I grew up with polish parents..

in my youth i grew up with polish parents, polish grand parents on both sides, with polish nieghbors. the hollidays were awesome.everyone would get together, polka, play cards, eat alot of great food. and i had some great influences during this time. however, looking back, i can see how i took it all for granted.like most kids i realy thought nothing of my heritage. it was there. ya know? now in my 40's with most of my grandparents gone, my mom gone, actualy her whole side of the familly gone, and just a few of us left { my dzia dzia off my dads side, dad, brother, and two sisters} i miss those times. my wifes not polish. a little of everything other than polish. l.o.l. , my first son from a previous merriage, well i call him a polebilly. l.o.l. kind of a cross between a polack and a hillbilly. he gets a kick out of that.not to say the hollidays arent nice nowadays, i just miss all that great polish get togetherness with the polkas and occasionaly a band and stuff.as i was reading in another forum, i thought of a few things that seem to have disapeared. like czarnina, man i loved that stuff, but i havent ever been able to find ducks blood since ive been a adult., the polish station i grew up listening to as a kid, well, its no longer available anymore. i was looking. l.o.l. kind of miss those songs like roll out the barrel, and shes too fat for me. that was fun stuff.i remember danceing in the kitchen with my busia angie.the tavern my dzia dzia danny used to take me too when i was 5 years old is long since borded up. he taught me how to shoot pool there.it was a place called the buckingham pallace.they had live bands every weekend.and bingo on sundays. l.o.l. after church hours of course.i was lucky.i had a chance to experiance those things, those people, everything. today is alot different. not bad, or anything. just alot different. sure miss those days. kaz

where did you grow up kaz?

south side of toledo ohio. in the old polish nieghborhood.its alot different now. its more like a ghetto anymore.the small but beautiful homes are all run down. actualy i drove past my busias old house where i grew up for the most part. its in bad condition.i didnt stay too long because its dangerouse to hang around there anymore. kaz

places change... one way or the other... i grew up in a part of london that sounds very similar to how you describe your old neighbourhood as now... thirty odd years later this is now one of the most desirable areas in london... it used to be a dangerous place but it also had an atmosphere and sense of community that was great to grow up in... now it's just full of people who walk out of their house and get into their car... no kids playing in the street... no *life*...