the ROCKS GLASS

The Big Joe Polka Show

Yes, this really is on TWO TV’s in this house at the moment.

A few months ago, my aunt asked me if I had ever seen the Big Joe Polka Show on RFD-TV. Apparently she had run across it one Saturday evening and told me that if I ever came across it, I had to watch it. She said it was more entertaining than the Cutlery Corner Network.

As luck would have it, Robin found Big Joe while flipping channels at her family’s house in Iowa. I was downstairs watching BBQ shows on PBS1 and got summoned upstairs.

As I was climbing the stairs, I could hear the oompah and accordion and knew what I was walking into. And there it was. Big Joe and his venerable polka show. Everyone was laughing and having a great old time watching people Shoddish, and Robin mentioned that this looked like it could be a Fuksa family reunion video from 1981.

The scary thing is, she has NO idea.

I find the show amusing, but it’s not that it resembled something that my family would have done in the past. I actually lived these polka parties in my earlier years.

My Bobie (Czech for grandma) and her sister would organize these parties every few months and would hold them at the St. Joseph Catholic Parish Hall. Some local polka band would show up dressed in red vests and lay down the beat while Uncle Stanley would two-step around spreading the dance wax on the floor. The parish hall kitchen would serve double duty as snack area and wet bar, and the parties would go late into the night.

These things were actually pretty fun. That is, until I was made to participate.

After a while, Bobie and Aunt Anne decided to start giving polka lessons to the kids in town. Somehow, for some reason I got forced into taking these lessons. Then when the parties were held, they would parade us kids out like some sort of checkered-shirted show ponies prodded electrically to perform the Flying Dutchman.

Around the time that they thought it would be fun to add square dancing to the repertoire was when I had to put my foot down and make a stand for my dignity. They were mad. My mom was mad. I was just thankful that I got to stop dancing with my cousin.

Fun show to watch though. I highly recommend drinking while doing it. Otherwise I’m guessing it’s pretty boring.