I got my first Tattoo on Tuesday from Greg Lombardi at Inkaholics Tattoo in Dinkytown, in Minneapolis (pictures to come). It was quite the experience and I found I really enjoyed the pain. But this tendency towards masochism seems to often lead me to a very unbalanced life. The tattoo was actually a good equalizer,being something I actually wanted to do, but too often I find myself so driven to excel in one thing, such as classes, that The rest of my life suffers because of it. I almost revel in the stress and pain (obsessive, compulsive perfectionist with addicting tendencies?) Balance is a tough thing to find in life, and I seem to often stay away from it.
But I find that I am only really happy when I find a little measure of it. I escape and do something that I've really wanted to do, and fuck what needs to be done.

How do you find balance in your life? Is it something that you always have, or is it something you need to work for?