Last week, we talked about the deep longing and nostalgia connected with cowboy imagery. This week, we'll look at another reason people choose to express themselves with this kind of tattoo – the rip-roaring, hard partying and sexy side of the cowboy way of life!

Girls, girls, girls! Imagine a Texas bar, mid-summer. Music on the jukebox. Beer flowing. Girls sitting in tight jean shorts and boots while the boys lean into the bar, chatting them up. A couple of new lovers swaying languidly in the corner, lost in each other's eyes. A new song kicks in - a rowdy, boot stomping number and the place explodes with life. The guys grab the girls and hit the floor. There's dancing on the bar. A fist fight breaks out over who gets to dance with Sally and there's hoops and hollers as the night spins crazily ahead into gleeful madness! Yes, there is indeed an exciting, sexy side to the cowboy life, and you can't deny the appeal of the All-American, fun-loving cowgirl or the strong, dark and handsome cowboy.

There's a connection between the wild, fun side of Cowboy culture and the deeper, nostalgic side. At its core, both are about a life of freedom, having an untamed quality, and living on your own terms, rules and morals be damned! Whether sleeping out under the stars and riding over endless, windswept plains or drinking, dancing, fighting and shacking up, a sense of being in touch with the inner rebel that lives in all of us is something that draws people to the cowboy way of life. Another sign of the inner rebel is, of course, tattoos! It's a natural match made in heaven, a heaven that looks like open skies and painted sunsets for those who want to express this in themselves.