Turnstile Pottery

I was on my way to the pottery studio. I went a bit early last week and was able to get a few extra minutes so I figured I would try the same thing again.

I started walking down Brunswick St. (That's the one I live on) and I noticed a group of 15 - 20 black youth walking together on the other side of the road. A thought crossed my mind 'SWARMING' but then I thought don't be silly.

You see, swarmings have been happening around here with alarming frequency. Last week at the pottery studio we were talking about them. It all starts when you walk past a group of black youths walking together and night. One of them throws something at you and once you react , you're swarmed.

So I think to myself 'don't be silly. It's just a group of kids walking somewhere together, don't worry'. Then they started throwing lighbulbs at me. The first one hit just in front of me and I could feel the exploding glass hit the denim of my jeans. The second one hit behind me but closer than the first. One of the kids yells out 'Gun shots!' and the rest laugh. At this point I'm a little concerned and I start thinking 'don't react, just keep on walking', and that's what I did.

Luckily that was the end of the ordeal, but now I had to walk down the 'bad street'. The street that's known for this kind of thing. So I call a cab, they'll be 20 minutes. So I can't walk to the pottery studio, and I can't walk home because doing so would necessitate walking past the light bulb brigade.

Fortunately another cab drove past me and I flagged it down. He drove me to the pottery studio, waited while I discovered it was closed, and then drove me back to my apartment. The whole trip cost me less than $5, that's how close I was to where I was going.