these are a few of the people we can count on seeing on a regular basis in my town.
the golf ball man parks outside the golf course just about every morning and sometimes in the evenings when the weather is still bearable. in the mornings he's looking for golf balls and in the evenings, he's picking up aluminum cans.
this is an older black lady who is often seen wearing normal hair wigs -- blonde, red, brunette -- but i've also seen her wearing costume wigs like bozo, pink and yellow. one time i gave her a ride home from wal-mart because it was raining and she didn't have taxi money.
the man in black wears black ALL THE TIME. black cowboy hat, black pants, black cowboy shirt, black pointy cowboy boots, stringy greasy hair, beard. i think it's the same clothes (p.u.), and he walks funny. i don't know if it's because his pointed cowboy boots are too tight, or if he's a crack head and/or wino.
emett is the crazy black guy that waves at everyone. when my daughter worked at arby's, he nicknamed her rooster because he didn't like her name! he's friendly, but very annoying!
so, anyone else have their town characters?
__________________
You should fear anything that can bleed for seven days without dying... (as told to Mr. DS on 3-12-10)
The first I can think of off hand is the homeless couple with the dog. My friend Trina hates this couple. I don't think they're really homeless, they appear rather well cared for. I've never seen them together, but one of them is usually standing on a particular street corner with "Will work for food" written on a peice of cardboard with the dog sitting right next to them.
There's also a homeless guy (who I'm pretty sure is homeless) who walks around downtown after midnight offering to tell the drunks a joke for a donation.
I'm sure there's more, but those are the ones I come up with right away.
The first that comes to mind is "Lurch". Lurch is a dirty-looking guy that looks like he may have had a stroke at one time. He bends over toward one side and drags that foot when he walks. He holds the arm on that same side kind of strangely. You see him walking all over town. He's a friednly guy, waves at every car that goes by . . . but people call him "Lurch" for the way he walks.
"Farmer Guy" is an older farmer that moved to town. He only wears overalls, and every day, he gets up, and walks down town to the "city square" (downtown) and sits around on the various benches in the park and in front of businesses. That's all he does . . . all day . . . sit around town and watch traffic.
"Rapin' Richard" (as in rape) is a very creepy guy that has been accused or convicted (I don't know which) of rape. He has really strange-looking eyes and is just spooky. He drives all over town in his big boat of a car.
One of my friends in Lincoln has names for all his neighbors. As long as I've known him, he has always referred to his neighbors by his made-up nick names. He has "Drunko", "Pork Bellies", "Harry Krishna", "The Porch Monkeys", "Booooooooooooob", etc.
I always kind of wondered why he was that way, until we were at his mom and dad's house for something once. His dad started telling him what all the neighbors had been up to and referred to them all by nick names. I almost busted out laughing.
We have Hoxy who is the town drunk and walks around flipping people the bird. He and his sister (yes I said his sister) have a child together.
Rodney is the guy with the bicycle helmet and knee pads that sits at the grocery store greeting people as they walk in or out. He doesn't work there.
Wagonman has a huge homeade cart he walks around picking up cans, he is dressed in a cowboy shirt cowboy hat with a chin strap and his pants tucked into his red cowboy boots.
The neighbor thing is a normal thing here to Web, Duncle Ugh lives next door, Red the dufus lives on the other side, down the street giggling Gertie, she is always giggling and sounds like a turkey gobbling.
__________________
Sometimes, when i'm lonely... i crawl into a laundry basket and tickle my ears. But, Some times I don't...
We have Crazy Ray who has hung out at UW- Milwaukee for probably 40 yrs. He looks like an insane Thomas Jefferson with a beard. He collects newspapers. For one class, I had to buy and keep up with the business section of the NY Times. He would hunt me down in the mornings to see if I was done with the paper yet so he could have it.... This paper was like gold to him, he could find plenty of local papers and usa todays lying about. You can see him and the rest of the university hobos in scenes from "American Movie".
I still see him walkin around when I go past the university.
Mike S from American Movie is often seen off in his own world at bus stops from around town...his buddy, Mark B, the lead guy in the movie, is often around too and is a happy guy.
We've got Freeway, who is this insane guy who is always leading the cheers at Brewer and Bucks homegames. Guy knows stats from like the early 40s on from each and any sports team. I think he is equal parts genius and autistic.
We've got the preacher who drives around in an old black station wagon covered with signs, spraypaintings, loud speakers, coffins etc.
__________________
"And like Web, I enjoy throwing JR under the bus. Problem is, it's usually under the special bus that I ride every day". Ghostdancer 12-18-09
In the city I work in there is the pink pedal pusher lady. She's a little old lady who rides around everywhere on a 3-speed bicycle. She always wears a pink shirt of some sort, pink petal pusher pants, an oversized floppy hat, and those sunglasses that wrap around most of her skull.
There is also the shopping cart lady. She isn't homeless. She apparently lives in a retirement community somewhere around there, but she wanders around with a shopping cart full of stuff. She wears about 15 rings, tie-dyed tee shirt, prairie skirt, and either Keds type tennis shoes or hiking boots. When it rains... a hardhat. No, I'm not kidding... a plastic lined hard hat.
In the city where I live we have human sign holders. There is one we like to call the "say something hat guy". He puts some real pizzaz into his sign holding. He wears crazy hats... one is a black and green Cat In The Hat style... another is a red and black striped with yellow fuzzy fringe pimp style hat. He also has a huge orange cowboy hat... really huge. Frequently he wears crazy suspenders, the foam #1 finger things and other stuff. Generally he puts together an entire outfit.
On the less amusing side, there is a guy my husband refers to as "our walking buddy". This guy is somewhat of a sad case. He walks everywhere because he can't have a driver's license due to multiple DUIs. He lives in a half-way house somewhere close to our old neighborhood. He has Gallagher style hair and is sort of pot bellied, probably in his mid to late 30's. He always looks either really sad or really mad.
__________________
MM
That which does not kill me postpones the inevitable.
Oh dang... I almost forgot the dude I met a couple days ago. His name is Pete. He's a native American and very proud of it. Drives an old Dodge pickup truck with something about Turtle Island and 9/11 on the back window of the camper shell. Across the bottom of the window it says "America... love it or give it back." He's an artist... he makes all kinds of little statues, mostly animals or people. Several of them are on permanent display on his dashboard. He spends hours at a time sitting in his truck as it is parked in front of the QuikTrip. Generally has his parakeet with him. Nice guy really, but a little odd. Kevin introduced me to him as he is a regular at QuikTrip for coffee, tea, and cigarettes.
__________________
MM
That which does not kill me postpones the inevitable.
), and he walks funny. i don't know if it's because his pointed cowboy boots are too tight, or if he's a crack head and/or wino.
