In 1964, I was a student at Arizona State University. I had a white Corvair which I drove to and from the campus, which was perhaps 16 or 17 miles from our home in Northwest Phoenix, to which we had moved in 1961, from South Phoenix. The South Phoenix location was only 5 or 6 miles from campus, and there was a direct bus connection.
Sometime in March the Corvair broke down, which it did frequently. This time it was an expensive repair (transmission) and was going to be in the shop for 3 days for repairs, and another couple waiting until I got paid. This put me in a quandary. How to get to school for a week?
Taking the bus from our place was out. The first bus passed nearby at 7:30, and arrived downtown 5 minutes after the second bus I would have to take, which meant I'd have a 55 minute "layover" downtown. The second bus would arrive at 16th and Broadway in South Phoenix 10 minutes after the final bus I would have to take to arrive at the campus in Tempe. A 50 minute layover. I would arrive at school about 10:15. My first class on MWF was at 8:30, on TTh it was at 9:15.
Thus I arranged to spend the week with some friends in the old hood, problem solved. One bus, a 20 minute ride.
I had to catch the bus at 20th Street and Broadway at 7:30. The first day while waiting at the bus stop, a girl began talking to me, asking all kids of questions. She was 16, a high school drop out, overweight, and not very attractive. She informed me her name was Ora Mae Criddle, but everyone called her Yo Yo. She also let me know how she got that name; she was famous for the way she went up and down like a Yo Yo. She had a younger sister, Marsella, 15, who was nicknamed "Ring A Ding" because she "knew how to ring a guy's bell".
I was relieved to get on the bus and hoped I had seen the last of Yo Yo. The next morning, arriving at the bus stop, one guess who was there. Yo Yo. This went on for the rest of the week. I don't know why she was there on Monday, but the rest of the week, it was obvious she was there to see me. I had told her I'd be taking the bus the rest of the week
Well, I got my car back and was free of Yo Yo. Or so I thought.
A couple weeks later, on a Saturday night around 10, I was watching TV in my room when I heard my sister screaming. I rushed down the hall, as did my dad, and opened the door to my sister's bedroom. There stuck in the window, was Yo Yo. The house had crank out windows, and Yo Yo was caught. My sister was screaming and crying (she was 17) that there was a woman stuck in her window. Yo Yo was also crying loudly, shouting loudly for help.
My dad and sister were not amused, especially when I had to admit that I knew the lady in the window. I had no choice since she was calling out my name.
To add to the confusion, there was a knock on the door, I went to answer it and there were two police officers. It seems on of the neighbors had seen a "large black woman" trying to get in the window.
I t seemed as though, despite Yo Yo being dumb as a stump, she had asked me to show her my driver's license and quickly noted my address. It was 12 miles from her home, and how she ever found it is a mystery. She had borrowed her dad's car (later on I learned, without his permission), even though she had no license. Her dad also was not happy and I heard he grounded her for a month.
Well, the cops were bemused, and arranged for my dad to drive her dad's car to their house, and I drove Yo Yo home. Yo Yo got a good lecture from the officer, still crying. My dad was very unhappy, my mother was furious (what will the neighbors think? She was at work at the time), and my brother and my friends thought it was hilarious.
I never saw her again. I heard several years later that she had a couple kids and was unmarried, living in a public housing project.
