Sprinkles, my friend

This blogging thing is quite difficult. You may think otherwise, but it truly is. Perhaps that's why I often times go months to years without updating. But as I sit alone tonight (Mel is working for at least two more hours), I feel it necessary to sit down and pour out a few of my thoughts and feelings. I suppose I start by addressing the title of the blog....

I was at work. And I was having a great day there, laughing and joking with my comrades about a recent change I made to my email notification. It was midweek and the work-week was really tolerable, not busy, not obnoxious; it was just a great day to be at work. I remember stepping away from my desk for a few minutes, probably just to go waste time as we state employees generally do best according to most. My phone was ringing as I returned to my station, and I vividly remember my cube-mate saying to me "Dude, your woman has been calling." Just as I returned, my phone was still ringing so I picked it up. And as I generally do, I answered with jubilation, expecting an equally joyous response on the other end. Mel was on the other line, and she was frantic. "It's Sprinkles, he's dead... I came home and he's not moving. He won't respond." My heart sank and I immediately rushed home...

Now if you've followed us for any period of time, you will know that Sprinkles is our first born.....feline. At least we think he is. We only say that because he was the smallest. He was our "little guy" and I can tell you that I miss our little guy every single day. Whether going to bed without interruptions under the covers in between us (where he liked to sleep) or waking up with gel still in my hair (because he generally licked it all out), we will always remember our little guy. He didn't have a care in the world. He was adventurous, he was brave, he was strong and he was daring. In many ways, our little guy was what all of us should strive to be. He had no enemies, only friends. He loved everyone he ever met and anyone that met him felt the same.

Pavlova still looks for him daily, but is starting to take on some of his memorable qualities. He joins us in bed, plays ball again, and every evening when I say "Goodnight" to Sprinkles, I know that I can count on turning around and seeing Pavlova's stare. He knows his little brother is gone, how much he is missed, and how much he was loved.

Years ago when I found Delilah on the streets of Harrisburg, she was in need of a home. I could not turn her away and I provided her with the loving home she needed. Going back to previous blogs you will know that she did not come alone... She had two wonderful, loving, obedient and loyal kittens which we named "Sprinkles" and "Pavlova".

They say good things come in small packages and with our "little guy", that's certainly the case.

We will love our "Monkeys" always....

Just stop to think.... "would you have met your guy, would I have met my girl? Would you and I have ever met outside this Polka world? Polkas bring togetherness to friends and family.... without Polkas think how different life would be."

These are a few of the lyrics from the song penned some 20+ years ago by Eddie Siewic and Prime Drive. Despite being two decades old, the words are truer still today. I ask each of you to stop for just one moment and think about what Polka music really means to you. Not so much the music, but perhaps the aura that really is "polka music". What has it done for you? More so, where would you be without it? Take several minutes and reflect on that...

I can't imagine anyone reading this would not be missing something grandiose in their life had they never been introduced to the music of our heritage. Take a handful of your best friends... without Polka music, would you even know of their existence?

Polka music has given us so much, and never asked anything in return. But it's time to repay the favor. The notion that Polkas are dying is one that I just refuse to accept. And you should too. So I will end this very brief blog entry by altering a phrase from one of our greatest Presidents...

Think not of what Polka Music has done for you, think what you can do for Polka Music. In whatever way you are able to, please do. Because after all, I'd hate to see what life would be like without Polkas... wouldn't you?

Two Years Now...

With each new blog post, I promise the same thing.... More blog posts. And by more blog posts, no, I certainly don't mean one every two years. I often get inspired to sit down and write an updated blog but then something usually distracts me. Either one of the cats, something compelling on television, or just a car driving past. And by the time the distractions past, the longing to write a blog is long gone. Today, I have nothing to distract me. Baseball is winding down (I know because the Pirates were mathematically eliminated about a month ago) and football is still about three weeks away. It's Sunday afternoon and I have nothing to do, except wait for Brett Favre to rascal his way onto my HD TV in a meaningless game and cause me to stay up past midnight and drink about 7 more beers than I should...

The trouble with these posts is that I never quite know where to start... and then once I begin, I never quite know when to wrap it up. So, let me go back and read over my last blog posting from over two years ago (sorry again) and then maybe I'll have something to start with...

Ok, I'm ready. (Damn, that last post was long)

As for the job, it is the same but in title only. Everything has changed, and certainly not for the better. As much as I love politics, I f'n HATE it. Many of my close personal friends were indicted and are already in jail or will be arriving shortly. Their crime? Being a Democrat in a time when the Republican Attorney General wants to be Governor so bad that he will do whatever it takes, including destroying the lives of innocent people. They say all is fair in love and war and politics but some individuals take that to a much higher level. I better digress from Pennsylvania politics at this point, as those who previously and publicly criticized our state Attorney General have found themselves on the opposite end of a subpoena (just ask Twitter). So much for free speech...

