Hometown characters

i've been meaning to post this for a little while now, but my brain failed me once again, and i forgot about it until yesterday, until i saw the "bag lady"....

around here we have the "bag lady". she's a woman probably in her 40's or 50's who does nothing other than ride her bike all over Gfield and neighboring TF. she carries on said bike grocery bags full of plastic grocery bags, her bike is wrapped up in grocery bags, and it even looks like she's wrapped up in them too... altho it coul dbe one of those tyvek (house wrap) style warm-up suits held together with duck tape. i've never had a conversation with this woman, and i've never actually seen her not riding her bike. but she makes me curious none the less. she's a smart biker and stays on the side of the road...

which reminds me of growing up in the 'Ham. there he was good ol' "crazy walter". i wonder if he's still around. he too would always be on his bike looking up into the sky. he wasn't all there, and from what i understand was a resident at the home for people with mental issues. i remember one particular incedent with walter. every saturday mom and i would go to the laundrymat over by the A&P (now cvs) and the mr.donut (now DD)and while the clothes were in the wash we woul dhead over and treat ourselves to donuts... christine never got any b/c she never came... she was mean back then.. but i digress... crazy walter had come in, and i ran to the bathroom quick and upon my return and sitting back down someone noticed, it could've been me for all i know, that the trashcan (behind mom and i) was smoking... i dont' remember much after that, but i do recall that walter was at blame for disposing his cigarette in the trash. i can't remember if he was nice or mean, but he was always hanging out outside the laundrymat staring inside... looking at the people. it was kinda freaky but we were used to it... it's all he did for years.

we also has "eddie mumbles". he walked... and in the winter had a purple coat... quite amusing. anyhow. he got his name b/c it was very hard to understand this man when he spoke... he mumbled.. it was bad. there were rumors that if you gave him some money he would talk normal for you, but i never gave him money. this guy was mean. he would often roam around uptown, and myself also powered by my feet and no car would often see him on the street. i was outside the post office once, and he said something mean to me.. that's is no more nice erica. i don't remember much of that altercation. but i do remember once on my way to school when i was about 12 or so, he spit on the bus. we were making the left onto minot ave, and he was standing on one of the island in the middle of the road, and he spit on us... and that was the excitment for the rest of the day, if not longer. it was one of those things that went into the memory hall of fame... like when our bus driver sally hit that car turning onto onset ave... it may have been her fault but in her defense, people are always wizzing by and it's hard to see if anyone's coming. (east blvd & onset ave). but then again she was known by everyone that she was very fond of her friend, the bottle.

what kind of characters do you have roaming the streets where you live? or if your familiar with any of mine you can talk about them. whatever. i'm not picky