Two days after receiving his first tattoo, a major event in Jesse Noll’s life inspired him to get a second one in the same month. The fresh tattoos are on each of his forearms.

Noll, a senior advertising major, saw a movie in his sophomore year interpretation of film class that lingered with him. The film, “The Hours,” is based on the Virginia Woolf story “Mrs. Dalloway,” and although Noll had previously never read the story, it is now his favorite movie.

In the movie, the actress who played Woolf, Nicole Kidman, says the quote, “You cannot find peace by avoiding life.” This phrase really struck a chord with Noll.

“For the longest time I would sort of internalize all of my emotions and basically wouldn’t tell anyone anything,” Noll said. “Then, once everything bottled up long enough, I would just kind of explode and have an emotional breakdown.”

Zach Barlow | Assistant Photo Editor

It was through this quote from “The Hours” that Noll said he realized this is not the right way to live. He explained that the quote is about attacking problems and life head-on, and it is through this that you find happiness.

Since seeing the movie, Noll has changed his lifestyle and been happier than ever, he said. He tattooed the quote on his left forearm at the tattoo parlor, White Tiger Tattoo, in Rochester, New York, to remind himself to never bottle his problems up anymore.

He said it is ironic that two days after he received this tattoo during winter break, his grandmother passed away. Immediately, Noll knew he wanted to get another tattoo to commemorate his grandmother. He got it at the end of January.

“My grandma’s three passions in life were watching baseball, reading books and watching for deer,” Noll said. “I didn’t want a tattoo of a baseball on my arm, and I didn’t want a tattoo of a book, so I decided to go with a deer.”

Zach Barlow | Assistant Photo Editor

The tattoo is made of geometric shapes to create a “funky” version of a regular deer head. The head also has purple shading to commemorate his grandmother’s favorite color.

Noll recalled how much his grandma loved to watch the deer whenever they went on car rides or whenever they were in her backyard. Whenever she would spot one, Noll said, she would make sure to call him over to see. Sometimes his mother would take his grandmother to a local park just to sit and watch the deer by the pond.

“I think my whole family and I kind of obsess over deer a little bit more than most people,” Noll said. “It’s one of those things that just stuck with me.”

Published on March 22, 2016 at 12:01 am

Contact: lmeyers@syr.edu