Wednesday, November 04, 2009

Everything Happens Here




As a child, I always wanted to live on Sesame Street and as an adult I moved to a ghetto on the east side of Detroit. I don't know why this was my fate -- I always had a picture of Chicago in my dorm room, city of broad shoulders, hog butcher of the world. I never felt much at home in Texas, always suffered a peculiar brand of homesickness for a place I had never been. A woman I just met who bills herself as a "transpersonal psychologist" (the degree, I imagine, sponsored by the letters WTF) might attribute this to past lives or birth trauma. Okay, I keep hearing this term, birth trauma, but I have no real idea what it means. The only birth trauma I have experienced is being forced to watch a video of a baby being delivered. What the hostess was thinking by putting this on the television is beyond me, but the psychic disconnect of someone serving you bean dip while she is also delivering her firstborn on screen is something truly strange.

But back to Sesame Street, if someone will tell us the way. It was benign and lovely and diverse and urban and populated by people I wanted to know. Just like Detroit. Maybe it isn't Sesame Street proper (the nine cop cars outside today would mar that fantasy), but I always feel at home and I did find Oscar the Grouch, Baby Grouchie in a clearance bin, waiting to be picked up and loved, just like we all are.

Michelle's Spell of the Day
"Sally, you've never seen a street like Sesame Street. Everything happens here. You're gonna love it!" Gordon Robinson, the very first line spoken on the very first episode of Sesame Street from November 1969

Cocktail Hour
Favorite Sesame Street character and why? You guys know what I say -- Baby Grouchie!

Benedictions and Maledictions
Happy Wednesday!

8 comments:

jodi said...

Oh Girl, You did certainly mix things up. Sesame Street is 40 years old, but I do not remember watching it much until I had Dane. I think Betty Sue is my fav character, tho I do identify with the Cookie Monster! YUMMGOODCOOKIE!!xo

the walking man said...

Never have been able to find Sesame Street but I certainly have come across most of the character's evil twins.

Anonymous said...

Ernie, because he likes horizontal stripes.--The Birdman of Alcatraz

Anonymous said...

The Count--obsessive-compulsive with a cool castle/pad.

Lana Gramlich said...

"The only birth trauma I have experienced is being forced to watch a video of a baby being delivered."
I hear THAT! *LOL*

Charles Gramlich said...

We're all waiting to be picked up and loved. So true. I'm glad Lana picked me.

Joe said...

Great post!

I need a trans-personal psychologist. Maybe I can get an out-of-body prescription.

You look great, too.

Scott said...

Michelle,

Nice post. I used to like Sesame Street when I was little...not as much as Frankenstein movies, but still.

My favorite character would probably have to be either Cookie Monster or Oscar.