"Since I was a young man (I played the silver ball)" I've wanted my eyebrow pierced. Facial piercings, especially eyebrows, were still relatively new and uncommon and still seemed different during the years I yearned to have it done. I'm not even sure what sparked the notion in my pre-pubescent noodle to have a metal ring shoved through the meaty part of my face above my eye. I just knew it looked badass and I wanted one. It wouldn't be until the ripe and experimental age of 19 that the subject of my narcissistic self-modifying fantasy would become a reality.

I was sitting in one of the better-known Canadian doughnut/coffee franchises with a good friend of mine when I decided I was going to have it done. My friend was surprisingly supportive and took me back a little when he said he was interested in getting a piercing as well. About three days later a few other friends had learned of my plan to alter my face. We had all agreed to go into a local piercing shop on-the-fly to see if we could all get some work done. Walk-ins were welcome to our relief, just as soon as a previously booked appointment was through. Needless to say, the 15 minutes that followed contained enough tension, nerves and butterflies you would swear something cliche could hypothetically happen (but it didn't).

I had been looking around the shop inspecting for cleanliness and observing the various jewelry offered when I was finally called to be seated. I entered the small-ish room that contained two chairs that looked like they belonged in a salon. I took my seat with a huge smile on my face. My friends started snapping photos of me while the piercer went to work. I had decided to go with two piercings side by side in my left eyebrow. My piercer marked the location of each ring. I checked it over and decided I wanted them closer together. I was cautioned that having both pieces so close would affect the healing time and increase the risk of having them migrate in the future. I began to hesitate on my decision but eventually went ahead with my idea. I leaned back in the chair, had the area cleaned and had an ultra-cold liquid squirted on my eyebrow. We ended up calling the stuff Polar Bear piss because it felt colder than ice water. Although I was put at ease that I was having some freezing done I no longer condone the use of local anaesthetic as it really doesn't do much and takes away from the piercing experience. The first needle and ring went in without me realizing. I experienced a bit of pressure with the second needle simply because it was being inserted so close to where I had just been pierced seconds earlier. After the second ring slipped in my piercer placed the two hematite beads and closed the rings. I shot out of my seat to check my bad-assery out in the mirror. A little bit of blood came out the holes just put in my face so it made the pictures look righteous. Either I shot up too fast or I had a reaction to the Polar Bear piss but I soon realized that I needed to sit down. I felt nauseous for a little while and the staff offered me water and let me know where the bathroom was. After I had a little time to relax and drink a bit I felt much better and started to feel the throb in my face. I was given aftercare instructions and was recommended switching to barbells once my piercings healed.

Later that evening my friend accidentally gave me a black eye. We had been horsing around and he hit the side of my face without realizing I had just gotten pierced. The area around my eye swelled and changed from pearlescent purple to a sickly yellow-green over the next two weeks. This would prove to be the start of a love/hate relationship with my first piercing(s). For whatever reason I could just not adjust to having metal sticking out of my face. I loved the way the rings looked, but they just weren't practical. I bumped them when I slept, when I dried my hair and when I was with my girlfriend (I'll leave you to your sick imagination). I always had small bumps at the base of each ring. I could get them under control for a short while before I bumped the piercings again and suffered another unsightly flare up. I eventually switched to barbells but they still didn't allow any further healing. I suppose the piercings really were too close together. Any time one would get bumped both suffered. My piercings were pissy little things and I dealt with them for the better part of a year when I finally decided it was time to move on. By the time I retired the piercings I realized one was starting to migrate. I still love the look of eyebrow piercings (even though they seem so normal now) but unfortunately I just don't think they suit my lifestyle. A lesson was learned, but the love of metal under my skin had just begun...