Potential Potential Hangout

So, in the year 2012 I ended up only making it to ONE diner in the 2012 Diner Calendar (Yankee Diner, more on that later), while actually having MORE of the calendars I sent to the diners returned by the mail! The whole project kind of fizzled out, I guess, and a year goes by awful fast. But that doesn't mean all is lost!

I'm going to continue adding to this Online Journal, info and pictures from the 2012 calendar, past diner calendars, and future calendars (if they happen-- there was no 2013 calendar!) But besides that, maybe this journal can be a place explore potential hangouts... and just the idea and nature of hanging out at a diner. It's something I used to do more in the past than I do now, but it's still an idea that's close to my heart.

Summit Diner - Summit, NJ

It doesn't look like I'll make it to Summit New Jersey anytime this March after all, but it'll still be there, at least I hope. I mean Summit will still be there. As far as the diner, I hope... they've been dropping like flies lately.

What is going on?!? Three more calendars addressed to diners have been returned by the post office. They say on them "Not Deliverable As Addressed"-- what? I've got the name of the diner, the street address, the city, the state, and the ZIP CODE-- what more could they possibly need? A list of the breakfast specials? What looks like "WTF" is scrawled on the Kim's Diner envelope, which is exactly what I said. But I think it actually says, "UTF" or Unable To Forward. Try forwarding into the mail slot, that's my suggestion.

It used to be you could just approximate an address and your friendly neighborhood mailperson, blessed with years of experience, would get it there OK. Do you want to know what the world will look like once the machines take over? See: above. Sure we all have a lot of "leisure time" -- but what do we do with it? Look for jobs which no longer exist. And the next thing you know we're pissing off the machines and they're coldly executing us.

But maybe I got the addresses wrong. I'll have to look them up and resend them. Has anyone been to these three diners yet? Or four including the Cutchogue. Do they actually exist, or are they the byproducts of some elaborate internet hoax? Or maybe they have all closed, are boarded up tight, or have been turned into Walgreens. Hopefully our operatives will soon turn up some clues.

One wonders how the Parkway Diner got its name--many possibilities come to mind, all of them weird. Only one week left in February to make it to the Parkway in February and solve some mysteries, like, is there a cloud INSIDE the Parkway, and is that a kind of famous musician sitting at the counter. Time for a road trip! As far as destinations, you could do Worcester. With an address like 128 Shrewsbury Street, you could only be in Massachusetts. The "Turtle-Boy" Fountain is a must-see. Not too far from Boston.

Not what you want to see in your mailbox! I sent a calendar to the Cutchogue Diner, and it was returned! RTS means "Return To Sender"-- which always sends me into a spontaneous rendition of "Return To Sender" in my best Elvis imitation. While "The King" often entertained requests for classics such as "Love Me Tender" and "A Big Hunk 'O Love," Randy Lincoln's number one request is: "Please don't try to do an Elvis impersonation!"

After checking my address (which was correct according to the Cutchogue Diner website) I'm going to try to readdress the envelope and send it again. The post office uses machines to read the envelopes these days, so I'll try a more machine friendly font, such as "Futurism."

Or possibly there is no mail delivery that far out on the east end of Long Island, especially the North Fork. I've never been out there. Do they ride horses and stuff? Has anyone ever been out there? Do they have like, regular stores? I kind of hope not. I'm picturing the old, dusty general store where you can buy a pickle out of a barrel! You would think that if the mail got close, however, they would get it to the diner even with NO address. Right?

I'm a little worried that the Cutchogue might be one of those "Virtual Diners" we've heard so much about. Or maybe we haven't heard so much about. But you heard it here first. There's a website, some reviews, a web presence, some menu pages and fake pictures... but no actual eggs and potatoes. No pancakes, no bacon, and sure as hell no coffee! No worse words have ever been uttered this early in the morning than "no coffee!" Help!

January 2012 - Rosie's Diner

Rosie's Diner - 4500 14 Mile Road NE, Rockford, Michigan.

Welcome to the Potential Hangout!

This is the online journal for Ray Speen's 2012 "Potential Hangout" Diner Calendar.

Soon there will be a list of 12 Diners, represented on the 2012 calendar, along with information about each.

There will also be instructions about how you can join this "blog" and post pictures and descriptions of diner visits.

Bon appetit!