'<p> Does it hurt? When you re a tattoo artist, that s the most universal question. For Chris MacDonald, the answer is simple: <i>hurts less than a broken heart</i>. Those words are painted above the entrance to his shop, Under My Thumb Tattoos, as a reminder.</p> <p>Chris and his brothers were as wild as the wind, in their house among the fields of Alliston, Ontario, when their parents divorced. Shell-shocked, they were uprooted and brought to Toronto by their dad. Their mother s mental illness worsened in the aftermath, and she disappeared. As a teenager, Chris left home and found himself immersed in the city s underbelly, a world where drugs, skateboarding, and punk rock reigned. Between the youth shelters, suicidal thoughts, and haunted apartments, a light shined: and it was art.</p> <p>He eventually found himself following the path of his brother, Rob, and pursuing life as a tattooist. Then, at the height of a destructive summer, everything changed: he met Megan, the girl who would become his rock of ages.</p> <p>This remarkable memoir examines what tattooing means to MacDonald and traces the connection his artistic motives have to both his family and childhood. <i>The Things I Came Here With</i> is about how crucial our past is to understanding our future, but it s also a love letter to his daughter about the importance of expression, life s uncertainty, and beauty. </p>'
About the book
'<p> Does it hurt? When you re a tattoo artist, that s the most universal question. For Chris MacDonald, the answer is simple: <i>hurts less than a broken heart</i>. Those words are painted above the entrance to his shop, Under My Thumb Tattoos, as a reminder.</p> <p>Chris and his brothers were as wild as the wind, in their house among the fields of Alliston, Ontario, when their parents divorced. Shell-shocked, they were uprooted and brought to Toronto by their dad. Their mother s mental illness worsened in the aftermath, and she disappeared. As a teenager, Chris left home and found himself immersed in the city s underbelly, a world where drugs, skateboarding, and punk rock reigned. Between the youth shelters, suicidal thoughts, and haunted apartments, a light shined: and it was art.</p> <p>He eventually found himself following the path of his brother, Rob, and pursuing life as a tattooist. Then, at the height of a destructive summer, everything changed: he met Megan, the girl who would become his rock of ages.</p> <p>This remarkable memoir examines what tattooing means to MacDonald and traces the connection his artistic motives have to both his family and childhood. <i>The Things I Came Here With</i> is about how crucial our past is to understanding our future, but it s also a love letter to his daughter about the importance of expression, life s uncertainty, and beauty. </p>'