So yesterday I’m scrolling through this forum thread when some dude drops the word “arithmomania” like it’s common knowledge. Never heard it before. Tried sounding it out – arith-mo-mania? Sounds like math obsession or something. Weird.
My Brain Starts Itching
Couldn’t stop wondering about it. Tried ignoring it, kept thinking about that dumb word during dinner. Seriously bugged me not knowing. Grabbed my laptop after washing dishes, opened like 15 browser tabs all at once. Google said OCD-related counting stuff. Wikipedia got way too technical too fast. Reddit had conflicting stories. Total mess.
Tumbling Down Rabbit Holes
Started shoving random search terms into Google:
- “arithmomania famous character”
- “counting disorder movies”
- “TV character counts everything”
Found a bunch of useless trivia pages and one seriously creepy psychology case study that made me close the tab immediately. Almost gave up when I stumbled into this Sesame Street fan forum. Someone casually mentioned Count von Count. Lightbulb moment.
Ah-HA! The Vampire Counter!
Felt stupid for not connecting it sooner. That purple Sesame Street vampire literally lives for counting stuff! Remembered him rattling off numbers all excited. Googled “Count von Count arithmomania” and boom – every source confirmed it. Even the Sesame Workshop site basically admitted they based his whole character on compulsive counting. Mind blown. Felt like winning trivia night.
So yeah, spent two hours chasing down a Muppet. Classic internet deep dive. Turns out it’s Count freakin’ von Count. Who knew? Well… now I do. And you do too. Case closed.
