So my friend Tina had this thing Friday night, right? She's raising money, and she had a party at Cafe Negril. Ten bucks for all the beer you can drink and a silent auction. Sonya and I went.

The only thing I was really interested in was the fifty dollars worth of product from Electric Ladyland, a local tattoo and piercing joint. I dropped Sonya off while I went to park the car, and when I got to the bar she had already put me down for it.

And I won!

Now, I've got a tattoo artist and she doesn't work at Electric Ladyland. That's cool, though; I figured I'd just get something pierced. So Saturday afternoon - after a bit of Christmas shopping and a trip to Martin's - we went to Electric Ladyland on Frenchmen.

I spoke to Erin when I got there and shortly thereafter - there were two people ahead of me - I got the right nipple pierced. Yes, now I have a matching set.

Does it hurt? Yes. See, she had to put this clamp on so she'd hit just the right spot - I have a vein near the surface on that nipple that caused her some concern. The clamp hurt like extra crispy hell. The piercing itself was just one good stab, then the ring was in place.

If you're going, I recommend Erin very highly.