Characterz

If you were in Erie in the sixties and seventies, these faces would be a part of you, too.  They, and others like them, were the salt that gave flavor to our fair city.

I was lucky.  My first job after high school was writing advertising copy for the Boston Store in downtown Erie, PA.  It seems everyone I knew had spent time under its clock, shopping or having Cokes in the cafeteria.  I loved my work there.  It was the place to be.

And the people!  There were too many for these few paragraphs, but someday I will tell you more.  From my sixth floor window I could see a good part of downtown.  Many a day, I would see the "pigeon lady".  She wore a black raincoat with a hood and tall boots.  Pigeons would sit on her head and shoulders, and cling to her back.  In her pockets she kept dried kernels of corn.  When she finally shooed them away, I closed my window.  Oftentimes the pigeons would bring the remainder of their lunches to my windowsill, cooing and snacking until night fell.

Then there was the widow lady, Carmella, I want to say her name was.  She had a well-mannered German Shepard who went everywhere with her.  No one would even think of taking her red purse from that dog's mouth.  He gave it up obediently to a shopkeeper, who would retrieve his fee and give the purse back.  There was the fellow who wore a black cape and hat.  He stood by the Peach Street door, waiting for his lady, reading poetry or the Bible.  There was the "White Knight", a gallant young blond man who held doors and hummed to the ladies,  and the grandma who passed out hard candies to the employees.

Of course, there was Archie.  He did the windows and displays for the Boston Store when he wasn't having coffee.  Archie's voice boomed down the escalators from the first floor to the fifth.  Carrying props, he ran from floor to floor issuing orders.  Archie was a character, OK, and a talented one to boot.

Mrs. S spent every lunch hour in the dining room, often bringing her poodle.  She was easy to spot. Her favorite attire was a teal blue satiny dress with a silver-sequined peacock the length of the front.  One day a mouse sat by her chair in the dining room, patiently cleaning up her crumbs.  Thank heavens she, the poodle and the other patrons never noticed.  Becky and I were mesmerized.  Speedy Gonzales would trap a morsel in his jaws and make a beeline for a crack in the wall, hide his stash and come back for more.

I made friends with the ladies in the grocery store who would purposely bruise peaches so I could get them for half price.  There was the security guard (R.I.P., Eleanor) whom I had known for several years.  I spent many a happy moment following her around  GOTCHA!!

Lastly, for now anyway, was Helen.  Helen happily shoplifted her way through six floors of goodies.  Eleanor paid her no mind, nor did the salespeople.  Everybody from the penthouse on down just kept an eye on Helen, noting what she tucked in her pocket.  At the end of the month, her parents got the bill.  At least Helen was entertained.

There used to be a mural on a downtown building depicting the characters of the neighborhood.  I sat often in the little park, studying those faces and remembering.   I suppose every place has their own colorful personalities, but these were special.  They were OURS.

I wonder if someday people around me will say, "she was quite a character" about me.  I think I would be pleased.