In Jail (w/ a Celeb)

6 years ago... i was dancing for a "superstar"... and one day during rehearsal we received a bad new: the new cd of the star had been censured, for it's cover, and virgin megastore was denying to make the distribuition of it... This Celebrity had a contract with virgin records for as long as i've known her.. it was pretty bad to hear that... So as an upset manifestation, the star and us (the kids, thats how she called us) decided to go around the virgin megastores to see if there was any cd of her! We went to the Union Square one, downtown Manhattan, 14 st, and we started searching for cds of her, any album, new, old, special edition etc etc... we found a couple of cds, very lost in between the "Imported" seccion, and one of the kids throw one to the star saying: "here i found one"... the cd never made it to her hands and fell... broken into little pieces! Ouch! It became a game! Every single cd we found we throw them broken... turning the Virgin Megastore into a sea of broken "star" cds! Some of them went inside of our bags! LOL... Thiefs! Yeah... after the game was over we decided to leave the store... when... outside of the store was a Patrol Police Car (NYPD) with the doors openned ready to carry us to jail! LOL... we started laughing... Oh Plizzz... they are not gonna take us to jail, we are with the Star! LOL... they actually tried a high negociation, trying to make us pay till 3 times more the total value of the broken cds... but we denied... assuming we were imune of any kind of Law demand! LOL... Not True! We went to Jail, all 11 of Us! In the same Cell! For us it was just another crazy experience, we didnt mind spending the night in there... the description of the cell, i'll save... i'll just say that the toilet was right in there... i remenber sleeping with my head really close to it... i had no other spot to rest, in the floor, you know 11 persons in a mini-cell! In the morning they started calling our names! The Star was the first, someone had paid for her (caution?)... anyways she was out of jail, and us! We thought all of us would leave home just like her... but it didnt happen... they openned the cell, i got all happy thinking: "ouch what a crazy night", assuming it was over... when suddenly i got handcuffed... and it was the start of my daymare! LOL... i was sent to the penitenciary downtown... just like the others... where you leave all your belongings, and have a pressure shower, and put on a orange suit and take the famous snap shots... i couldnt stop crying, i was really in jail, and i didnt even know for how long! They put me in a cell, this time with no one i knew... all strangers, God know what type of criminals... in jail it doesnt really matter the gravity of your crime, if you are there you are a criminal, so there is no special treatment to anyone! It was Horrible! They were trying to talk to me, asking what have i done, i said: "Nothing, I'm not a Criminal" but they all say the same! And they always know... cuz the security makes sure to say who is coming! Like New merchandise in the flee market! After long 4 hours, my cell openned... i was leaving again... i felt like: "uff... finally" i had been the whole prior day out of home, i couldnt stop thinking what was my family thinking, but the only call i was allowed to do, i did to a friend of mine, Tomas Knudsen! It wasnt yet time to leave... it was time to TRIAL... my judgement, i couldnt believe i had the Jury in front of me... lol... i was praying please i dont want to be here, not a week, not a month, not one more sec... my Atourney came, her name was Amy... she was nice, she said: "Paulo, you dont belong here, next time, let your friends do what they want, dont get involved"... she was right, i'm so easily influenced even when its for bad stuff!... My sentence was... 4 days of comunity service... the Judge asked me what i prefered: "park or construction?"... i said: Park... and then i was finally set FREE... to start my cominuty service the week after, 9 hours daily!

When i got on Monday to comunity service... people was treating me even worst than in jail... they throw me the tools... they looked at my hands, asked if i had gloves... when i said no, they started laughing at me... i think you know why!

When i first openned the door to the first park washroom i was suppose to clean... OMG... the smell... i started vomiting as if there was no tomorrow... i asked: "please dont send me back there"... they did... and i fainted! I woke up in the Emergency Room, i was fine... the nurse there already knew my story, and she had shared with the others: "he is a model from brazil and he dances with a star"... LOL... instantly my "mates" had a different attitude towards me and all the work i had to do was lighten or done by the other real criminals! I spent the 4 days of comunity service picking up Gum and Cans, with a pool that had a niddle in both borders... it was fun! I actually swept sometimes too... LOL... thanks to my career! LOL... or should i say: Status!

I was close to 17 years old... and in two weeks i was suppose to go back to Trial to hear my Veridict!... this story never ends... LOL... i failed to Trial (i simply didnt show up)... i thought there was no problem... i didnt know that "failing to trial" was also a CRIME!...

One night (dawn) i was sleeping in my friends house... and my MOM called me: "Paulo where are you? are you ok? the police was here looking for you"...

They had done, one of this things you see in the movies, a group of i dont know now many cops went to my house at night... broke into the house, with flashlights and guns in their hands... i mean... poor me! For my family it was very scary, i have to thank i was not home that night (i wouldnt be able to deal with the ideia of my Mom seeing me handcuffed and taken by the police with no justification, i had never told her i was in jail, she would be very Sad)... they even measured the temperature of my bed, in case i had just runned away, they had flashlights facing my brothers, and almost took one of them thinking it was me... they showed my parents the tape of me "having fun" with the kids in the store and explained to them i had failed the Trial! My Mom told me: "Paulo please call this number... he is waitting for you at 9am"... At 9am, there i was... handcuffed again.. but this time... only to hear: "You are Absolved"... after a crazy exciting night for my family... LOL... and all the "over whelming" NY police attitude... i was finally FREE... swearing to myself after the sound of the Hum in Wood, i would never do anything against the Law again! NEVER! My Case was Rested and Sealed!

> If you commit a misdemeanor, you have a 6 months period to not commit another one... if you do, you will have a "Cadrasto" for the rest of your life!... As up till now i havent done anything crazy... i think i'm clean!

> In the first cell, the Cops would go buy us chocolates, cigarrettes and juices and all... its kinda cool! LOL...

Soundtrack: Son of a Gun, By: Janet Jackson!