par-tay, rivals & the cops - (& poem)

It was on a Friday that one of the older homies decided he was going to throw a party at his tiny little shack on Echo Park Ave.- right across the street from the Lerner Gas Station now known as Magic Gas, which really is magic too, the way it just disappears from my tank in the blink of an eye!
So we were ready to party and at night came so did all the homies. We assumed the position and held up the wall. (so to speak) This was one gang style stance we did to show that we were "holding our own" or "backing the hood" so that everyone who passed by knew they were in OUR territory.

The lil shack was filled up with all 10 or 15 people and not a single one more!
The rest of us were out in front doing our thing. I don't remember ever worring about the cops driving by, but i do about a particular rival street gang and maybe some gun fire so we always kept a look out.
Sure enough, almost as if right on time, a carload cruised on by, fast at first and up on Morton off to the side, then again but much slower this time and on the Avenue.
Well needless to say, words were exchanged along with the gang motions etc.

Now the very next drive-by they did was just after the cops that pulled up and were about to hassle all of us. One of the homies got this brillant idea of how to get these cops off our backs. He came up right quick and told the cops that this car full of gang members had just fired off a few rounds at us. look, he said and showed them a bullet hole that was in the window on the shack. (that had been there for awhile already) Well as it works out, the carload had once again passed by as if right on Q!
Talk about perfect timing!
When they seen the cops they took-off in a hurry from Morton down Echo Park Ave.
The cops saw this and quickly jumped into their patrol car and chased them and pulled them over just past Scott Ave. They pulled them all out of the car and had the gang members spread-eagle on the ground in the middle of the street.
Another back-up car quickly arrived and we could see the whole thing going on from up the street. We all decided to run on down closer to mock the gang now on their faces kissing OUR neighborhood ground.

A couple of us again decided to start throwing our empties at them! (cops and all) It didn't matter to us and besides now was a 2 for 1 kinda night. Bottles were flying from all over and i wasn't too crazy about that idea cause i saw it a little more as they were hepling us out, but it really didn't matter. All i know is that we all had to run , and fast cause other cops were comming and you could hear the distant sirens getting closer and closer. No one got caught and that was the end of that party...... til we moved it somewhere else!

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*The Clock Ticks (Time Moves Along)


One person dies and time just moves along
nobody cares when a persons tears flow on & on

In this world everyone's concern is themselves
never glancing to the side to see that another is caught up in hell

Time ticks on and tears still stream
as a person loses self control, hope, and yet another dream

One homeboy ending up killed is more blood being spilled
Spilled out in to these stupid ass streets
where the minds are ruthless and the gunclips are filled

Hollow point bullets aimed at the soul of one life
blast through a body like a cold penetrating knife

Time ticks on and another person dies
time ticks on and mothers, sisters, brothers, fathers cry

Crying tears of sadness and deep gasping pain
about a life and soul that was taken in vain

Time ticks on and the world doesn't change
at least not in the streets where dying is anything but strange

With every second that passes a life is taken away
pray that it isn't your life, and death isn't the price you pay

Tears stream down cheeks like days in the week
Tears that taste sour run deep for hours

The clock ticks on and death is our lives
A tear falls down a cheek as soon as another starts to dry.

Firme..

--thanks Ryan