At fifteen years old (around '93), I started piercing myself..... poorly. Despite my lack of knowledge or expertise, I continued to do so for the next few years. I learned as much as possible from anywhere possible, as I began to pierce my friends as well. I had fallen in love with the art!

At 18 I was lucky enough to get an informal apprenticeship with a piercer who was willing to teach me everything he knew. He spent about a year teaching me everything I was doing wrong, and how to do it right (THANKS, AL!). I found out how lucky I was not to have hurt myself or someone else, which is is why I'm so adamant about trusting only a professional. In addition to learning site preparation, placement, and appropriate jewelry, I also learned proper disinfection techniques, sterilization, and aftercare procedures (modeled after those of the Association of Professional Piercers).

I spent the next few years piercing on and off, doing mostly private parties and appointments. I also used this time to hone my skills and experiment with different techniques to reduce pain, bruising, and swelling at piercing sites. It was after this time that I started working at a new shop, called Blood, Sweat, and Ink.

In April of 2000, after a few months at B.S.I., I established Valhalla Body Piercing, Inc. This allowed me to help the fledgling shop with expenses, while having the ability to control all jewelry orders. It was vital for me to be able to choose quality over price, while building an inventory of sizes and styles appropriate for a wide variety of uses. It wasn't long before I was running the shop, and many people thought I owned it. My reputation as a piercer was growing, but with the loss of the shop's top artist, the reputation for tattoos was suffering.

The shop owner was about ready to throw in the towel. This is when I suggested he take on Troy Chartier as head artist. Within less than a year, Troy bought the assets of B.S.I. and opened South Side Tattoo. I continue to operate Valhalla Body Piercing from this same location with only a few changes. We've re-decorated, and cleaned up the place. I've greatly expanded my jewelry selection, which includes implant grade stainless steel, titanium, acrylic, and 14KT gold, as well as numerous other styles which can be ordered at any time. My hours are now Mon. - Sat. 12pm - 9pm.

My deepest thanks go to my beautiful wife, Allyson for her love, support, and our son, Christian. I'd also like to thank my parents, Mary Ann & Ed, my brothers and sisters, my in-laws, Al G., Joe R., and anyone else I may have missed. Thank-you all ! ! !