DAVID HARDEN/Arizona Daily Wildcat

1/27/02

I've wanted my ear cartilage pierced for a while, and today my sister and I went to get ours done.

People have said anything from "It really doesn't hurt at all" to "OH, it was so PAINFUL!" Being a recently reformed needle-fearer, I was nervous.

We walked into the piercing studio in San Diego, and right off, the piercing artist informed me that we had dated once, a couple of years ago. This did not help calm my nerves. It would suffice to say it was a memorable date - and not for favorable reasons.

I chose a hoop for my starter earring; my sister picked a horseshoe. While we were deciding, a guy came out of the piercing room and walked slowly out of the store. The piercer sidled up and murmured, "Does he look like he's walking funny?" I looked at him in horror, and the other piercer nodded. "Yep, he's walking funny."

We were ushered into a small room with medical equipment, a sink and a leopard-print stool. I sat down and the piercer cleaned the area, marked a spot with a marker and asked if it was the right place. He then held a cork behind my upper ear and picked up the (distressingly thick) disposable needle from the sterile tray.

"Breathe in and out three times, and on the third breath, I'm going to pierce it," he said.

When the needle went in, it felt mildly uncomfortable, the endorphins having taken the edge off the pain. The piercing artist left the needle sticking out of my ear while he grabbed the ring and twisted it in. It was a strange, disconcerting feeling but all over in a couple of minutes.

My piercing was relatively easy. My sister's was less so. After he pierced her cartilage, her ear began to swell up and bleed almost immediately. The piercer had problems pushing her horseshoe through the hole, and he struggled with it for about 10 agonizing minutes. Finally, it was in.

When we were all done, we were handed our aftercare sheets and set off for home, shaky, excited and bejeweled. Not so bad ·

1/28/02

Last night was terrible. The bead on my hoop was loose and fell off, which meant that the only thing keeping the ring from sliding out was the fact that my new hole was swollen and tight, holding it in place. I had to be careful cleaning it, and while the piercing is healing, I'm not supposed to sleep on that side. I kept waking up whenever I tried to roll over, worrying that I'd snag it on something and the ring would fall out.

When I got back to Tucson, I went straight to Halo Precision to get the bead reattached. Apparently, every piercer has his or her own version of aftercare: The first said to rotate the jewelry; Halo forbade it. Cleaning products recommended by one establishment were disdained by the other. Piercing must be more of an art than a science.

Arizona Daily Wildcat/DEREKH FROUDE AND DAVID HARDEN Whether going for a simple tattoo or a painful piercing, the options available for personal body adornment are endless.