Just a series of lucky accidents is how Bob Posch sees his life. "From the minute I began dismantling engines in the shed out back, right up to my performing on cruise ships, everything just fell in place for me," he says.

A farm boy from Minnesota, Posch spent his childhood riding a John Deere tractor and grabbing free moments to study rudimentary engineering, knowledge that would come handy in later life. Another skill he learned was how to find middle "C" on an old guitar. That, too, would prove fortuitous.

Dropping out of high school and sick to death of the farm, Posch took off at 17 to join the Naval Air Force. That old guitar went with him and he taught himself every Kingston Trio song there was. He got good enough at it that his bunkmates convinced him to audition for a local coffeehouse gig while all of them were stationed in Waikiki. It was just an accident, Posch says, that he was immediately hired to play several nights a week and that the gig stretched over years.

"I really only wanted to support my surfing habit," Posch said. "A flamenco guitarist taught me to play that type of music (which is still my favorite) and I played at night and hit the beach by day."

Inevitably this Minnesota Moon Doggie found his Gidget and Posch followed a lovely lady all the way to frigid Michigan, where he promptly ran out of money and went to work for the auto industry to keep body and soul together. The romance faded, but Posch found a home in Michigan.

"I did get to pursue my passion for engineering and resurrect my love of hockey," he says. "I even got to perform at night clubs round the area."

It was one such gig that Posch had yet another lucky accident. "I met John Cionca, who brought his banjo to one of my shows," says Posch. "We went into the kitchen to jam for a while and when we came out, I had a new partner and a new best friend." That friendship has lasted almost 40 years with nary a harsh word between the two. "We’ve been playing together since 1964," says Cionca. "Most marriages don’t last that long."

Cionca spent his youth playing Gospel music in a family trio and learned banjo by playing Earl Scruggs old 33-1/3 albums at half-speed and practicing until he could duplicate the sound. But he had no intention of making music his career. "I became a math professor at Henry Ford Community College and held the position for thirty-one years before retiring in 2001," he says. "But I played with Bob all along, when I could arrange my schedule, and now I can do so full time."

Posch took an interest in engineering and got patents on a machine he invented which dehumidifies pool environments and recycles the condensation to provide heating for the pool. "Who knew that all that tinkering in my father’s shed would help launch a successful career?" he asks. "Or that accepting a private gig on a cruise ship would lead to the president of the cruise line hearing our act and hiring us to become headliners on one of their line’s flagships? Another happy accident."

Accident or no, the audiences get the benefit of Posch and Cionca’s fate and one listen will have you understanding why people flock to hear them. Seeing them enjoy themselves will show you why they are still at it.

Both Cionca, who plays tennis, loves hiking, and occasionally plays senior softball with his 88 year old dad, and Posch, who takes the ice as a proud member of the Redwings Old-Timers Hockey Club, admit they are having the time of their lives. "We spend the day any way that we want and get to perform at night, each with our best friend, for audiences who love us - and we get paid on top of it all. It’s incredible," says Posch.  "We will not quit doing this until we assume room temperature."