Tuesday, April 5, 2005

What's Made Milwaukee Famous

                                 What's Made Milwaukee Famous   written by Glen Sutton

  It's late and she is waiting, and I know I should go home;
But every time I start to leave they play another song.
Then someone buys another round and wherever drinks are free ,
What's made Milwaukee famous has made a fool out of me.

Baby's begged me not to go so many times before:
She says love and happiness can't live behind those swinging doors
Now she's gone and I'm to blame.  Too late, I finally see,
What's made Milwaukee famous has made a loser out of me.
  

Cliff and I have always loved Jerry Lee Lewis.  Yes, we know he's a sleaze-ball.  But we love his music.

Back around 1977, we had some new neighbors, Barbara and Tim.  They had two children:  a little girl around five years old, and a toddler son, Troy.  Barbara and I got acquainted and went grocery shopping together often, and to garage sales.  My daughter enjoyed Barb's little girl, Mechelle.  And I loved the toddler, Troy.  Barbara found out about a group of ladies who met to quilt once a week, and since she was kind enough to take me grocery-shopping every week, I told her I'd watch the kids while she went to quilting.

Troy, Barb informed me, did not take naps.  This being unacceptable in my book, when I had charge of Troy, I'd rock him and sing.  Perhaps it wasn't the best choice, but I often sang that good old beer-drinking song... "What Made Milwaukee Famous".

Troy learned to love that song.  His vocabulary was limited, but on the second line, I'd sing, "... I know I should go home...", and on the word "home", he'd chime in; I can see him yet.  Before you know it, he'd be sound asleep.  Troy slept with his eyelids cracked open a bit, so you could tell when he was really asleep; his eyes would be open.

When all the neighborhood kids would be playing together, and Troy was with them, my two children would start singing, "It's late, I know she's waiting....,"  because they knew how he loved that song.

And Troy would start crying and say, "No!  mine song!"

Cliff and I attended Troy's wedding a couple of weeks ago.  Where does the time go?


7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dont you love seeing the little ones you've loved grow up?

Anonymous said...

Oh what a lovely story and what beautiful memories. Thanks for this posting.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, and when they'd spend the night, the "sleeping with his eyes open" kinda freaked me out.  I thought he was faking!  I'd never seen anyone do that.  I also remember him being scared of Jim's Ozzy Osborn mirror, won at the local town fair.  Fun memories.

Anonymous said...

Have you seen "Great Balls of Fire"?  I'm sure you have.  I liked it okay -- but I thought it glossed over his pervy side too much.  And plus  --- Dennis Quaid was way better looking than Jerry!   Russ

Anonymous said...

Have so enjoyed these last three postings.  We have the next generation in our family also marrying, having babies and making their own way.  It's such a good time, this middle age.  I so enjoy watching and hearing their growing up (and out!).

Anonymous said...

  "Sleaze-balls" ... I have found out that often great people are unable to cope with the reality of this very imperfect world ... and become "Sleaze-balls"...
   In such a frame of mind ... their words/songs are lamentations right from the heart.

Anonymous said...

This was a sweet story.