ROOM of POSSIBILITIES

Atop of a large hill in Echo Park, Los Angeles, on the 1900 block of Delta street, there is a room that was shared by my brother Derek. If you happened to peek in you would notice a small two foot square window on the western facing wall allowing rays to illuminate a rather minuscule room. (only knowing the dimensions because of frequent escape attempts)  Our bedroom although tightly confined, is yet spacious enough to contain so many clues and windows into an odd world. On the floor there is a deep brown thick shag carpet, reminiscent of a mastodons coat. Next to my left foot is a mound of He-man toys spray painted brown by the neighbors across the street. My brother and I descovered that the younger of three boys squeezed through our doggie door, while the others stood lookout. Needless to say they never made a similar mistake after a heroic return and justice served. Next a twin bed rest above a full size box spring, shower capped by silver/black Raiders fitted sheet along with matching comforter. Against the wall a collage of G.I. Joe, Thunder Cats, and N. W. A. posters. Hanging from ceiling are four Star Wars models suspended by fishing wire to replicate a spacial dogfight. continue to scan the walls and come across my brothers Collection of Iron Maiden, as well as Led Zeplin posters in a mix of gore and beauty. Below his series of posters rests an end table with nothing but an old style wind up alarm clock. Immediately following is a metal bunk bed. Only the top bunk is used with my brothers base amp to use as a stepping stool elevating to the top layer. Staring back at you from this point is a life sized poster of Bo Jackson with a measuring tape along his side to gauge my short prowess. On the woolly shag below Bo's knees are a mini Pac-man and Donkey kong arcade games that have been used so much the programing has become buggy.

      There was not a lot in our rooms, due to the fact that we had very little posessions at that time, but in that room my mind roamed beyond borders. I can recall many fond memories we

hen thinking back to the time spent in that old room, giving my cause to dream of more elaborate surroundings.

nasty epithets

As kids my brother and I spent a Lot of time teasing each other. In our world you learn to protect yourself very early. One of the ways we built up strength is by playing what some call, "The Dozens." A valiant game of insults, it is a game of whit and observation. Nothing is safe or sacred, and the game is over when one person concedes by getting upset. Most of the time if you come up with a particularly good zinger it is stolen, or reused elsewhere or against another opponent. Everything from Personal appearance to Yo Momma jokes are allowed, and in some cases there are rules set in place in order to safeguard feeling to a degree. My brother and I pitted against each other many times and i learned quickly how to survive in a cruel world of harsh mental battle.

A few examples of the names that frequently went back and forth are as follows;

-Chunder box
-Knucklehead
-Smegma face
-Roach eater
-W. A. E. G. the turd
-Metal munching thunder Sn@t(h
-Goober
-Mongo
-Baby Huey
-Scaredy rat
-Butt sucker
-Mailman's kid
-Oreo
-Hooly bum

There were also a slue of "Yo mamma" jokes used to make each other laugh, but laugh too hard or if you are unable to return fire quickly enough and forfeit the game. For the most part Our style a flyting was not intended to anger but to make the other person quit by submission due to an overwhelming onslaught of verbal abuse. It may sound harsh but in all actuality it help thicken/harden the skin to make a person less likely to fall victim to harsh words. It also helped build skills like whit, thinking on the fly and creativity. My brother was very good at it from what i understand, but nee i turned six years old i became one of the best in my neighborhood. Sometimes when Derek had friends over he would start up on somebody and then pit them against me. During these occasions all I would have to do is regurgitate earlier snap (burns, or elemental success) and my brother would have a smug look of pride as together we would destroy anyone who claimed battle against our house, and would eventually begin sparring one another. You can never get enough reps when dealing with battles of the mind. And in some ways it reminds me of the oral tradition bard battles of ancient times. Such as the duel between Lemmin Kainen, and Vainamoinen, two heroic characters out of Elias Lonnrot's " Kalevala," in which two bards sing to see who is the best.
Flyting may seem hard, or brash but is an excellent way to develop quick thinking, problem solving and personal bragging rights. It is a passage that can be used to increase mental capacity as well as word formulation. And if you don't like it, go back to whatever place sold you that imitation pare of nikes with the swoosh sewed on upside down.