Gangsta Girls

While I was home sick last week, I watched a lot of TV. I saw this very interesting show on Discovery or A&E or something like that. It was basically about female gang members in LA. It talked about how violent they were and girls reminisced about trading boyfriends, jumping people, and seeing friends and family killed in senseless violence. One woman was even in jail for murder since she was 15. Why did this show remind me of my childhood in Callie? No, I’m not saying I was in a gang. But that’s the environment that was around me. On the show, they showed young Hispanic women with the hair feathered up about 5 inches above their head and the black lip liner with red lipstick. I remember at my junior high that they actually made rules about how high your hair could be. They would whip out a ruler when they though it was too high. The show also showed the young black women in baggy pants and cornrows looking like they could seriously hurt you. I knew, and did not mess with, quite a few of those. How sad is it that this show made me miss my childhood? Some people don’t believe me when I talk about the teen pregnancies, gangs, drugs, and violence that I was raised around. They say I seem so “normal” or am such a “nice girl”. What does that mean? I never said I did those things, but I sure did see them. Well, I’m getting off subject. The show reminded me of a lot of that stuff growing up. I remember my friend Teresa. Teresa had the feathered hair and wore very heavy eyeliner all the time. She also did the thing where you wear 3 different pairs of socks and layered them so you got 3 colors showing. Remember that? One time, another friend had a sleepover and Teresa was there. For the first time I saw her with no make up and her hair without the hairspray. She looked about 10 years younger. Now, I don’t know if this contributed to me not ever wearing makeup or not, but this girl took FOREVER to get ready. I remember sitting and watching this feathered bang thing get created with combs and about a can and a half of hairspray. And the eyeliner? The girl would burn the tip with a match so that it melted. That way she could smear a ton of it on much easier. Yeah, I think I’m good with my "no make up, hair in a pony tail" self. Don’t get me wrong, I can get gussied up when the occasion calls for it but on a daily basis… no thank you. It’s funny how a couple of images can spark up so many memories. I was devastated when we moved away because that was all I had ever known. I know now that it was the best thing for me. A lot of those same people I hung out with are still living in that area with 5 kids, no job, and just a high school education. Would I have ended up like that if I stayed? Hmmm, me a gansta girl... naw, never would have happened. I could never pull off the hair.