A Circle Takes 25 Years To Complete

Tags: Saskatoon, stand-up diaries, standup diaries, The Stand-Up Diaries, trevor dean, Trevor Dean comedian, trevor dean saskatoon

Have you ever walked away from something you enjoyed doing that you thought might end up being your career?  You were full of enthusiasm and had high hopes when you started, then over time that flame of enthusiasm diminishes and turns into a flicker flame, then a spark, then dies.  Then little by little, after years pass you start having these thoughts, albeit brief in nature.

That happened to me many years ago with the thought I would make broadcasting my career.  Originally I wanted to do sports broadcasting, but once I got into broadcasting school I determined that radio would be better suited for me, much to my dad’s dismay.  Even though I saved up money from working two jobs to pay for half the tuition, I was told that the only reason I wanted to go into radio was because I wanted to be a big star.  Nevermind the fact that I’m the one that’s there every day and saw firsthand how the news reporters go about their day.  Then I saw what radio personalities do and figured it was more an extension of my personality to be in radio, plus I loved music and talking.

What the overwhelming majority of you do not know is that I was an unpaid intern at a local radio station in Saskatoon (which is now defunct), while still living at home, keeping in mind that I attended radio school the following year after graduation from high school.  I worked two jobs in addition to the radio shows.  Some days were very, very long.  I would work in janitorial during the day from 10 – 6 p.m., go to my second job as a delivery driver from 6:30ish til 11:00 p.m. then go straight to the radio station to prep for the overnight show.

I was on anywhere from 3 – 5 nights a week and worked Sunday mornings as well playing the sermons and Christian music.  Somehow I managed to keep that frenetic pace for two years, with a break of a few months in between when I wasn’t in radio.  Long story, which I won’t divulge any details of on this blog.

I remember one night towards the end of my radio career when I convinced the program director to put me on for an evening show.  Considering all the overnights I did, I thought it wouldn’t hurt to ask for one.  Plus, I came up with one of the stations Christmas contests when they were scrambling trying to think of an idea.

Rod Stewart was in town for a concert that night.  A couple hours into my show, I called home to see what my parents thought of the show.  My mom said they listened only for the first few minutes then they and my brother decided to watch a movie instead.  Yup, that’s my family.

At that age I also knew that I was nowhere near mature enough to move out of the house, let alone to go out of town and work for money that was so bad it wouldn’t cover my bills.  So, I decided to walk away from radio.  I wrote a note and left it at the station after my last shift.  Funny part is, the last song I played on the radio was the first one I played when I started my internship.  It was Save The Best For Last by Vanessa Williams.

I was fine with moving on and never had a thought about ever getting back into radio.  Then a while back I started to get these brief thoughts that wondered what it would be like to get involved with community radio.  I sent an email to the station probably a year or two ago pitching the idea of an interview show, but didn’t receive a reply.  No big deal I thought.  Then, in November I tried again.  Not only did I get a reply, but they wanted to know what the show would look (sound) like.

I would like to say that I had to come up with the show on the fly, but the truth is that I always had an idea of how I wanted the show to sound.  I’ve had it inside of me for a while now, and watching countless interview shows with comics and others, watching how the questions are asked, what questions are asked and how to keep an interview moving along.  I have always loved talk radio and thought if I was to get back into radio, I’d love it to be as a talk show.

Talk radio serves an important purpose, especially at night.  What purpose is that?  Well, you will have to tune in to the first show to find out, as I will explain it then.

It has already become more work than I imagined with lots to learn before I do the first show.  I am grateful to be chosen to join the family of community radio volunteers and get the opportunity to host my own show.

Don’t ever allow your ego or pride to stand in the way of you listening to that voice inside yourself that asks the question I wonder what it would be like to/if I…….   Life is far too short to have that kind of an attitude.  That’s all I will say about the show…..for now.  The social media package will roll out very soon with the new website to follow shortly after.

You have no idea what you are in store for.  Not a clue.  And that’s just the way I like it.  I’ve spent my comedy career proving people wrong and shutting up my critics.  This show will be another step in my journey, another notch in the belt, as it were.  It’s going to be better, more polished and more entertaining than you thought possible.  I guarantee it.