I am really tired of listening to myself think, and talk, for that matter. Just imagine how often I have to deal with my point of view. Well, with that in mind, I'll ramble a while. Okay?

July 2000 is off to a rousing start. We completed a short trip from Pennsylvania to Nebraska that involved lots of driving and not much sleeping. On the 4th, we performed at Polka Fireworks at the Seven Springs resort, near Champion, Pennsylvania. This is an annual event, organized by Eddie Blazonczyk, and our first serious Polish festival. To our delight, everything went very well. Although we're outsiders to this scene, almost everyone seemed to appreciate our approach to polkas. I think our average tempos are still a little fast for them, but the crowd accepted us and let us know that we sort of make sense. Also on the bill that day was concertina legend, Stephanie (of Wanda and Stephanie fame) and The Polka Family. They were both great. Man, The Polka Family roared through the hall like a freight train. Powerful and musical. Anyway, we shook lots of hands and signed lots of CDs and photos. Can you tell that this was an important experience for us? Our buddy, Steve Popovich, of Cleveland International Records was there giving us good advice and helping us determine what the scene can handle. The next day we played a concert in Indianapolis at the Rathskeller (cool outdoor venue with a beautiful bandshell) with our friends, Polka Boy. They're a polka big band and they sounded great, similar to San Francisco's Polkacide, in a way. Halfway through their set, they played our song, "Do Something Different." Of course, we were flattered. On Thursday we played a concert in Oshkosh, Wisconsin with Buckwheat Zydeco. Our young buddies from the polka band, Kick, showed up and hung out with us. I expect good things from these guys. Watch for them in the Wisconsin/Minnesota area. On Friday we rolled on down to Chicago for the Bellaire Polka Days at the once elegant, and still quite interesting, Sabre Room. We played our first set and things seemed to be going well enough, but there was a vibe of discontent in the room. We felt that thing we had been concerned about; cold suspicious stares from a few polka fans that wondered what the hell we misfits were doing there. But, you know what, entertainment as a job is not all fun and games. I mean, sure, we get to spend a lot of time brushing our teeth in truckstops and stuff, but sometimes our life is not a piece of convenience store cake. Anyway, the majority of the crowd dug it, so we tried to not focus on the few faces that were turning unhealthy shades of red. Steve Popovich advised me later that perhaps I should leave out the line about drugs if we play "In Heaven There Is No Beer" at these events. For what it's worth, I did wear a dress shirt and tie. Actually, I thought we all looked pretty cute. On Saturday, we wrapped up our little trip with a typically intense night at The Zoo Bar, in Lincoln, Nebraska. Everything about this place is cool. So there.

Big news: The disgusting Pepsi television ad I railed on about in the June newsletter has been yanked. The polite PR person I talked to humbly admitted that public pressure influenced their decision to remove the ad. Congratulations to us all!

The children's album we've been talking about forever is almost mixed, but may not be released until December or January, 2001. I hope there are still some children around by then. We don't have a title yet. Maybe something like, HEY KIDS, SHUT UP AND LISTEN, would be good. I'm just kidding, of course.

Hey, don't forget that we're going back to Europe in August. Check our itinerary and buy your plane tickets before they get too expensive. For that matter, check our itinerary to see where we're performing in this country this month. If you live on the East Coast, you are so lucky.

Faith is a funny thing. In some ways, there is no explaining it. It's just intuition or instinct with a conviction of spirit and a commitment to a belief. It can be based on a taught morality or it can just come out of nowhere. Whatever, with faith, courage comes easy. I have faith in the power of polka. I have faith that the true impact of polka has yet to be experienced. I don't know if the most glorious example of this will happen within the existing polka community, but I know something on a grand scale will happen. To people outside the polka world, the message is fresh and new, drenched in hope. Coming to something with no preconceived ideas can be really exciting. One might feel like an explorer that just stumbled onto a lost city. The possibilities are potentially unlimited. Since I was a child, I always really liked blank pieces of paper. At that point I could draw anything on it. Any and all things were possible. Concerning polka music, no one can claim it for their own. No one can say one approach is right and another approach is wrong. Whoever you are, you are what you are and we are what we are. We will do our thing and will be as sincere as possible in the process. We love playing polka music: Czech, Tejano, Polish, Slovenian, German, Italian, Dutchman, Bohemian, Conjunto, Chicken Scratch, Martian, etc. Polka music possesses unique qualities. It can be light-hearted and serious at the same time. It utilizes the musical elements of tension and release more effectively than any other music. It can instill a sense of well-being like no other music can. It should, ultimately, bring out the best in people.

So, have a great summer, look in the mirror, smile at yourself and, occasionally, pull tricks on yourself. And be sure your pets have plenty of water and a cool place to stretch out.