Today I ran into my favorite crazy. I used to see him fairly regularly when I didn't have a car and rode the bus and things to get around. In fact, the first time he started talking to me randomly I got quite creeped out and ended up jumping on thew wrong bus just to get away from him. Then I'd see him from time to time and he really is a bit too cuckoo to cause any harm.
Today I was downtown for a meeting and when I was walking about this morning he came up to me (not remembering me, I'm sure) and started talking about my coat and how cute my outfit was. See, I love that in a crazy person! But then the crazy comes out and he was asking if I was wearing green today, what the queen would let me wear on Friday. And when I said pink, he said "no, you can't wear pink till the easter bunny says so!" And so the conversation went from there. It really entertains me sometimes.

So, tell me about your favorite crazy...

Frank Chu...can you guess why?

i haven't gotten to know all the local crazies here yet, but back in des moines there was this guy who everybody called "smiley". he always used to sit on a bus bench on the same street every day and do nothing but smile and wave at all the passing traffic.

TwinkleBitch said:

omg, that reminds me of this one lady who i've seen a couple times here in mpls...last time i seen her was over on lyndale, right by the walker art center...she always holds up these weird homemade anti-bush signs. first time i saw her was over on nicollet mall.

i can show you better than i can tell you:

http://members.aol.com/le...ut_up.html

I've seen Frank Chu when I was in San Francisco. He's fun.

well theres this one old man...i dont know if he's crazy crazy, but people think so...
he's super nice -- and he's the only strange old man i kno that can make a baby on the bus laugh...he cant stop moving or talking

so he bobs around and dances and sings 2 people...not making any sense tho "hey hey! ho ho! on the bus! hey hey! doo do!" and it's great 2 see him
totally makes my day cuz he's so harmless and terribly nice lol

TwinkleBitch said:

cos you thinkin his fyne?

when i was in high school, there was this lady that my friend discovered when she was in band and had to cold call people to try to sell them cheese and sausage (oh the things we had to do back in the dark ages) - she just started ranting about how her daughter was trying to have her locked up and how the FBI was trying to get her pregnant and god damn it, she wasn't gonna have it, not for one minute! so, of course, my friend did what every normal teenager would do: she called the crazy lady. a lot. eventually i was patched in on a few conference calls and it was totally wacked out - we didn't even have to talk. as soon as she picked up the phone she'd start ranting, and she'd just go on until we finally hung up or until she threw the phone across the room - at which point it was hard to hear her ranting across the room, so we'd just hang up, dumbfounded.

in my home town of 3000 there is a man named brian... but he is known as "the windwalker"

or affectionatly as "windy" not sure if you would call him crazy or just eccentric. he fell for my sister when she bartended in town for a summer during university.

he wrote her poetry and gave her gifts of special rocks that he had found. but my favorite thing he does is hang out on the street hanging from the lamp posts, twirling around and singing his heart out waving to everyone in the passing cars

if you catch him in the coffee shop he might write a few lines for you on a napkin.

I woudn't call him my favorite 'cause I just met him, but I had a guy today who had a LOT to say about unions and killer chickens.

Pink Man!!!

Berkeley's own Pink Man, who rides around the city daily on his unicycle, wearing nothing but a pink unitard.

Stax said:

i saw the Pink Man when i visited california a couple years ago!

CarrieMpls said:

I know some friends who bought him some new shoes.

Funny story...I was at 12 galaxies club seeing a friends band and this guy was sleeping in hos chair next to me. I was oblivious...some older asian guy...whatev, right? It wasn't until my friend pointed out that I was sitting next to Frank Chu (who apparently did a monolog before the show that I missed ) I almost woke him up from my gasp of glee.

Good times. At least he aint a crack head.

My hero AMy sedaris bases her act around some crazy person she knew.

Not sure he qualifies as a crazy, but this unique guy has been playing Veinice Beach's boardwalk for well over a decade. His music is like nothing I've ever heard before. Cosmic.





[Edited 3/22/05 20:04pm]

Anxiety said:

Anxiety said:

I LOVE THESE GUYS!!!! I didn't know there was a website!

Stax said:

there's a movie about 'em, too - it's called "SHUT YOUR DIRTY LITTLE MOUTH".

i saw it at the chicago underground movie festival a couple of years ago. it was, um...funny? disturbing? both.

Anxiety said:

Oh, I must see that.

Stax said:

I saw him when I was in LA! He's fun too.

.
[Edited 3/23/05 10:48am]

CarrieMpls said:

Hey you remember my thread from ages ago, describing my favourite crazies?

If not I'll remind you guys bout it. It's full of absolute frickin -ness

When I went to school in Oberlin, there was a guy that used to come in at the CO-op I worked at, and when he would buy something (whih would usually take him 3 hrs and about 15 arguments and notes written on tiolet paper) you would give him change and he would hold every dollar up to the light, and they hand most of them back becuase they had tracking devices in them....

Taureau said:

Have you seen that guy who sings in downtown Montpellier, with his guitar? He's usually somewhere between the Comedie and Polygone. Anyway, he just makes up the words to songs as he goes, in English, just all kinds of weird stuff that makes no sense at all. On top of it, he can't sing with &#@! and his guitar "playing" is not much better...

TwinkleBitch said:

OH MY GOD!!!!! I used to run into this guy everyday between 2nd & 3rd on Market in San Francisco. I used to work in the business district. I can't believe it. I have to send these pix to an old friend.

There used to also be this guy that was obviously homeless and he would get in front of people and yell at them "Give me money, I want it now." Talk about AGGRESSIVE PANHANDLING. He scared the living daylights out of me when got in front of me for first time.

It's funny how in San Francisco somebody totally out of their mind can pass by a large crowd and nobody even flinches. I love the city.

Heiress said:

I know exactly who you're talking of. He does some kind of crazy 'Richie Havens'-style stuff when he is actually performing, but most of the time just he's ranting. AND HE ALWAYS RANTS DIRECTLY AT ME when I walk past but I can never hear what he's saying because I usually have my walkman playing

Hey what about that other guy. I first noticed him when I arrived a few years ago, but he's not so much around anymore. He used to walk around in a grimey track-suit, with his hair really greased back, and (this is the 'crazy' part) cradle a personal stereo in his arms while it literally BLASTS out some cheesy latino dance crap. He would walk down the street, and even on the tram, like some sort of mobile fiesta, and EVERY time he'd walk past someone even mildly female, he'd be letching all over them I really hope you know who I'm talking about, and that it isn't some sort of 'Fight Club'-style memory relapse. Come to think of it, I've been wondering who's tracksuit that was on my radiator

my FAVORITEST crazy:

There was this guy who used to wander around Sheffield, ages ago now. He had these huge, weaved bags with the metal handles like grannies have and wore red, plastic ears! He used to give people the thumbs up as he walked past. Funny guy!