When I was about 16, I got my ball taken off me by the police for playing in the street - which is pathetic really.
I wanted the attention I missed at home, so I became the leader of a gang. That way, I got attention and was recognized as being important. It wasn't a bad gang - you know, in poor districts in New York, there's a gang to every block. We never robbed at the point of a gun; we'd steal potatoes from a grocery store, or crackers.
I think kids like chaos, in an interesting way. I think kids like to push buttons in adults. They like to antagonize and cause trouble. I think it's the kid-like spirit that kids respond to.
When I was 11, I burned a field down by mistake. It was an empty field, probably about 10 acres in size. Me and my friend were lighting firecrackers, and we ended up burning down the entire field. We got found out, and I think I was grounded for about three months.
When I was 16, at night I went to my high school and chucked rocks at the billboard sign and broke the light bulbs. That was fun.
As I got older, I lived right next next to the Long Island Railroad, so in junior high and high school I'd just jump on the train with friends and head to the city. We'd run away from the conductors, hide from them in the bathroom. It was just what you did.
A boy is a man in miniature, and though he may sometimes exhibit notable virtue, as well as characteristics that seem to be charming because they are childlike, he is also a schemer, self-seeker, traitor, Judas, crook, and villain - in short, a man.
I was fortunately able to avoid getting into any trouble with police. There was - I remember I was 12, and I did something really (laughter) - a couple of friends, Cinco de Mayo - we were off school, and we saw some people looking like they were having a party. And we had a little bit too much time on our hands, and so we figured, as kids, a great idea would be to throw some things over the fence and hit all these people with stuff, like eggs and everything.
