Last week I got a message from my tattoo artist that he was going to be in town for a few days, and wanted to see if there were any pieces I wanted to get done. I’ve got some ideas for larger works, but also some smaller ones. In particular I’ve been wanting to commemorate my history with technology with an image that reflects where I got my start.

My very first computer was a Commodore 64 back in 1982. I was 8 years old, and it was the most amazing thing I owned. From that computer I learned how to program, and use an operating system, and how hardware worked. It was the start of a career that has now spanned close to two decades.

To honor this, I decided I wanted an image of the CPU that powered the Commodore 64, the 6502 chip. This workhorse of a chip was an amazing piece of technology in it’s day. Systems such as the Apple IIe, Nintendo Famicom, Atari 2600 all used this chip (or variants), in addition to my beloved Commodore. It was truly a piece of my childhood in silicon form.

My artist put together a nice rendition of the chip that wasn’t just a mechanical drawing of it, but was fun and stylized. I also asked that he make it look as if it was attached to my skin, and had him place the art on my back between my shoulder blades. In other words, it looks like I’m personally powered by the 6502. Additionally, I had him use the date of 1982 for the serial number on the chip, to designate when I got my C64.

I’m very pleased with this idea and how it came out. This is a meaningful piece of my life, and this chip is responsible for the career I’ve at to this point. I felt like this was the best and more appropriate way to honor that history in tattoo form.