How I Became A Teenage Devil Worshipper Without Really Trying

Back when I was starting high school, in the fall of 1987, it was pretty much a disaster.  The high school I was headed for was known in New York City as a “zoned” school, Bryant High School, which is a school for kids in the neighborhood that can’t get into any of the better schools (in NYC, you can apply to "good" high schools like college). Zoned schools had to take you. 

Pictured: An 80s fashion plate.

So, I was thrust into a zoo of a school that was very dangerous in the midst of the 80s in NYC. I was 14 and coming from a relatively safe school where kids didn't carry knives or follow you home from school to kick your ass. 

In order to survive, I transformed myself.  I became a “metal head”, black hair, black eye liner, the works.  I hung with the metal crowd, got into metal music and built my defenses.  I also learned the art of truancy and ditched the year.  The. Whole. Year. I shit you not.  I embraced the metal/goth culture and still listen to the music, have skull jewelry and band shirts. However, my hair style and makeup skills have improved substantially. 

After my failed freshman year in Bryant and a summer of trouble, my Grandma and Mother decided to enroll me into an all-girls Catholic school, St. Michael’s Academy, in the hopes I would straighten out my act. I agreed...what the hell? At least I wouldn't get stabbed in the bathroom.