David Aardsma has his humor — and a temporary tattoo — as he prepares for surgery

Mariners reliever David Aardsma, who overcame offseason hip surgery only to have his right arm fall to injury, is spending the day in Southern California as he prepares for “Tommy John” elbow surgery Friday.

I don’t care if it’s a major medical procedure or a trip to the dentist, that day-before feeling isn’t fun. I can’t imagine what’s going through Aardsma’s mind right now, knowing he’s going to have major surgery in less than 24 hours, followed by a year of hard work, pain and recovery before he’ll pitch again.

What Aardsma does have is his sense of humor.

Yesterday, while at Venice Beach, Calif., his wife Andrea got an idea. Why not get a temporary tattoo that actually could serve as a handy reminder for the surgeon, Dr. Lewis Yocum, and his crew tomorrow?

So Aardsma got a temporary tat on the inside of his left elbow. It read: “Other Arm.”

Thanks to David for letting me use the photo, which was part of an interesting series of Tweets (you can follow him at @TheDA53).