The Crazy Lady with the Wheelchair at Kennedy Plaza

The Crazy Lady with the Wheelchair at Kennedy Plaza

The woman in the middle of this threesome, unofficially known as “Crazy Lady”, used to hang around with “Half-man”, a guy that had both legs removed.  They would take turns sharing a motorized wheelchair and roll around Downtown providence aimlessly until the shelter opened its doors at 7pm.

One day that forever sticks in my memory was “Crazy Lady” waiting for the RIPTA bus that I was on.  She was outside in the cold, without “Half-man” and looking crazier than ever with her mouth wide open and arms flailing. I was the only person left and my stop was coming up next.  The driver stopped to pick her up using the rear doors that were meant for the handicapped.  As he opened the entrance it sounded as if hell arrived on the number 99 toward Pawtucket.

She was wailing “NOOOO!” and “Help Me!” on the top of her lungs. Short story short, the driver never came to a complete stop. He drove off and didn’t pick her up.