are coming from.