When Mama had parties to whirl, she left us at Auntie’s.
Didn’t she know Auntie had her own house jukes then?
Where were their steady, hard-working, non-drinking men?
Gramma and Grampa raised that platter way back when;
self-serving dances that taint through the generations.
top image: Wurlitzer Model 700
We are celebrating the 10-year anniversary of dVerse, aka the poet’s pub, this week after having a 2-week vaca. I’ve got a whole roll of quarters in my pocket and am ready to start pushing buttons on the Wurlitzer.
Brian Miller is today’s Special Guest Host of dVerse’ Quadrille Monday. Brian, who is one of the co-founders of dVerse, says:
Keep in mind your quadrille can be any style or topic. 44 words exact, not including the title[, using the word juke or some variation of the word juke.]
Tao Talk 
I can only imagine how much better the parties were at your aunt … for some the booze only makes it worse.
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Those parties were no place for kids! Thanks for reading and your comment, Bjorn.
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I hope you got to party at your auntie’s juke joint, and made the most of it!
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Not a good place for kids to be, Ingrid. Loud drunks and no supervision. I’m sure the adults were having a blast.
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😳 sorry to hear that. I had experience of drunk parties from an esr
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early age! Sorry; butterfingers tonight!
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Thanks, Ingrid. Not sure what an esr is?
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Sorry you had to go through that mess as well, Ingrid, just read the other part to your comment.
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It just seemed like normal life to me!
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Great!
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gramma and grandads house was a treasure trove of goodness, finidng things of days long gone. A juke box would have been an incredible find. We had them at the pizza joint…and Waffle House still has them.
So what are you gonna play with all those quarters?
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“Honky Tonk Man” “Mamas Don’t let Your Babies Grow up to be Cowboys” “What’s Your Name” “Pour Some Sugar on Me” “I’ve Got Friends in Lowly Places” are all old favorites I’ve heard on the jukebox. Crank up the volume!
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There is so much more here that isn’t said with your words. Wonderful Lisa!
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Linda, thank you for seeing what isn’t said ❤
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You’re welcome!
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So much emotion packed in this quadrille, Lisa! The unsaid here is piercingly poignant 💝
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Sanaa, thank you very much ❤
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For some reason “The Little White Cloud That Cried” by Johnny Ray comes to mind! Haven’t even thought of that song for years!
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For some reason “The Little White Cloud That Cried” by Johnny Ray comes to mind! Haven’t even thought of that song for years!
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I’ll have to go look that one up as it isn’t ringing a bell. Yes, those songs still in the memory banks but once their “number” is pushed they come back 🙂 I was also surprised to see that the platters were originally lifted to the player instead of the dropped onto it.
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looky what I found:
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So much in these few words. Those most have been some parties–not the kind I’d want to be at, the juke box would be fun. 😀
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So much fun as an adult around the juke box. I would love to have one in the house. I learned not that long ago that there are programs on your phone where you can choose the songs you want and the bar you’re in will play them on its jukebox. How tecchie is that!
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That’s very cool! 😀
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Oh those wild parties…no place for kids indeed. LOVE the insertion of the word “platters” here. I’m of the jukebox, bobbysox generation who know what it means when someone says “Spin that new Elvis platter” and the quarters are dropped in, the buttons pushed, one on the top and one on the bottom, which gives you what seemed like at the time, a huge number of combinations…one for every “platter” in the machine….the arm would reach out, pick out the correct one, it would drop down and spin and we’d be grooving to the music with heads bent over cherry or chocolate cokes….or it we were lucky to have the money to splurge (or our date could spluge), a rootbeer float or a chocolate malt! 🙂
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Lillian, thanks for taking me there. 🙂
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Oh my – sounds like the grown-ups had fun – but def. not a good place for kids. What a beautiful Wurlitzer though – I always loved when I got some coins and choose my favorite songs as a kid
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Thank you for the wonderful comment, Claudia. Happy you have fond memories of the Wurlitzers.
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Nice one!!!
The youtube jukebox is amazing, thanks for sharing
Much💜love
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Gillena thank you. I see they make so many different ones so I picked one in a year near when my mom was young and then found a video with that model for the music 🙂
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I do know how that affects the generations. When I was a kid, those “parties” didnt take long to escalate into something dark. I resonated with your poem.
