Dudus Tattoous, this is for you-us

Sacramentans, at least the breed found in Midtown, are serious about their tattoos. Whether it’s a tiny word scrawled in Chinese characters over a hipbone or a full-color sleeve of overlapping images, the residents of this town routinely put their symbolic expression on permanent display. Kim Addonizio and Cheryl Dumesnil, editors of the new anthology Dorothy Parker’s Elbow: Tattoos on Writers, Writers on Tattoos, understand this paradoxical quest for change and permanence. Their book, named after the location of Parker’s famed star tattoo, is a collection of 50 prose and poetry pieces on the nature of tattoos in our culture. Contributing writers include literary giants like Ray Bradbury and Herman Melville as well as Auschwitz survivors, prison inmates, Vietnam veterans, cancer patients and regular people who get inked for the thrill of it. Hear their stories at a reading by the editors at 8 p.m. on Tuesday. Admission is $5. An open mike will follow. Bring your own poetry or try some tattoo show and tell. The reading will be held at Juliana’s Kitchen, 1401 G Street. Call 441-7395 for more information.