Tomorrow’s episode of
Miami Ink will feature nursing student Angela Schommer, a mermaid at Weeki Wachee Springs in Spring Hill, Florida. The 23-year-old traveled five hours to the famous tattoo shop, where she spent two grueling hours getting her desired body art.
“It hurt like hell,” Schommer said of her experience. “I’m sure my face didn’t look good at all.”
Throughout the whole process, Schommer gripped the chair tightly and gritted her teeth in pain. Ultimately though, she was very happy with the end result, despite expressing some hesitance about the artists’ tattoo design in the beginning.
The tattoo Angela Schommer had inked on her lower right hip and buttocks is that of a mermaid, in honor of her time at Weeki Wachee Springs.
“This is another step in the journey of mermaid land,” Schommer said to
Hernando Today with a smile.
The mermaid that serves as Schommer's tattoo is depicted as lying on her stomach with her head and tail pointing upward. The top half of the tattoo is above Schommer’s hip bone, exposing it when she dons her two-piece bathing suit for work. However, the rest of the tattoo can only be seen when she pulls down her shorts.
Weeki Wachee Springs is a popular tourist attraction that not only features mermaids like Angela Schommer performing underwater, but also animal shows and the Buccaneer Bay Water Park. On the attraction’s website, Schommer listed
Miami Ink as one of her favorite shows. John Athanson, head of promotions for the attraction, approached her about signing up for the show knowing that she had wanted to get a tattoo.
“I was super stoked when they asked me,” Schommer said. “I just went to a wedding in New York and the whole side of the building had a
Miami Ink billboard on it. Everybody watches it.”
Athanson himself is thinking about getting a mermaid tattoo of his own. He already sports a tribal band around his right arm.
“People who get tattoos don’t get them just for the hell of it,” he said. "It’s something that represents your life.”
Schommer echoed Athanson’s sentiment, saying, “They have a whole story behind them. That’s what’s interesting about getting a tattoo.”
During the filming of the episode, Schommer admitted to doing some of the scenes several times. She also said that there was a lot of horseplay going around, despite the small size of the studio.
“The guys on that show are crazy,” Schommer said. “They are singing all the time. It was a like a party all day long.”
-Lisa Claustro, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: Hernando Today
(Image Courtesy of Weeki Wachee Springs)
