Where Is That Damned Pilot Light?
Tags: amateur comedians, Saskatoon, stand-up comedy, The Stand-Up Diaries, trevor deanI have come to realize that in my life where the areas of goals are concerned, the successful completion of a goal regardless of how long it takes is usually not the result of taking the shortest and easiest path. Anything worth achieving for myself comes as a result of scratching, clawing, kicking and fighting to have the same successes that seem to come to others a bit easier.
Then again, what do you learn if you take the easy way to get what you want? Sure, you may have the talent and ability to get you to the end, but what if you don’t work on your ability? What if you simply coast along, bullying others along the way and act like the big hero in the end like you were somehow predestined to be successful in the end? What do you learn from that?
I’d rather be like Kawasaki of the Blue Jays. Here’s a guy who had a dream to play big league ball. He may not be the best, but he gets along with everyone, tries his best and had moments of brilliance.
You may wonder why I would draw a comparison to one of the most popular Blue Jays in recent memory, given the fact that Kawasaki got sent down to the minor leagues to continue playing.
The unfortunate part about the Saskatoon comedy scene is that if you are a relative newcomer like I am, there’s no such thing as the minor leagues. If there are, the lineup is very difficult to crack.
It’s been several weeks now since my last stage appearance (last weekend didn’t pan out logistically as I would have liked), and I have yet to meet up with my comedy coach again to discuss things. He recently started pre-production on a new movie that he and his writing partner co-wrote, starring David Hasselhoff, Jessica Beale, Ed Helms and Ray Liotta, among others. For reasons I won’t get into now, until I can meet with my coach to discuss the last set I did, and to have a plan going forward, I don’t see myself getting stage time anytime soon. There may be a date open in August but I will offer more details to that once I can get it confirmed in the next few weeks.
If I am unable to generate any sort of momentum towards stage time in the next few months, I am wondering if The Stand Up Diaries are even worth continuing. It does not make any sense to simply write about stand up comedy from the sidelines. Lots of people do that already, and they are called reporters. No sense in me saying the same thing in a different way. I’d rather be an active participant in the comedy scene so I can write something new in my own way. With all due respect, the reporters in the audience hear things a certain way and look for certain things, while a performer will look for something totally different. The good thing is that I have been both an audience member and an amateur comic, so I can write from both points of view and make it relevant.
Plus work is getting busier and I am trying to prove to be an asset to the company so I can get a raise, and possibly afford a new car. Between work, running karaoke some weekends and finding a wonderful lady who is now part of my life, priorities are shifting just a bit. There is also a part of me that wants to travel a bit more, to get out of Saskatoon. Not to go overseas or Mexico, but just to get out of the city, taking a weekend road trip just for me.
What makes comics successful is the fact that they continue during the lean times to try and get better, they keep going despite the adversity. Louie CK, however, supposedly took a two year break after his very first time on stage before finding his niche and making it big. For me, I can’t continue this blog, regardless of how popular it has become, if I can only write about stand up comedy as a spectator.
For now my pilot light of comedy is flickering. It’s still there, you can see it, it’s just not fully lit. Whether or not I get an adequate supply of fuel to get it lit, and keep it lit….well, that’s another question for another time.
stay tuned……..