On to the personal stuff. As much as I love Pittsburgh, and it will always be home to me, Mel and I have migrated to Harrisburg. I am now working in the State Capitol Building and I absolutely love it. I believe it presents a much greater opportunity for me to meet folks and become a face in the crowd. A player in the game. A cog in the wheel... you get it. I have no idea where this wild journey will culminate, but the least I can do is enjoy the ride.

Remember Mel? Well, last summer I asked the woman I love to become my bride and for some odd reason she obliged. It was really cool actually, as I had half of Dynabrass on our porch at 7 Springs playing our song when I did the deed. I'm guessing the presentation sold her...

In an earlier blog post, I spoke of my attempt to book Polka dances. Since then, we managed to throw two shindigs. In October of last year, Henny and the Versa J's rocked the house for us and everyone had an absolute blast. In April of this year, we hosted the first annual "PolkaTJ Spring Fling" in which Lenny Gomulka and Chicago Push played in front of a jam-packed Uniontown Polish Club crowd that was very receptive. For everyone involved, thank you and I can't wait to do it again. And we WILL do it again!

Perhaps most importantly, since the last blog post I became an uncle! Scary as hell, I know. Beautiful Emily Grace Salonick will be two years old on September 12th. She stole the hearts of Unkie Drunkie and Auntie M the day we met her. As much as I love her, she is also the sole reason why Mel and I will be adopting when it comes time to raise a family.. Little Jamal Salonick is now about 10 years old and is a standout in pee-wee football...

As I always end each post, I promise it won't be as long in between writings. Take care, and be you. Nobody else can.

So....Wow... Where to Start?

Funny how some people can sit in front of a microphone and just babble for hours and yet when it comes to updating blog posts more frequently than once every 15 months they just sit down and draw blanks. Yeah... hilarious...

So that brings me to this post. I guess the first thing I need to do is say thank you to everyone that has been following the web site. The streaming site is hitting record numbers and that is fantastic. I've been receiving countless kudos on the stream, everything from the song selection to the stupid promos! PolkaTJ 24/7 is the product of an idea I had for many, many years and within the last year it finally became a reality. As a child flipping through the radio dials, I often heard Buddy Holly and his dramatic rock 'n roll ramblings, Johnny Cash and his baritone adventures of love and loss... even Dr. Dre and his bitchez and hoez in da ghetto. But one thing was always missing... Why was there not a Polka station?? Sure we had the shows on Sunday morning. But I mean, where was the station that broadcast Polka music 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? Dad told me it would never happen. He said there just wasn't a market for it. So true...

Then along came the Internets (Created by George W. Bush). I started with a weekly Polka show online back in 1997 and while I like to think I actually had the first online Polka show I may be wrong. I will still claim that though, until someone can prove me wrong. Several years later, the unthinkable happened. With the creation of such sites as 247PolkaHeaven and PolkaJammer we finally had what we all longed for. A place to listen to Polka Music no matter what time of day.
I was even honored to have my show at the time, Main Event Polkas, broadcast on 247PolkaHeaven. In 2007, I launched Polka TJ 24/7 with a little bit of a different format. Rather than broadcast polka shows, I decided to play streaming Polka music... Back to back POLKAS. Plain and simple.

That brings us about up to date with what I have been doing with the site lately. I'm ready to take that to the next level! Starting soon, Mel and I will begin to broadcast a live show on Wednesday nights. The show, entitled "Polkaholics Annonymous", will feature the newest and the best Polka music out, along with some added twists. We are looking to have a chat room set up where you can join in on the fun and just have a kick-ass good time.

So I guess that brings me to the best part... all the dirt on my personal life. Hmm... Well, remember that chick I told y'all about 2 years ago? Yeah, she's here now. She is living with me and has been since January. Mel is awesome, and I really couldn't ask for a better partner to share in all of lifes trials and tribulations, ups and downs, and positives and negatives. Regardless of situation, she is there for me and I try to be there for her as best I can. Single guys out there... I know there is a lot of temptation when you are out and about in the clubs and bars but find yourself a Polka girl. Trust me, you won't be disappointed. Don't get me wrong... try the rest... but settle for the best!

As for living arrangements, I moved out of my bachelor pad in the South Side of Pittsburgh. You guys remember it... walking distance to hundreds of bars! Why in the hell would anyone give that up?? (See above paragraph). So now I am living in a little community in which we both like, although it is a little farther from work. The ups far outweigh the downs. Mel picked this joint out... Pretty cool pad. We now live with our 3 cats and a shit-ton of bills. (No, we're not weird cat people, just had a huge heart for a stray that ended up being knocked up). Love ya Delilah, Sprinkles and Pavlova!

