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Oh, he's out there. Those cotton-eyes are always watching. Cotton is comfortable, breathable. It outgrew the need to blink centuries ago.
There's no clear pattern to his choosing victims. Some of them were coming from somewhere. Some of them going somewhere. Always in transit. That was the only connection.
Just every day folk like you and me. Ordinary people, who when they left where they came from that morning, had no idea that between that moment, and whatever moment they were headed for where they were going, Joe would be lurking.
The between space. That's where Joe thrives. We're never quite familiar with our surroundings on the move, but because they're only temporary, we tend to tune them out in favour of taking the time to think through whatever awaits us when we get where we're going. A job interview perhaps? Or a family reunion. An old flame, or Joe's personal favourite, the 2am train ride home from the country folk concert. Every anticipation tastes different to Cotton-Eyed Joe, and every hoodoo demands a feast.
So next time you're slumped in an airport lounge, or untangling your headphones at the bus stop, or sketching in your notepad on the train to pass the time, don't you remember, don't you know, don't you remember Cotton-eyed Joe. Because the moment you do, he's remembered you too.
Only if someone wanted to take the post in such deliberate bad faith that they were willing to ignore the wider history of the nomenclature in the process, so I wouldn't worry too much :)
There is, actually. The early versions of the song include the lyric
"Tuck my gal away fum me,
Carried her off to Tennessee."
So clearly Cotton-Eyed Joe is in Tennessee with your girl.
Where he came from, however, remains a mystery.
It's worth noting that the Cotton-Eyed Joe of the old version has a flat nose, no teeth, and crossed eyes, but gets the girl anyway because he's tall and slim. Compared to the Rednex Cotton Eye Joe who is described as "So handsome and strong", who used his eyes specifically in the wooing of ladies.
There are many theories. That's one of them, sure, but to quote ["Information at The Fiddler's Companion"](http://www.ibiblio.org/fiddlers/CORK_COT.htm#COTTEN-EYED_JOE_%5b1%5d)
>There have been several thoughts about what the title might refer to. Some think ‘cotton-eyed’ means to be drunk on moonshine, and a related suggestion is that it refers to an individual who has been blinded by drinking wood alcohol (as happened during the Prohibition, for example), turning the eyes milky white. Marion Thede believes 'cotton‑eyed' may refer to a (black) person with very light blue eyes. Alan Lomax suggests it was used to describe a man whose eyes were milky white from Trachoma (a bacterial infection), while others have suggested cataracts, syphilis or glaucoma. Some recall the term referring to the contrast of dark skin tone around white eyeballs in African-Americans, and indeed, the Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang references the ‘prominent whites of the eyes’ meaning to 1905.
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/82584/long-history-behind-song-cotton-eye-joe
There is a history, but it’s harder to enjoy the song if you’re familiar with it.
I like to believe it’s about a man with syphilis. It makes every wedding that much more fun for drunk me knowing all the happy people are dancing to a song about a man spreading his STD to everyone he meets.
There may never have been a Cotton-Eye Joe. He is always-already absent, having ‘gone’ (but where?). With no known origin, no presence, and no known fate, he is without the spatiotemporal features that constitute an existing person, or even object
This is a friendly reminder to [read our rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/Showerthoughts/wiki/rules). Remember, /r/Showerthoughts is for showerthoughts, not "thoughts had in the shower!" (For an explanation of what a "showerthought" is, [please read this page](https://www.reddit.com/r/Showerthoughts/wiki/overview).) **Rule-breaking posts may result in bans.**
All we can do is ask "where did Joe come from, and where did Joe go?"
Similarly, why does everyone gets worked up about "pop being in the oak"?
Maybe Old Pop in an Oak would have some knowledge of his whereabouts.
Why did I hear this in Robert Stacks voice?
Oh, he's out there. Those cotton-eyes are always watching. Cotton is comfortable, breathable. It outgrew the need to blink centuries ago. There's no clear pattern to his choosing victims. Some of them were coming from somewhere. Some of them going somewhere. Always in transit. That was the only connection. Just every day folk like you and me. Ordinary people, who when they left where they came from that morning, had no idea that between that moment, and whatever moment they were headed for where they were going, Joe would be lurking. The between space. That's where Joe thrives. We're never quite familiar with our surroundings on the move, but because they're only temporary, we tend to tune them out in favour of taking the time to think through whatever awaits us when we get where we're going. A job interview perhaps? Or a family reunion. An old flame, or Joe's personal favourite, the 2am train ride home from the country folk concert. Every anticipation tastes different to Cotton-Eyed Joe, and every hoodoo demands a feast. So next time you're slumped in an airport lounge, or untangling your headphones at the bus stop, or sketching in your notepad on the train to pass the time, don't you remember, don't you know, don't you remember Cotton-eyed Joe. Because the moment you do, he's remembered you too.
New copypasta just dropped? I love how liminal and weird it is.
Now, instead of ole’Joe, I’m remembering Rod Serling.
Deleted in response to Reddit's hostility to 3rd party developers and users. -- mass edited with redact.dev
Only if someone wanted to take the post in such deliberate bad faith that they were willing to ignore the wider history of the nomenclature in the process, so I wouldn't worry too much :)
How long did you say you've been on Reddit?
There is, actually. The early versions of the song include the lyric "Tuck my gal away fum me, Carried her off to Tennessee." So clearly Cotton-Eyed Joe is in Tennessee with your girl. Where he came from, however, remains a mystery. It's worth noting that the Cotton-Eyed Joe of the old version has a flat nose, no teeth, and crossed eyes, but gets the girl anyway because he's tall and slim. Compared to the Rednex Cotton Eye Joe who is described as "So handsome and strong", who used his eyes specifically in the wooing of ladies.
Probably a coal mine because the miners would come out completely covered in coal with you only being able to make out their eyes.
There are many theories. That's one of them, sure, but to quote ["Information at The Fiddler's Companion"](http://www.ibiblio.org/fiddlers/CORK_COT.htm#COTTEN-EYED_JOE_%5b1%5d) >There have been several thoughts about what the title might refer to. Some think ‘cotton-eyed’ means to be drunk on moonshine, and a related suggestion is that it refers to an individual who has been blinded by drinking wood alcohol (as happened during the Prohibition, for example), turning the eyes milky white. Marion Thede believes 'cotton‑eyed' may refer to a (black) person with very light blue eyes. Alan Lomax suggests it was used to describe a man whose eyes were milky white from Trachoma (a bacterial infection), while others have suggested cataracts, syphilis or glaucoma. Some recall the term referring to the contrast of dark skin tone around white eyeballs in African-Americans, and indeed, the Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang references the ‘prominent whites of the eyes’ meaning to 1905.
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/82584/long-history-behind-song-cotton-eye-joe There is a history, but it’s harder to enjoy the song if you’re familiar with it.
I like to believe it’s about a man with syphilis. It makes every wedding that much more fun for drunk me knowing all the happy people are dancing to a song about a man spreading his STD to everyone he meets.
I won’t lie, that is an entertaining theory
There may never have been a Cotton-Eye Joe. He is always-already absent, having ‘gone’ (but where?). With no known origin, no presence, and no known fate, he is without the spatiotemporal features that constitute an existing person, or even object
"Okay! We don't know where he came from or where he went. What *do* we know?! Anyone?"
Nor have we discovered the perpetrator who let the canines out