Do You Hear That? Wait…

Tags: Saskatoon, Saskatoon comedians, Saskatoon open mic, stand-up comedy, standup diaries, the stand up sit down, The Stand-Up Diaries, the standup diaries, trevor dean, Trevor Dean comedian, trevor dean saskatoon

I do have two websites.  Still.  One of them I still pay the web designer for even though I haven’t looked at it in a few months.

The website I speak of is the one that’s for the radio show, The Stand-Up Sit Down.  I am still two episodes short of completing the 2020 calendar year, but I don’t seem to care at the moment.  The website design was complex and time consuming.  It took a while for me to understand how to navigate the site and post content.  It took even longer to understand the nuances of the radio station and all that was required to do the show, most of which no other hosts did.

The show allowed me to do things that nobody else in the comedy community was doing.  That made me feel good, like I was really accomplishing something of value, something worthwhile that could be part of a legacy long after I am gone.  I enjoyed what the show gave me and how I grew.  I did not enjoy the toll the show took on my physical and mental health, even though I only realized how much it gassed me once I no longer had the show.

I made connections with comics from all over the world.  I set out to find comics that I enjoyed watching, who were clean and good story tellers.  I thought they would make the most sense to have on as guests.  People you enjoy watching perform should be a joy to have on as guests.  For the most part, I was right every single time, with the exception of one guest.  Hey, after 78 shows you are bound to have some good and some bad.

The connections I made was way beyond what I ever thought possible, and I have to admit when I started the show, I just wanted to have enough local guests on for as long as I could.  That could buy me time to then find guests outside of the local comedy community.

I miss those connections, being able to have those guests on the show on a regular basis, to touch base and learn from them.  People like Andrew Grose, one of Canada’s best headliners, a humble, gracious guest and a great storyteller also.  Asking him about how he met his wife was particularly gratifying since he said nobody has ever asked him that in an interview before.  It turns out it was relevant to comedy way more than I ever imagined!

Then there was Taylor Mason, the star search winner, ventriloquist, comic, musician, actor.  One of the nicest, most genuine and humble people I have ever had the chance to meet in comedy.  He is always positive, encouraging and fun.  In his videos he wears Raptors and Expos caps, so I decided to send him a Riders cap, to his home address in New Jersey.  He couldn’t have been more excited and appreciative.

Then there was Tammy Pescatelli.  I like to say that I’m the only person in Saskatchewan that gave her my number.  Well, it’s my old number now.  But still, when somebody like that messages you and says give me your number, it’s a surreal moment.  Getting to talk to her was an honour.  She said the only had 15 minutes, but I managed to get over a half hour with her.  That is one of the highlights of my comedy journey thus far that nobody around here can top. What’s neat is she is a comedy ally, someone that stands by me who I can message at any time and get insight or advice.  When you tweet most famous comics, they don’t reply.  Not only does she reply, she follows my account, which is beyond cool.  I am hoping to get her back on the show one day, as the radio interview quality wasn’t the greatest, and I feel like I owe it to the comedy community at large, and listeners, to right that wrong.

I also had my comedy coach and his students on multiple times as guests.  Even though they are in L.A., a world away from the Saskatoon comedy scene, they still enjoyed being on the show and talking about their comedy journey.  I really believe that once you remove yourself from the equation and truly focus on the guest, that’s when you get the best chats because you will almost always learn something new that you can apply to either comedy, life, or both.

I know being prideful isn’t the best, but I cannot help but sit back (too lazy and too old to stand for too long) and be amazed at how far I came in such a short time.  The show was continually evolving until I struck gold and found the professional voice over artist from the USA to record what can only be described as the baddest opening in the history of radio shows.  In the end it cost me a few hundred dollars over the life of the show, for a volunteer host that did not get paid.

I would consider doing the show again, but how could it be done without the same sacrifices I made over those 18 months, seemingly oblivious to the toll it took on my life as a whole?  I would only do the show in that same time slot, as the overnight show is just a better fit for the talk radio format.  I would love to do radio again; I am just unsure how that will happen.  The differences between radio and podcasts are obvious.  For me I will always favour radio.  I could keep the show going and have on guests every so often, but I haven’t had the motivation or desire to pursue that.

I kept the radio show going because it eventually defined me and gave me a tremendous confidence boost and helped me to discover my purpose, because believe me, working retail at minimum wage sure as hell did nothing for my self-worth, especially when your superiors belittle you and don’t support your personal/career development.  The retail world I was in was full of excuses and wannabes.  I do not live my life with excuses.  I figure things out, and if I can’t, I seek out people who have strengths or skills I do not have in order to help further my cause.  As for being a wannabe, I don’t live my life based on what-ifs.  If I want to do something, I will.  Sure, I will probably fail, but maybe I don’t.  At any rate, it’s a win for me.

The radio show started like my material does, with a blank page.  The blank page, blank computer screen, those are the most empowering moments in life.  Laws are written on blank pages, art is created on a blank canvas, curriculums are developed and put into existence on the blank page.  With the blank page you can create something that evokes emotion, something that will make you laugh, think, cry or inspire you.  If more people understood the power of the blank page, more vision boards would come into existence, more ideas would be formulated, more plans derived, more passions and goals pursued with less fear.

Me, an average comic in Saskatoon, in Canada, in a small comedy market, had a radio show that eventually had global reach.  Regardless of what I do or do not achieve from hereon out, that in itself makes the journey a success.

It doesn’t hurt that I got Jason Belmonte on the show either.

It just goes to show you that as long as you keep asking questions, you can’t go wrong.  Just make sure you listen for the answers.  They may hit you when you least expect it.