Singin' about smokin' crack

I live close to Fields Corner in Dorchester. Some interesting characters hang out in my neighborhood. Check out this lady singing a hyper-speed rendition of Alicia Keys’ hit If I Ain’t Got You, while mixing in some of her own creative lyrics about smokin' crack.

Speaking of crack....some random guy actually tried to sell me some in this exact spot a few months ago. (FYI, it was not anyone in this YouTube video)

It was a Monday night, just before 11pm...I had just walked out of this Store 24, and I was starting to cross the street, when I hear:

"Hey!....hey, guy! Yeah you"

I turn around and see this big dude trying to get my attention, and apparently he thinks I'm a boy. (that mistake happens quite often, especially when I'm wearing a hat). He walks up to me, and asks for a cigarette (again, that's nothing out of the ordinary, especially when you're standing right outside a convenience store). I give him a cig, and then he asks me if I want to buy a joint.

"Nope - no thanks, man," I said, and started to walk away.

he immediately replies:
"Oh, oh, you smoke the white stuff,” he said, almost apologetically. "You want some of that?"

Needless to say, I declined his offer. And he finally started walking away. And that was that.

And hey, this little anecdote isn’t meant to scare anyone away from this Store 24 on Dot Ave. I’ve been a loyal customer to this particular store since the 1980s, and I’ve never, ever, had any problems at all. But that little incident was memorable, because it was the first time I’ve been approached by someone who tried to sell me drugs, literally, right in the middle of the Dot Ave.

And I thought it was funny how he seemed so confident that I was a potential buyer. (when I got home, I even spent a moment looking at my reflection in my bathroom mirror, thinking to myself, "Do I look like a crackhead?")

I love my neighborhood...never a dull moment.

-- Emily Sweeney