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Happenings 2014 February
The grandkids are uber-busy with school and sports, but I managed to grab them for a couple of trips to the snow. And what a difference a week makes. On Feb. 8-9, Max (age 13) and I headed to Sugar Bowl at Donner Summit for alpine skiing. The snow was thin and slushy, made more slushy by the rainfall that weekend. Skiing in the rain is not a lot of fun, so we bailed out early on Sunday.
The next weekend, Max & Ben (age 16) joined me for a cross country ski run to Yosemite's Glacier Point. A snowfall laid a nice thin layer on the road to Glacier Point, making it a great trek. The sunny weather and a couple of bare patches made it feel like late spring.
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| Max & Ben on Glacier Point Road |
From there we headed to Donner Summit and Squaw Valley for 3 days of skiing and sledding, joined by Max's pal Nick (age 13). At Squaw Valley we hooked up with my son, Don Jr. Most runs were open and conditions were spring-like. Squaw Valley is an enormous resort with enough ski terrain to entertain us for many days. I left the kids with my son and daughter-in-law in mid-week to head to Palm Desert to join Gail, Phyllis Seibert, and Mary Saber for DynaBrass in Fontana. Max came down with the flu, so I handed him off at the right time. Son Don and Ben followed Max's lead at the end of the week. By that time, I was long gone and appear to have escaped Max-flu.
Attention!:
Many of you never make it to the end of this newsletter. So let me call you attention to a schedule add: the Gruber Family Band May 24-25, 2014 will be at the Slovene Hall in Fontana over Memorial Day Weekend.
And thanks to Roman Possedi for letting us know that Navihanke, an all girls band from Slovenia, will be performing May 2-4 at banjo-rama in Sacramento and May 6 at the Vi in Palo Alto.
http://www.navihankeusa2014.com/tour/
Sad News
Lois Halvorson of Mesa, Az. passed away February 9 in Mesa, Arizona just before the Southwest Polka Party that she and Ed hosted for 22 years, many of which we attended.
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| Lois & Ed Halvorson |
SuperBowl Weekend with Mark Habat & GBF
Mark Habat & Jan Horvath were in San Francisco for a few days the first weekend in February before jumping on a cruise ship to Hawaii. Mark is a Cleveland icon, a frequent winner of the National Cleveland-style Polka Hall of Fame sideman of the year award for his drumming & vocals. Mark and Jan were staying at the home of Joe Bajuk in Daly City.
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| Mark & Jan at the Bajuks with the crew |
I always enjoy a conversation with Joe Bajuk, Sr. Daly City sits on the coast, an inch south of San Francisco. It is normally foggy, damp, and cold by our standards. But this year the weather has been unusual all over California and Daly City was basked in sunshine and warmth - for weeks on end. Joe Sr. was entertaining a move to Ohio last year - but I think that the lousy weather in Ohio and the great weather in Daly City put the notion out of his head. At least we hope that this is the case.
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| Joe Bajuk, Sr. |
On the Saturday prior to SuperBowl, we met up with Joe, Mark, Jan, the Clay Family, Seiberts, and Mary Saber for a day at Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco. The sun was shining brilliantly, but the breeze blowing off the bay was quite chilly, serving up a familiar odor of seals and sea lions.
Pier 39
We dined at Boudin’s, one of the original creators of San Francisco sourdough bread in the 1800s, and now a great restaurant on the Wharf.
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| Lunch at Boudin's |
Left side: Joe Bajuk, Jesse Clay, Brian Clay, Mark Habat; right side: Jan Horvath, Donna Clay, Stephanie Clay, Gail Haderle, Mary Saber, Phyllis Seibert.
On SuperBowl Sunday, we all headed to Sacramento for the Polka Booster dance, where the Gruber Family Band (GBF) performed for a thin, but effusive crowd.
The football game was on the TV in the barroom, which drew folks like a magnet.
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| Toni embraced by Joe Bajuk & Anthony Krische |
This didn’t deter GBF from doing a stellar job, serving up Austrian, German, Polish, Slovenian, and American music to a very satisfied group. The dance ended with the usual all-hands at the front of the stage swaying to the music, waving hankies, and gyrating in unimaginable forms.
