Snowballs, Cars and Cops

One of many adventurous winter night spent running around with Paul, Perz and a few others. We decided as we did on most wintry nights in the region to throw a few snowballs at cars cruising by 45Th and Grant. Well as luck would have it on that particular night something happened we hadn't planned on. The cops were also cruising 45Th and Grant. We followed the same routine each night. Pack enough snowballs to quickly bombard the group of cars going through the light. We had a pretty good system of lookouts, bombardiers and escape routes. We usually got away without even running far enough to have to catch our breath. This particular night we were not paying close enough attention and some young guys we bombed the previous night came back prepared to stop and pursue quickly. And I mean quickly. We ran and they chased and we ran some more and they chased some more and all the while a second set of headlights pursued in unison with the young guys on foot and in the car. Well we had some close calls in the past and we really did have the advantage. I mean we had been doing this for years. We knew all the escape routes like the back of our hands. This was our hood, you know what I’m sayin! The one thing we had not taken into consideration was the they had the cops included in their plan. Well to make a long story short, Perz, Roger and Steve were able to out run them and get back to a safe place. After they focused the pursuit on me, Paul ran through the frozen swamp, he fell through a few times (remember he was a little husky back then) but eventually walked frozen, through the cat tails, ducked into a large sewer pipe and made it home safe. I however was not so lucky. I ran as fast and as far as I could (remember I was a little husky back then also) till I was just to tired to run any further. Lake County Sheriff coming from one direction and the young, fast smart guys from the other. I did however have just enough energy and focus of mind to come up with a story. Would you expect anything less. After all this is just a younger version of Slim Shady alias BS Johnny and I don’t mean Blessed Sacrament. I just slowed down and began to jog. When the cops pulled up and the young, fast smart guys had me cornered at the end of Melinda Nicksic's street I played dumb to the whole thing and told them with most sincere look I could muster between gasps for air, that I was out jogging. You know, the wrong place at the wrong time. A case of mistaken identity. They gobbled it up hook, line and sinker. Of course they decided to give me a ride home and see what my dad thought of my story. Just in case I was trying to pull a fast one. Lucky for me he was on 3 to 11’s that week. My Grandma never did tell my dad. I never even came close to getting caught again, for fear of what might happen if he was home the next time the cops brought me home from jogging. The moral of this story. And feel free to share this with your kids in case they should ever need some direction in matters of this kind. Don’t follow your husky buddy, follow one of the fast guys who lives in the neighborhood your throwing snowballs at cars in!!! Oh and always, always be prepared to look the cops or any one else in a position of authority straight in the eyes and lie!!! It really does work. I'm living proof of that.

Side Note: Mr. Zagar, forgive the grammatical errors. I felt as doe day added a bit of da region to da story. You know what I’m sayin!!!