Volume 5 – #9 – September 2002

We are so misinformed. We are so insecure. Everything’s a threat to our imagined image. If there was no concern for our bloated greatness, there would be no ego. There would be no fighting. What are we afraid of? What are we working for? We’re left alone, in the dark, to cultivate our pride. We are so misinformed. We are so insecure. Everything’s a threat to our imagined image.

Do you feel like something is constantly nipping at your heels? What are you worried about? Money? Health? Terrorists and war? Public speaking or simply going out in public? Getting old? Getting caught? Kids? Parents? Pets? Losing something valuable? Going to Hell after you die painfully? Are you concerned about what people think of you? This is a tough time to pursue happiness. Where do you look for it? The world in general is a disgruntled mess. We are so constantly inundated with vapid stimulation, it’s hard to tell what’s significant, or even interesting anymore. There is so much of everything in our land of plenty, we use it to distract us from the reality that this is a temporary existence. Cars, movies, television channels, troubling information, useless information, children’s names, clothes, grocery store food items, chain restaurants, musicians, etc. And if you do find something you think is special or unique, the lines to get in are unbearably long. There was a time when people believed in the future. Now, it seems, no one really believes in anything other than dealing with the struggles of getting through each day. We thought life was supposed to be magical, yet convenient. If something goes wrong, we have plenty of things to blame. And I guess there’s comfort in complaining and blaming. It relieves us of responsibility and gives us something to do with all of our floating anger. Life is only acceptable when all is well. Bedtime is okay, if we can sleep. But, as I mentioned, this is a temporary existence. Nothing is permanent. Therefore life must be a process; a process with no expectations. With this idea in mind, perhaps we have the potential to be the most enlightened humans that ever existed. We’ve just about exhausted the quest for true contentment from a “hope for the future” point of view, so all that’s left is the here and now. All we have to do is figure out how to make our moment-to-moment happiness not dependent on external things. I guess the trick is to learn to enjoy life and, somehow disassociate from earthly pleasures. Am I just spouting crap here? Did I stumble somewhere and wander down the path of stupidity? Is more really more? Is the true purpose to make as much money as possible, anyway you can, and pleasure yourself as much as possible and then live on what’s left when you get old? This tightrope is almost worn out. We either get caught up over and over in the inevitable dark side of living, or we lighten up, even in the face of unthinkable horror, and realize, by and large, each of us creates our own reality. Or maybe our planet Earth was given to us as a classroom many years ago; a place to experiment and explore and create and destroy. And once we all the know the ultimate essence of this dimension, the concept of human will be allowed to step into the next dimension. And, with the idea of making everything perfect, a need for compassion will naturally grow. Maybe when all things are exactly equal the doors will open. Oh, whatever. I do know one thing for sure. Dogs love dog treats.

Uh oh! As of this writing 247polkaheaven.com (internet polka radio station) is not broadcasting. I was a polka DJ on the station and now I’m not. It’s all about complicated royalty stuff. As a songwriter I know how it feels to expect payment for any public performance of my music, but as a fun-loving, anything-goes radio DJ, wishing everything was “fly by the seat of your pants” easy, I’m sad. Anyway, I’ve been told that we’ll be back to the business of spinning discs soon. But I don’t know if soon means next month or before the end of the decade. It doesn’t matter. They’re both soon.

Speaking of polkas on the radio. I will be playing polkas and talking about polkas and talking about playing polkas on KERA Radio (90.1 FM) Thursday, October 24 on Glenn Mitchell’s talk show from 12:00 noon until 2:00 pm (CST). Please listen and call in. I believe they broadcast over the Internet. Of course, you know my bag is variety. You will definitely hear some music that will blow your mind and haunt you for days. Also, I’ll answer questions about my personal life. You know, like, what my favorite polka styles are and stuff like that. If you tune in, the knowledge you’ll gain will be fun and functional. Heck, it will be lunchtime, so you can eat while you listen.

Did you know that I had eye surgery about five years ago and my ophthalmologist came to a gig a few days later and scolded me for jumping around too much? I calmed down. Eye surgery is freaky!

Speaking of freaky. About fifteen years ago, when Brave Combo was a four-piece band and Mitch Marine played drums, we had a day off and found ourselves driving toward Wheeling, West Virginia. As we drove into town, I remembered that a famous Krishna compound was near Wheeling. So we decided to find it. As I understood, one of the structures at the compound was Prabhupada’s Palace of Gold, which was an elaborate tribute to the man who introduced the teachings of Krishna to the United States. I believe he first taught in Greenwich Village (New York City) in the 1960s and the word spread from there. He seemed to be a very cool guy and was idolized by his followers. So, they built this beautiful palace to honor his memory. Anyway, we got directions from someone in Wheeling and drove about fifteen miles on a small, occasionally unpaved road and pulled up to two giant animal statues about 6:00 pm. We looked to the right, and there it was: the Palace of Gold. We heard they gave tours of the palace, but worried that we were too late. And we were, for the last group tour of the day. However, a nice, appropriately robed young man at the front desk agreed to take us on our own private tour. We removed our shoes out of respect and, since Krishna followers are hard-core vegan, we wanted to reduce the risk to bugs as much as possible. The place was great. The walls were completely covered in gold leaf and all throughout were statues of Prabhupada going about his daily routine: studying, meditating, sleeping, bowling, flying. We stayed about an hour, heard the Krishna spiel (makes sense to me), thanked our friendly tour guide, put on our shoes and split, checking out the Krishna meeting hall, motel and gift shop as we drove away. This was at around the time that some radical followers were on trial for murder; so anti-Krishna sentiment was pretty high. But we knew that the message of any religion could get severely screwed up by the followers. So we were happy and felt that our time had been well-spent and we looked forward to finding a cool motel a few hours closer to the next day’s gig. Motels rock! They usually have everything: a bed, a chair, a television, a radio, a couple of lamps, a climate control machine, a shower, a sink, a toilet, a Bhagavad-Gita (I mean, a Bible), a snack machine, an ice machine and more.

Speaking of German culture, we are solidly in the middle of Oktoberfest season and Brave Combo intends to put polka first. Before the beer, before the food, before the lederhosen. Polka is the heart. It’s the organic creature that surprises, excites and delights. It spreads its many tentacles and pulls you in, stinging you and making you squirm with joy. Please come out to one of our shows. It’s worth a trip to Texas if you live far away. But if you decide to stay at home, remember that any adventure you have can be improved with polka music. Enjoy yourself.