A conga line formed parading about the room, and finally settled in front of the stage for a great send-off.
Southwest Polka Party Las Vegas Feb. 11-13
The 23rd annual Southwest Polka Party was held in Las Vegas at the Orleans Hotel Casino February 11-13. Bands played in two ballrooms. The Mardi Gras Ballroom is the larger of the two with capacity for over 800 people offering a Master dance floor. Ray Sands, Julie Lee, and the Softones rotated from 1pm to 10pm Tuesday and Wednesday with a shorter program on Thursday.
The Esplanade Ballroom holds several hundred people. The Alaska Polka Chips and Barefoot Becky rotated on the program with a jam session setup from 5-7pm Tuesday and Wednesday.
Our buddy, Roman Possedi, emceed the event. Roman was Mr. Chicago in Cleveland-style polka music for six decades. He has resided in Las Vegas for over a decade and does a masterful job introducing the talent.
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| Roman sprucing up |
Ed & Lois Halvorson, who originated the Southwest Polka Party, retired and handed it off to Julie Lee who kept the same format mixing in a few new bands and promises to keep it fresh with some new bands each year. Julie did a great job organizing the event and performing. The polka music was soft tempo with a lot of two-steps, an occasional circle Schottisch, and other mixers which the crowd loves. The dance floors were well occupied without being crowded.
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| Circle Schottisch |
It’s aptly called a party. We see people from across the country that we haven’t seen since the party the prior year as well as friends from home.
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Potsy and Nancy surprised us again with their presence. What would really surprise me is seeing Potsy at one of our Polish dances - he's Slovenian all the way.
Claude & Alvina Kormann celebrated their 73rd (yup, that's Seventy Three) anniversary. Julie Lee played a special song for them in honor of this milestone.
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| Claude & Alvina Kormann |
It’s as much a time to socialize as it is to dance. The party flows out of the venue into hotel rooms. A few doors down the hall from us a group was having a champagne breakfast party on Wednesday.
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| Party Time |
We (Mary Saber, Phyllis Seibert, Gail, & I) had a jam-packed room party on Wednesday where Pete Dundas, Danny Fitterer, and Potsy Jenovic played heart throbbing Slovenian music.
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| Don leads conga line |
The above picture was taken by Danny Fitterer, who is a professional photographer among his other talents. Danny & Liz presented me with the shirt I'm wearing, declaring me as the captain of Team Twerk. I thought that I was good at twerking, but Gail & Liz showed off their talents which makes me look like a novice. The music by Pete, Danny, and Potsy was awesome. The pictures speak louder than words - we ate, drank, danced, and cavorted.
It’s a happening – music, dance, dine, gamble, and gambol! The dance in Vegas would not be complete without an appearance from George with his many wardrobe changes. Perhaps someone can explain to me why he's dressed as a baker with a steering wheel.
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DynaBrass in Fontana Feb. 22-23
Jeff Mleczko and the DynaBrass polka band from Michigan would have played for free in Fontana, California the weekend of February 22. The toasty 70 degree weather was quite a contrast to the subzero weather in Michigan. After they thawed out, they opened the dance with one of their honky style polkas which brought everyone out on the dance floor. Their brassy style really lit up the room.
DynaBrass
Jolanda Jordan was in heaven. DynaBrass is her favorite band. After the
dance she continued to rave on her Facebook postings.
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| Jolanda & Fredy whoop it up |
I love to watch Jolanda and her son dance - his excitement is infectious!
Barbara Szczypiorski celebrated her 57th birthday with a birthday cake and enough cupcakes for everyone.
She was joined
by her husband, her sister, Del Calderini, and her mom, Josephine, who will
celebrate her 93rd birthday in a couple of weeks.
Barbara’s not shy. When her birthday was announced, she leapt up blowing a shrill whistle and rattling noisemakers. We all joined in creating quite a din and lined up for hugs.
You'll see Phyllis Seibert and Mary Saber sprinkled in these pictures. They stayed with Gail & I after the Las Vegas party and hit this dance on their sojourn back to Sacramento. They surprised everyone.
