yes well, dinner at Denny's. friends came by last minute, threw dinner hour askew, with nothing quick to make, so once they left we headed out to eat. opting for the convenience of Denny's over more distant better fare. quiet place for a friday eve. everyone else was in the front, diner-like part of the restaurant, but our host and eventual waiter hustled us to the family dining area. garson, your finest weasel piss, please! okay, no wine list, no brewskis. hot tea for Beth, diet Coke (still fending off diabetes) for Erin, and water for the gentleman. our server's name was Louis, tho I had to read his tag to find out. Beth had her usual breakfast selection, Erin had I'm forgetting what, but plenty of. I went for double cheeseburger with onion rings. doneness options were medium or well done, and I chose medium. Erin complained about the wafting music: gimme the beats boys to save my soul / I wanna get lost in your rock and roll, which he correctly divined wasn't rock and roll at all!!!. but then: Erin earlier was lauding Guns N Roses' version of "Sympathy for the Devil" over the original. Houston, I think we have a generaion gap. anyway, further aural mush: that irritating McCartney song about Sister Susie and Father John. and "Wild Nights" by Van Morrison, a musician, I'm sorry, I just never got. but no matter, really. the cart used by the busboy (busman?) rolling over the tiles on the floor, produced an unnerving amount of noise. the menu had a picture on the front, depicting a carefree waitress bringing plates of food to a table already teeming with goodies. it looked like unlimited food, a glittering panoply of mostly fried stuff. ours arrived meetly. Beth spilled maple syrup on her eggs, which is anathema. Louis inquired with concern, and when informed, brought a plate upon which the egg could be separated from further syrup infractions. Beth found this unnecessary. points for trying, however. my burger was well done. I'm not fussy. it took me years to learn to get burgers right, so I've eaten the spectrum. a young girl and her mother made the journey to the bathroom, the girl skipping merrily. on the way back, the girl ran with plush enthusiasm. a boy walked up and down, dressed in a Batman costume, including prosthesis pecs and abs. Louis waited till my mouth was full to enquire if everything was all right. art on the wall consisted of dreamy landscapes and seascapes, presentable if unexciting. Louis decided to ignore us once we were done, so while we waited we got to watch a fellow behind the counter slap a knife against his hand then cut a pie, and he did similar stuff with the ice cream. well, you may not want to see that. when Louis decided we'd waited enough he came with the check. Beth pulled out a Benjamin, which shocked Louis: don't you have anything smaller?. I should think Denny's could scrape up $23 in change as easy as kiss my hand but it was a slow night. we left with the sensation that we'd never return.