As for the job.... well I won't go into too many details. Not because I don't want to either. There are 93 pages of details available out there to anyone interested in seeing what I've been up to over the last couple years...allegedly.

I swear... I did not have sexual relations with that woman.

Talk later monkeys... Love yinz!

April 6, 2007

Oy Vey… And I’m not even Jewish! Where do I begin?? I hate blogging.. Why do people blog? It’s pointless, I mean it really is stupid!! Because some dumb asshole sat down at his computer one day and started typing and telling the world about all of his problems, excitements, and inner-most feelings, I guess that means I have to do the same.

I guess it is my fault. After all, I am the one who sat down one day and typed out my entire life into a few paragraphs of a web page and had no idea what to call it so I figured let’s call it a blog (cause after all, that’s what everyone else is doing). Then I found out that a blog is something that actually requires updating periodically. If any of you have followed my work over the last 10 years, you will know that updating is not one of my strong points! So, I guess I am going to have to work on that. Ok, there’s my New Year’s Resolution…

What do you mean it’s April??? You didn’t think I knew that already? Seems like just yesterday it was October and now the Penguins are in the playoffs and the Pirates won the first three games of the season! Seems like a Pittsburgher should have a lot to celebrate these days… and the truth is, I do.

Mel and I just came to terms on a new place we are going to be moving into in June, and I must say I am excited about that. The place itself is fantastic, but then again I think I would be equally as excited if we were moving into a cardboard box together. Just the fact that last time I talked to you things were “going well” and now we are moving in together excites me. I hope I can make her half as happy as she makes me….

And yes, the place is still on the SouthSide of Pittsburgh, so I am still within walking distance of 16,890,845 bars and that makes me a happy camper! I will keep you updated on the status of my move. Talk to you crazy bastards soon!

November 14, 2006

So where do I begin? It's been damn near a year since I've had any type of updates to PushPolkas.com.....wait, okay...let's begin there. What happened to pushpolkas.com? Well, the site that I called my brainchild since before I was old enough to drive has become the property of some huge corporate conglomerate and, as it looks, will never return to its rightful owner. To make a long story short, I let the domain expire and someone else came in a bought it out. No, not someone who is interested in "Pushin’ Polkas", but rather someone who probably has never even heard of the Polka and in fact probably doesn't even know they own the damn domain...I guess my only hope is that someday I will re-unite with pushpolkas.com, my one true domain love, and we can rejuvenate it together. Until then, this is what we have....polkatj.com...so tell your friends and we'll make the best of it and run with it :)

So, all those hard feelings aside, let’s turn to more positive things. George W. Bush is still President, the economy couldn't be better, gas prices are at an all time low, we're making progress in Iraq, and I have become a rocket scientist. Unfortunately only one of the above is true, and guess what folks.....I am not a rocket scientist....yet, anyway! I hold a lot of hope for change in the mid-term elections and hope the momentum carries into the Presidential in '08.

That covers politics....

Back to Polkas...despite what people are saying, I don't see Polka music as being a business on a highway to hell, but rather as a slow moving vehicle in need of a catalyst. I am confident that power boost will come along and get things back on track.

In my own world, as you may have heard, I am trying to get Polka music back on track at the Uniontown Polish Club. I've decided to take the proverbial bull by the horns, and drag him to the rodeo. So far, I've done nothing but get my ass kicked from one side of Tijuana to the next, but I am hopeful that with the support of wonderful folks like you, and of course a little luck, things will turn around. I have some exciting things planned for the spring and as long as others don’t decide to rain on my parade (last minute I might add), I think we should do just fine. There is a lot of fun left to be had, and I intend to bleed the fun lemon dry...

As for beer....I still like to drink it....

As for women....I met the most amazing girl in the world this past summer at Seven Springs and things could not be going any better if I sat down and dreamed this all up myself...unless she could live 500 miles closer of course, but we are doing our best with that obstacle, and doing a damn fine job as a matter of fact...

As for my career.....I am working in Pittsburgh and loving every minute of it. I like to help people. When you wake up in the morning and you don't mind going to work, you know you really have something special going for you. And that I do...

As for living arrangements....I got a place in the Southside (Sah side for all yinz pittsburghers n at) of Pittsburgh and I am finally getting adjusted to a life of my own. This has been a great learning experience for me, and I suggest you all try it once :) You just have to make sure that when you find a place to stay, you are within walking distance of 7 bars, at least one liquor store, one beer distributor, 7 bars, a Laundromat, a grocery store and 7 bars...Living on the "Sah Side" that is not a problem for me.

Ok, so let’s see, I think I've been about as frank (and some would argue blunt) with you folks as possible so I am going to wrap up this blog for this week. I will talk to you crazy bastards next time I get the urge to sit down and type on my keyboard :)

By the way, what the hell is a blog????????