The Stodolas and the Pages graced us with their presence on Saturday. Mel and Bob don't have the stamina to make it two days. Carol Hixson surprised us by showing up both days! And it's great to see Bev Fuhrman with the Kants.
Ginger Kozak drove all the way from Phoenix for DynaBrass by herself - all of her compadres petered out.
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| Joe Mieszala gives Ginger a squeeze |
Here's a splattering of folk.
It's always great to see Art & Maxine Brabander. Their son brings them to the dance. Jo Ann Leppsaar is still nursing an injury, but that doesn't keep her from coming to the dance.
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| Jo Ann Leppsaar with the Brabanders |
The shot below of Maxine dancing with John Sustacek is precious.
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Joe Mieszala joined the band for a few numbers displaying his artistry on bass and his killer smile.
On Saturday two young couples joined us. We discovered that one of them had been raised in a Polish section of Staten Island and showed the others a youtube posting of the band. So they stopped by. None knew how to dance the polka. After three simple instructions they bravely took the floor and spent the next three hours honing their skills. Way to go!
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| Jerry Kant adopts the new folk |
Marie DeWeese Pettibone brought her grandkids, so we had wee ones to entertain us on Sunday. Marie had a little cancer removed from her eyelid and looked like she had been socked in the eye, which made for entertaining prattle. She had no problem finding folk to keep watch on the two lasses while she spun about the dance floor.
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| Gene & Marie's grandkids |
Johnny Whiteshoes made a rare appearance. He says that he'll move from Nevada back to Pennsylvania this summer.
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| Roy & Johnny |
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| The Kenderes |
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| Ed presents door prize |
Thanks again to Jeff and the boys for a great weekend. BEV FUHRMAN REPORT
Thanks to Bev with embellishments by moi, we have report of the goings on at the Fontana Slovene Hall in February.
Slovene Hall Jam Session February 9
A nice crowd attended the jam session. Many of the Fontana Button Accordion Club members joined Bobby Zeitz (drums), Linda Trembly (piano), Skip Svoboda (tuba), Frank Rote (button accordion) and Ernie Blazic (accordion) to put out some great dance music.
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| Maja Bobnar |
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| Frank Rote with Maja |
As a special treat, Maja Bobnar, a very gifted accordion player visiting Southern California from Slovenia, whipped us into a frenzy with her button accordion, accompanied by Skip and Troy. Wow, she can really play. Check her out on youtube in Slovenia.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wma4AqivRfg
February was birthday month. We celebrated the birthdays of Ardis, Art, Pa Pai, Al, Helen, and Bob. What's with the crowns on the head? Did someone go to Burger King?
Pa Pai Ladosky brought a delicious cake made by her daughter - not a scrap was left after the party. Art Brabander continues to amaze us. He celebrated his 95th birthday and showed off his dancing style with smooth fancy moves. And Art continues to play golf regularly.
Buttonbox Sweetheart Dance February 16
The Fontana Button Accordion Club's Annual Sweetheart Dance at the Slovene Hall is always festive with great decorations, door prizes, and great music. Unfortunately the crowd was small, but the enthusiasm of the attendees was stellar. Everyone had a good time. Eric Wood served up some very tasty food for the occasion, so no one went away hungry or thirsty.
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| Fontana Button Accordion Club |
Events Planning
Go to polkabob’s webpage for a complete list of events. Bob has added in the most complete listing that I have seen of events in Arizona for 2014.
Let me call your attention to a couple of events for planning. Gene Swick and Don & Gail Haderle have a great lineup of visiting bands for 2014.
March 29-30, 2014: The Steve Drzewicki Band from Michigan performs at the Sons of Italy Hall in Fontana.
April 26-27, 2014: Knewz from Buffalo performs at the Sons of Italy Hall in Fontana.
May 17-18, 2014: Polka Family from Pennsylvania performs at the Sons of Italy Hall in Fontana.
May 24-25, 2014: Gruber Family Band (GBF) will be at the Slovene Hall in Fontana over Memorial Day Weekend.
Sep 27-28, 2014: Jimmy K & Ethnic Jazz will be at the Sons of Italy Hall in Fontana.
December 12-13, 2014: Lenny Gomulka & Chicago Push perform at the Pulaski Club in Phoenix, Az.
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