Memory is a funny thing

Has it been decades since I watched Sesame Street? How many times have I recalled characters and routines from the show? I feel like I know specific elements I've been remembering - Oscar, the space aliens, the word halves that slide together, "follow the arrows / they show you where to go / follow the arrows / follow, don't say no...arrows lead you to an octopus!" What the hell was that programming me for? Anyway, the point is, I have this fixed set of Sesamie Street memories I always revisit when I think of the show.

Last night, driving to Denny's (oh, Denny's! Tragedy! See below!) San Diego Mike (who will now go by either of the nicknames Daddy Wronglegs or Daddy Warlegs--he's tall and bellicose) uses the phrase "a la" meaning "in the manner of", and from somewhere deep down in the mental recesses comes, from me, "peanut butter sandwiches". I can't remember ever remembering that there was some sort of mustachioed magician on Sesame Street. At first I didn't know what I had said. Then, when I narrowed it down to a line from Sesame Street, I thought the speaker had been The Count--they both were purple and wore a lot of black?

We couldn't remember that dudes name. The magician who goes "a la peanut butter sandwiches". Thrashed around with it a while; the best we could do was Mumford. But that can't be right. That's a shitty movie from 1999 with supporting appearances by Jason Lee, Martin Short and Ted Danson.

Albany - Denny's' = ???

So we head out to Denny's, late night after Christmas Day. It was, I dunno, 2:14 when we got to the Wolf Road store. Apparently we stretched their 24/7/365 ethic to the limit...they get three hours off all year, apparently, it was midnight to 3 that night. So we went to the bad Denny's on Western Avenue. Had a little trouble finding it--because it was pitch black--because it was boarded up! OMGS! So we went to the really bad Denny's, on Central Avenue--the same! There are no Denny's in Albany proper! I no longer feel it is a competitive metropolis. What of the Mayor's promise that "we've got it all in Al[l]bany"? Anyway, we went out of the way to the good Denny's in East Greenbush. Which was hard to find because of the massive fogishness. Anyway, I am holding up lunch for Devon, Brooke and myself, so I will wrap this up. I am sad about Denny's.

Also, at the intersection of Route 7 and Interstate 87, the Bennigan's is now a Ruby Tuesdays. But chocolate rations are up, so that's plus good.