Friday, February 24, 2012

I'm a dumba**

You ever have those moments when you wake up and think "Man, I'm a freakin idiot!".. I had one of those this week...First off, let it be said, that at the end of the day, I know God is in control of my life..and I know that he will always take care of me, so I'm not doubting my faith, but hey, I have bad days too. The other thing that I think God gives you is choices. He will always take care of us, but I do think you have free will, and with free will comes choices. When I think back on some of the choices I have made throughout my life, I think "I'm a dumba**".. The most frequent decison is usually related to Radio..


When I was 19 I started as an intern at Wright Wradio in Weatherford. Mom told me it was time to get a job after my first semester in College and she had a friend that worked as a sales person at the radio station..so she told me to go out there. I walked into interview and this 5 foot tall man named "Wild Bill" said "I love the sound of your voice!".. and with that, my internship began. I started out in the news room, (even though I said, I'd like to do anything BUT news) with a guy that later got fired for sexual harrassment..(not filed by me by the way, lol). .I was an intern with two other girls.. One that I hated as a former basketball rival and the other was a girl I went to high school with that was 3 years older than me named Shea.. (She and I are still good friends by the way).. The first thing they had me do was to write news stories.. I was pretty good at this because in radio, you write exactly the way you talk.. so this was good.. Until I was also enrolled into a "news reporting" class in College..writing for newspaper WAY different that radio.. that sememster about killed me..

Eventually I got to read the news on the air in the am.. I mean what college student doesn't want to show up at 4 am to do the news right? Yes! So begins the story of my getting up at 4am legacy.. As a result of reading the news in the AM, that meant I got to act as the 'sidekick' on some of the morning show bits that Wild Bill did.. We would banter and do funny stuff and I quickly learned that I didn't want to be in the news room, but in the airchair doing my own show. I had some HORRIFIC air checks though.. (An aircheck is when the boss calls you into a meeting to tell you how horrible you are on the air) I have been told "KC when I heard you today I wanted to rip your trachea out" or "KC women aren't meant to be on the radio" or "Why do you have to be so brash".. on and on.. Whats funny is that I thougt thats how all businesses were ran before I realized that radio is very unique in that way.. and not in a GOOD way..


Well eventually enough people quit for me to get my first afternoon gig on a Hot AC station.. I had a blast on that show and it really molded me into a good jock.. We started fun bits like "Songs that could get me fired" "Good morning wake ups" "Joke to go".. all kind of great bits.. I loved it.. Eventually the morning guy quit and I asked if I could take over the morning show... Of course I heard "KC, women on the radio don't do well, and no one would ever put a GIRL on the radio as a MORNING show. Girls are meant to be laugh boxes..they laugh at things the MEN would say".. Fortunately I had had some great prior co-hosts and they had told me this was NOT true.. So after a few months of me pestering them non stop (and the fact that no one else wanted to get up at 4am to do a show) I got the gig.. and so began my love of the radio morning show. Been doing it ever since..



From the first day I went on the air, I was hooked.. to the first caller that told me I did a good job.. to the caller that told me I sucked, which made me just want to work harder to win them over.. Radio is addictive. Its like show business.. And it was never a dull moment. I've never worked for more unstable, dysfunctional people than when I was in radio.. But ironically enough, usually the good would outweigh the bad. .So I chased radio forever. I left relationships for radio, didn't bother being a vet because I had radio, developed horrible eating habits and gained weight for radio, left my friends and family for radio, and got my heart broken by radio..
So at some point I've had to ask "What would have happened if I hadn't chosen radio?" I'm not sure.. I always wanted to be an AI (Artificial Insemination) Vet.. Since I saw my step dad do it.. I love cows and loved making better cows. I always wanted to be a large animal vet. I know I would have been good at it too because I'm like Snow White with Cows.. But I never bothered getting that education because I had already found 'my' career.. I got a masters in English because it was easy for me.. Very little studying, and I'm a speed reader, so it came naturally.. So why be a vet right?


Now, as I wake up, a woman in my 30's.. I think.. Wow.. Time has really gotten away from me. Radio was great, but the pay was awfu. I'm not married, I have no kids, I don't own a house, I'm paying on a car, and I don't feel like I 'have' other things that people my age age who did things differently.. However, Have they hung out with George Strait and Garth brooks? No. Have they taken their family to amazing concerts? No.. But hell, if I was an AI Vet, I could probably afford to buy my OWN tickets to those shows and backstage!


The one good thing about radio is that I learned who I never WANT to be like, or WANT to work with. I've met some of the most unreasonable, egotistical, jerks in the WORLD. You can't imagine how unethical some of the people I have worked for can be! So thats a positive.. I've also learned what kind of manager I'd never like to be! But the flip side to that is that it has made me have a thick skin, quick wit, and sharp tongue.. Most of the times those are all good things. I've also learned that I can bounce back pretty quickly, being that I was only out of work for a few months when I lost my job in radio..Thats because I was willing to work hard and work my way up. Some people think a job is just 'owed' to them because they got a college education, or because they previously had a great job. I've never thought that way, and have had to start at the ground floor at most of the jobs I have taken..but it always pays off because you learn so much along the journey.


So as the saying goes, "All things happen for a reason".. but sometimes you can't help but question your decisions. MJ and I were thinking about buying a house this past week, but the whole idea fell through because neither of us had really 'planned' for that.. We hadn't saved enough money, we hadn't done a budget, and we hadn't always managed our money.. So that means No house. We are going to wait 6 months, try to save money, budget, and actually figure out what we can afford as opposed to jumping in head first. Which sucks. But sometimes being an adult does suck.
So yes, I still wonder what my life would be like if I hasn't always chosen radio.. but I have to remind mysef that I've done things, and met folks that most people will never do or meet.. and I hope that along the way I've made some people laugh.. I hope I've inspired some people to volunteer and be good dog parents.. and I hope that I've showed people that when you are down and Out, the Lord can always bring you back up, and always knows what you need. Its now my responsibility to start doing better with my money (now that I'm actually making some!) and get on the road to home ownership! Maybe a marriage and a baby will also be in my future someday.. Who knows! Stranger things have happened..

2 comments:

  1. Awesome post! Where did you get the photo of Harold at the top?

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    1. Haha! You don't have to look too hard for those!

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