Inked Fanatic

BY VAL SCHOGER; PHOTOS BY KATIE DESANTIS

Joshua Lake is a fan of all Maryland sports teams. He loves all Maryland teams, so much so that he is keeping tattoo artist Brandon Adams quite busy. “My first sport-themed tattoo was actually the Baltimore Ravens’ head that I have in the middle of my shoulders. My first tattoo with Brandon Adams was the Baltimore Ravens’ shield on the top of my left arm, which is my favorite I might add.”

Born and raised in Baltimore, Joshua Lake moved to Florida with his parents when he was a teenager. “I currently still have plenty of family that lives in Maryland and I make frequent visits to attend games and show my pride. I am a dedicated fan to any team from Maryland, the Baltimore Ravens, the Baltimore Orioles and the University of Maryland Terrapins. I highly support all of the athletics for the college, male and female. I watch any and every game that I can, whether I stay home and scream until my neighbors call the cops, or I go to a sports bar and cause a commotion there. I am proud of who I am and where I came from and I believe that is important to embrace.”

Being a Maryland fan is a lifestyle that Joshua’s life partner had to adapt to. “I have turned my fiancée into an avid Baltimore sports fan. She did not care about any sports team until she met me. She knows more about football than anyone in her entire family, and we have even planned our wedding in December around the Ravens. Going to games has always been our favorite thing to do. We both enjoy the atmosphere of any NFL stadium. In the past few years we have been to Baltimore, Miami, and Tampa Bay and plan to go to New Orleans in November. As for my hobbies, I enjoy fishing at the beach and watching any sports game on television and my channels are always set to ESPN. Growing up I was on the football team in high school so I have always had a deep appreciation and love for sports. We also have an entire bedroom in our apartment dedicated to all of my Ravens memorabilia and everything I have accumulated over the years. I have so much passion for the Ravens and any person that knows me is fully aware of my obsession. My entire family shares my love for the Ravens and we call each other every Sunday to talk about the game.”

Brandon gets quite a bit of attention wherever he shows off his tattoos. “The majority of the time the reactions to my tattoos are very positive, whether we are in Florida or in Maryland, everyone bombards me with compliments and is very curious who the artist was. I even have had other Ravens fans compare their tattoo work to mine. Recently, we went to Tampa to attend a game and every Ravens fan ran up to me and asked about my tattoos. People continue to compliment my tattoos, claiming they look like “stickers” on my arm, and cannot believe that they are ink.”

Joshua is pointing out tattoo artist Brandon Adams’ great work. “Black Cat Tattoo referred us to Brandon Adams and, after a 20 minute conversation about what I wanted, Brandon revealed that his wife and entire in-law side of the family is from Baltimore. As soon as we established common ground and knew what we wanted to do, I knew I found the artist that would complete my sleeve.”

 

[box type=”shadow” align=”aligncenter” ]TATTOO ARTIST BRANDON ADAMS CAN BE FOLLOWED ON INSTAGRAM AT @BRANDONADAMS[/box]

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