yep I can move the controls, set keyframes, make playblasts, save, make edits, etc. everything is working fine and I cannot see any errors in the .ma file.

Delete or rename the user maya folder (not where the software is installed, but where your prefs are stored). Then restart maya. The user maya folder will be recreated with all default settings. This will wipe your plugins, shelves, and hotkeys. So you may want to just rename the folder instead of deleting it. But you are having a major issue at this point so wiping the maya folder will take you back to ground zero so you can isolate the problem.

Then try to open the file and make edits, set keyframes, and save. If it crashes, you are then most likely looking at some kind of system problem because the file seems fine.