"Hit The Road" Hobo Symbol Tattoo I got in Fiji

[Tude]

In my full of shit sometimes opinion there is no proof of the hobo symbol system ever being practically used by hobos historically or presently. Unless it was pre photography, has any one ever seen photographic evidence of actual hobo symbols?

Regardless, cool tattoo, exact same spot my cousin just gave me my up side down peace sign!!!

Interestingly enough - at least 5 yrs ago - my street had a bigger traveler groups go through and as I when I walked out to go to work via bus - on the city garbage can was a bunch of "hobo" signs. Took pic and analyzed them - took a bit - as there is not one hobo code - but many and some old and some new - BUT I rather translated it to a warning that this corner was being watched and the the people/neighbors not friendly. This is an "Ish" translation btw. I do know the intersection by my bus stop is a big main place to fly a sign and there are aggressive panhandlers - cops called all the time. hehe An Ex admin here couch surfed my place a few months and there was one cop who had is eyeballs on him every time Zim flew a sign. Wish I kept the photo of the hobo code on the garbage can.

 

[Preacher]

Today it's probably just used by the homebums which is why nobody on this site knows anything about it. We're generally travelers. It is probably also a local 'dialect'. Take a homebum from Syracuse and plop him in Atlanta and he probably wouldn't know what he was looking at. And I bet nowadays it's not more then a few 'symbols'. Not a whole language or pages of symbols.

Back during the depression, though, you had a whole country on the move and a third of the population were considered travelers or bo's or ittenerent or migrant workers. Just three things in common - dead broke, houseless and constantly on the move. Sound like anybody you know today?

Because, frankly, if this site is baffled by it...then it's not a current traveler or hobo thing unless it's being kept to word of mouth only.

 

[Curly]

View attachment 52271
My First Tattoo that I got when I was black out drunk in Fiji a couple weeks ago. Found some guy on the beach who was a tattoo artist and got it done in a Hotel room with a few other friends I met. Was a fucked up night. Now im trying to decide on my next tattoo.

Maybe you should wait for the next "black out you" to decide

 

[TayNZ]

Maybe you should wait for the next "black out you" to decide

Maybe. At the moment im thinking of getting a bindle on the bottom of my wrist.

 

[MFB]

"Hit the road" in the sense of "Go wandering and have Dean Moriarty style epic adventures". .

Just had to give props for the Cassady reference. 😊