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Sherry, thank you and I’m sorry you know what I’m talking about through your own lived experiences.
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A great one Lisa with the old tinny sounds of the 40s. Love the use of raised that platter.. Well done.
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Dwight, thank you so much and glad you have recollection of those older models.
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Yes, you are welcome!
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My favorite uncle had a well-stocked Wurlitzer in his basement & let us blast it day & night whenever we visited. Cool write. Thanks.
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What a happy memory for you, Ron. Thank you.
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Patti Page, Perry Como, Ray Charles, Doris Day, Eddie Fisher…all pre-Elvis. And toss in Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra too. Rosemary Clooney “Come On top My House”. “Oh, My Papa” “Doggie in the Window”. and “Fever”.
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Glenn, I love your playlist! I remember most of these artists and love your remembering a time in music before Elvis was King.
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The party would have been fun but not for the kids. Love the juke box video – brings back the good upbeat songs.
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Thanks for your lovely comment, Grace.
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Oy, kids and drunks do not mix well. And shouldn’t.
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AMEN. I know too many people who got started on their road to alcoholism by sneaking drinks at those parties, not to mention anything else that happens when adults are too drunk to notice.
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yep. To all the dangers that await children who are not only left unsupervised, but left to the mercies of those whose judgment is gone and their impulses are less than good enough.
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Great write, Lisa! I got hung up on your jukebox list of oldies but goodies …. mine too!
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Thanks, Helen. Those tunes are from a particular little bar I used to hang out in as a young’n. When certain songs came on the whole place sang them, especially the Waylon & Willie and Garth songs.
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Cool old Wurlitzer! But wish adults would be responsible…
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Lynn, my experience with alcoholics and responsibility are that the two don’t mix. After that first drink….
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Too true…
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Self serving and taint aren’t acceptable words for a young ~un’s environment. I hope all went ultimately well
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Thanks for your comment, I agree, Larry. Ideally all young ~uns would be protected by their parents and caretakers.
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Parents always have to be aware of everything
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Your poem had made my mind go to a wild party with kids dancing to their favorite music!
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Teenagers at a party dancing is a good place for your mind to go.
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Cool!
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Those Wurlitzers are works of art as well as enjoyable.
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I know! I would love to have one of those old ones. I hope some are going into museums…
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Surely they are…I do see some at flea markets and antique stores…heck Lisa I would take a 60s or 70s one…not quite classic but cool…but no nothing beats those old ones.
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What a cool jukebox. I can imagine the house party and the jingling quarters. Thanks for sharing,.
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Thanks, K, and you’re welcome.
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Oh, the human condition. One live. Might as well enjoy it. Nicely told.
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Thanks much, Bill.
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Life — LOL.
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This one tugged n my heart strings Lisa. I had visions of small children growing up way too fast.
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Thank you, Christine, your visions are on the mark.
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I saw that immediately Lisa 😢
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❤
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You honored the beauty and entertainment of the juke box but between the lines lies the stories untold, not as amusing.
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Thank you for reading and your lovely comment, Mish.
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As I read your comments to various replies, I realised this is a masterful piece of listen-to-what’s-not-said; it’s like identifying a person only by looking at their shadow.
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Misky, thank you for taking time to give a closer look. It is appreciated and so is your insightful comment.
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Wait? Really? Wow!
❤
David
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When our family drinks and parties it turns to violence, so they decided, consciously or otherwise, to party separately and beat up on others. Mom knew but didn’t care as us kids were, at least on the surface, being supervised while she went out… Yes, really.
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wow. that’s sad 😦
sorry, Lisa.
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Yes it is. Thanks, David.
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That’s a great jukebox. Life is hard, and sometimes it seems the only way out is to let go…(k)
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I’ve been trying for 60+ years to let go and I agree. It’s a gradual process. Maybe when I’m 100 I’ll be light enough to float to heaven when it’s time.
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It’s a process for all of us.
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you captured a moment and shared it so clearly, Ms. Lisa. I can hear the noise and the voices influenced with some drinks (probably).
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Rosemarie, thank you for your lovely comment ❤
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