My Polish Christmas

Monday December 29th, 2008 - Milwaukee, WI

I’m trying to get all my end of the year work done but other things keep popping up and I’m falling a little behind. No, I’m falling a lot behind but I can’t ignore the things that are popping up. All I can do is my best so that’s what I’m doing but my schedule is jammed.

Today I received a phone call out of the blue from my long time pal “Polish Thunder” Tim Marszalkowski who was in Milwaukee visiting his mother for Christmas from Ohio. Tim and I have been close friends since we met at a comedy club years and years ago and we’ve always stayed in touch. He’s had his own bumpy ride in life but he’s a great soul.

We did a cable access TV show for a couple of years that was way ahead of it’s time. It was filmed in West Allis which is the suburb of Milwaukee Tim is from and I needed his address so I asked him to be on the show. We ended up forming a lifetime friendship and throughout all my ups and downs Tim has been a true friend and still is. He’s a real ace.

The funny part is we are about as opposite as two people can be. That’s probably why it has been so satisfying to be friends this long. We know each other’s quirks and know how to deal with them. He’s 6’5” and as my grandpa used to say ‘has a heart as big as his ass‘.

He’s huge in size and personality too. His parents used to own a bar in West Allis so he feels totally at home in that scenario. I can’t stand it. I’m very quiet and to myself and am not interested in mingling after shows usually but Tim lives for it. He loves to be the life of the party and he’s like a perpetual nine year old kid. People can’t help but love the guy.

We really hit it off from the first five minutes we met because he’s so real. He’s like me in that if he likes someone he loves them and if he doesn’t he just can’t hide it. We like or dislike most of the same people and as different as we are that remains funny even to us.

Tim has always had a strong family and that’s another one of our major differences. He has two brothers and a sister and they’ve all been wonderful to me for many years. If I am doing a show in town they’ll come out and support and when Tim is in town they always invite me up to be part of the family get togethers and treat me as if I’m one of their own.

Tim’s dad passed away a few years ago and his mother lives in the Milwaukee area and she asked Tim to invite me over for dinner. She’s a wonderful cook and as down to earth as it gets so I couldn’t say no. They’ve all been too nice to me over the last twenty years.

When I first started in comedy Tim would buy me meals because he had a day job with an expense account. He loved it that I treated him as a peer and not look down at him like a lot of the other local comics and club owners did. He was always very giving and kind.

People like Tim Marszalkowski and his whole family don’t come along very often and I will never forget the kindness they showed me. They were nicer to me than my own flesh and blood family and I would do anything for them. The work I wanted to do can wait.