A Brilliant Life Wasted

Although most characters that frequented Fred's News were known mostly by their good qualities, there was one that stood alone for being just plain strange, bordering on absolutely weird. Oddly enough the reasons he developed these personalities were evident to all and probably why everyone put up with him...to a point. "Crazy Bruce", who is now in that great big insane asylum in the sky, came from a life of privilege, descending into a life of personal hell. He caused pain and suffering to himself as well as his family who tried to help him. Bruce, before his crazy years, was an outstanding athlete and spoke at least five languages fluently. Society saw glimmers of his former life when he would return from weeks of treatment or his athletic abilities surfaced as he was being chased by someone who would no longer tolerate his antics. Drugs, all kinds, had made Bruce into the crazy man that people eventually despised and actually were afraid of. Oddly, one never knew where and when Crazy Bruce might appear. In our early years as proprietors of Fred's News, Crazy Bruce could be seen wondering around the Town day and night. When he had money, he'd stop at the restaurant for something eat. Just for the record, Bruce would work occasionally for Old Man Harrington. He'd have Bruce do jobs that no one else would do. Cutting brush along the banks of Beaver Brook with an electric chainsaw gives one an idea of the hazardous tasks done by him. If Bruce slipped, we all know what would of happened. Bruce just didn't care, he needed the money for more drugs and if anything was left, food. Crazy Bruce wore glasses that had been broken right across the nose piece. So that they would stay on his face, he did what any "brilliant but crazy" person would do...he taped them, many times. Eventually, he got a new pair and came into the restaurant. We made mention that we liked his new glasses. Without a word, he stopped eating, stared, then removed his glasses and did what any "brilliant but crazy" person would do...he broke them in half, then continued eating. The next day, he was seen with new tape on his new glasses! There were times that Bruce would get into some really bad drugs and his paranoia would manifest itself into ridiculously weird outbursts that occasionally landed him in jail, then lockup for short periods. Had he asked any of his old friends, we would of told him, "Bruce, telephone poles DO NOT follow you!" Bruce should of also learned that maybe blue pickup trucks ARE NOT monsters, but if you keep jumping out in front of them, they WILL hurt you. At one point during his "Blue truck fears", Bruce jumped out in front of Sim. Luckily Sim stopped in time, but Bruce had to summons all of his athletic abilities to out run a very pissed-off Sim wielding a mean baseball bat and hollering obscenities at him! I don't recall Bruce ever doing that again, at least not to Sim.

A number of times over the years, Crazy Bruce was banned from Fred's News. More often than not it was because, people had become genuinely afraid of him. During one of Bruce's exiles, there were rumors that some "out-of-towners" were looking for him. God knows for what reason, I'm sure it wasn't good. They found him, roughed him up badly, but Bruce managed to escape his hideout in the woods along the river. A chase ensued, Bruce ran and ran until he reached Fred's News, then darted inside, dirty and bloody. I might add that this was on a very busy Sunday morning just after the church crowd had arrived. He said nothing as he stood in the doorway trying to hide. He was so pitiful, dirty and scared, he knew we would help him regardless of his past. I managed to get him into the restroom, looked at his injuries and then called the police. Bruce was gone for sometime after that incident, family tried over and over to help. Bruce did not want help, he just wanted drugs. Over the years there were many, many more even stranger events surrounding Bruce. One of these events caused his permanent banishment from the Town. Crazy Bruce was put into some sort of group home, but still could wander the streets of neighboring towns. Bruce died shortly after we moved to Florida. Even though he was strange and could be dangerous, I remember a feeling a sense of sadness upon learning of his death, such a brilliant life wasted.