As I'm going through the tattoo news, I found this article in The Oregonian, which looks at Jeff Johnson, co-owner of The Sea Tramp Tattoo Co.-- the oldest tattoo studio in Portland.

But the article is less about the shop and more about Jeff's recently published book, Tattoo Machine: Tall Tales, True Stories, and My Life in Ink. 

I'm seriously looking forward to curling up to Jeff's memoir of his tattoo life because, word is, the artist knows how to tell a story, from shop pranks to tattooing a suspected serial killer.

The Oregonian says:  "There's talk that Tattoo Machine could do for tattooing what Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential did for the restaurant business -- take a snappy, irreverent look at something people are curious about but don't really understand."

You can order the book on Amazon.com for $16.50.

Or even better, if you're in Portland, pick it up at one of Jeff's readings:

• * Powell's City of Books, this Thursday at 7:30 p.m. (1005 W. Burnside St.); and
• * Broadway Books, August 4th at 7 p.m. (1714 N.E. Broadway).

Hopefully, I'll get to a proper review of my copy very soon.  Ok, the news is up next.