We have a lot of variety in this neighborhood. The shady, the troubled, the homeless, the damaged. Immigrant families and all sorts of alternate styles, as well as apparently middle of the roads, with a sprinkling of the slightly better-offs. In short, we fit right in.
One of the less sane is an individual we noticed a long while ago, who carries a very realistic doll, looks like a one year old girl, around. Took me walking by him to be sure it was a doll. He is lumpy, perhaps in his 60s, his face a bit of a wreck, thick glasses, a brace, or possibly a prosthesis, on one leg. He appears clean and purposeful, often waiting for the bus, I hope this means he has support. I figure he has a story, and I'll probably be better of never knowing it. Not that I've ever been squeamish about that sort of thing, just don't want it ever to be a public issue.
Sitting out with Moby last evening, he limps by, stops, and heads up our walk.
"Enjoying the sunflowers?" I ask, as a heading-off gesture, smiling.
He stops and considers. Then says "You have a nice house."
"Thank you, we try to take care of it." Another long pause. He sees Moby, asks his name, which I tell* him.
"Do you have a dollar?"
"No, I don't have any money on me." He considers this sadly. "Well, you'd best get going." He purses his mouth, sighs heavily and shuffles off, baby-doll dangling. She is always in different clothes, but how she flops when he walks.
I still think he is probably mostly harmless, if rather creepy. I'd rather not antagonize him.
The guy off his meds with the argument with our sunflowers last year, seems to be stable and in good shape this year.
*Since it's not his real cat name, anyway.
8 comments:
He could meet my friend, here:http://members.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewUserPage&userid=piphel
but she may be out of his price range.
A truly fascinating subject all the same.
You mean "Moby" is an alias!?
RR,
Yeah, the doll in question is a mass production one, if of rather high verisimilitude.
Class,
Well, more of a nickname, since we can't reproduce his cat name, not that he's told us what it is.
I saw an oldish woman in a larger town here lugging about a large and horrible teddy in the attitude of a small child, with a very strange look on her face. My instant response was 'I don't want to know that story'.
I had a moment of the ground sliding away to think 'Moby' might not be what he was really called. (Being called something not necessarily being the same as what one's real name is, I accept, especially in cat terms, if that makes sense...)
Lucy,
Yeah, not like it's going to be a happy story.
Well, really, who knows? Maybe that's why he perks up his tail when we call him, we intuited something close to his real cat name.
And that he didn't seem to mind this guy tells me that he really isn't a threat. Which I'd generally assumed, but it's nice to have a second opinion.
There is something a little creepy or maybe just pathetic about the doll. Next time you should ask him about her.
Jenny,
This person is not entirely sane, I'm not about to invite conversation of any sort.
(o)
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