I was thinking the other day about how irrational and quirky us humans can be sometimes. This can be both endearing and/or frustrating, depending on the specific situation. Sometimes we can’t even explain why we’re attracted or repulsed by certain people and things.
For example, as I was eating breakfast a couple of days ago—enjoying my coffee, minding my own business, and scrolling through my newsfeed when came across an article about a local St. Paul musician from the 1920’s. This musician achieved national fame on Bing Crosby’s Decca record label. His stage name was Whoopee John Wilfahrt.
The name, Whoopee John, alone gets the imagination working overtime doesn’t it?
Being a naturally curious person I had to delve deeper and looked up Whoopee John’s music on Spotify. My first thought was about how incredibly different the world must have been back then for this kind of character to become so popular. However, to my dismay I was surprised to find myself enjoying the music, more than I would dare to admit—it’s light, happy.
This entire experience was totally irrational. I can’t explain why I’m so drawn to the music. Before I knew it I was counting myself among Whoopee John’s 300 and some odd (and I emphasize “odd”) followers on Spotify.
After sharing the story with my Mom she said, “Oh yes! Your Grandmother used to love his song Pennsylvania Polka!” My grandmother, Mary Fmura, had deep German/Austrian roots on her maternal side and grew up in the town of Arona, Pennsylvania. My maternal grandmother passed away years before I was born and I’d never heard of Whoopee John before in my entire life. Nevertheless, on that particular morning I read the article about him, delved a little deeper, and uncovered a mystery that presented more questions than it does answers.
If I were forced to come up with an explanation I'd chalk this incident up to some kind of genetic memory. I can’t be the only one these kinds of things happen to. I'm so happy to be of an age where I just couldn't care less about what people think of me anymore. I might just roll up to a red light cranking, "In Heaven There Is No Beer." Time will tell just how far I take it.
These quirks and irrationalities are like puzzle pieces that give us all our uniqueness. I'm enamored by the mystery of it all.
All for now. Make this a wonderful day.
