JON PETERSON is the host of SHAKIN’ IT RADIO on WCBE.  It’s heard Saturday nights at 8 pm at 90.5 FM and can also be heard as Audio-On-Demand at www.shakinitradio.com.

Walking, Working, Surfing, Streaming, Dreaming

It’s like a Twilight Zone episode without the nuclear explosion.  Our world has changed… without the end-of-the-world headlines.  I can’t get perspective on it all yet.  Chairman Kim didn’t let one rip.  Iran didn’t get sick of the sanctions and fired the missile.  It’s a post-nuclear-like nightmare… with none of the obvious world-shaking drama.  Social restrictions are opening… but is that a good thing?

Colin asked me… “So, what is MY world like?” I don’t have a big-picture perspective yet. But it all revolves around walking, working on the Shakin’ It Show, surfing the Internet, streaming for cool “on-demand’ premium cable shows and dreaming about the future!

WALKING

Now that I don’t have to spend two-and-a-half hours commuting from Annapolis to Baltimore, I can spend it exercising… and it’s been a game-changer. I’ve lost 28 pounds since Thanksgiving and I look and feel great.  Free time is something that I didn’t have a lot of while still commuting.  The health crisis has given me the time to exercise every day! Your routine has changed. Your posse and pals aren’t asking you to go out socializing every night.   Take this time to get healthier!

WORKING ON THE SHAKIN’ IT SHOW

What walking has done for my body, having the time now to do a new weekly Shakin’ It show has done for my soul.  When I started SHAKIN' IT in 2007, I always did a new show every week.  Since 2012 and my new job at iHEARTRADIO and my lengthy commute, its been 1 or 2 new shows monthly… with the rest as repeats.  Now that I have an extra 12.5 hours a week ‘cuz I don’t have to commute, I can do a new SI Show… every week! And I love it.  Its great having my hobby back!!!

And it’s cathartic!  What was once thought of as a shitty time slot, I now feel like I can talk to a much larger audience and lift their spirits because so many are “Sheltering at Home.”

Let me reveal some of my process from this last week’s show.  I laid in a “rough cut” on Monday.  Designed for variety, it’s a job in itself to hit a wide-variety of genres in a seamless way.  Not ‘everything in no-particular order’… but rather,  a very specific order to flow from this style to that style without a jolt.

So, it was all laid-in ‘generically’ on Monday.  I saw Billions on Showtime on Sunday and heard “Summer Cannibals” by Patti Smith, so I laid that in as my first “topical cut.” Then Millie Small died.  I saw Jim Hutter’s post so I pulled out a random ska cut and inserted “Enoch Powers.” 

Then my old webmaster sent me Mott the Hoople’s version of “Ohio” which I had never heard before… so I thought it would nicely cover the 50th anniversary of the Kent State massacre.  Then Dave Greenfield of The Stranglers died, so I pulled out a ‘generic’ punk rock cut and inserted “Get A Grip on Yourself!”  Then a childhood friend who is struggling (Bill Beatty) sent in a request for The Offspring.  Then I found out that it was the 50th Anniversary of “Let It Be” on Friday.  Then on Saturday morning, Little Richard died.  So right before I voiced the show for this week, I re-tooled the opening set.

In summary, after all these years… I think the SHAKIN IT show is more important (and better!) than ever!

SURFING THE INTERNET

Content is king… and now more than ever… looking at FB and the Internet helps me to be connected. So seeing the latest clips and comments on FB and YOUTUBE is critical.  Whether it’s seeing Jim Maneri’s latest political insights.... or seeing clips of late-night shows on COBERT and CONAN that I don’t stay up for… surfing the Internet on my FB feed is just so important.  I get a lot of song ideas too, for the Shakin’ It Show!  In fact, the last SI SHOW that I did, was based on the online responses to 10-DAY Album Challenges and 30-DAY Song Challenges!

STREAMING

On-demand TV is great.  Bingeing SCHITT’S CREEK on Netflix and keeping up with other premium shows is one way to keep sanity.  THE LIGHTHOUSE was about maintaining insanity during isolation.  Seeing it helped me keep sane! DEAD TO ME, also on Netflix, has totally blown my mind. Christina Applegate is one serious dramatic actress.  Yes, I said that... cuz’ its true!!! Watch it and be blown away!

DREAMING

All this seems like the natural time to do a serious EVAL.  Am I happy? Do I want to re-invent myself?  The time seems perfect to create something big, bold and beautiful.  I want a very different ACT III.  Now I finally have the time to re-image the possibilities.

That’s it.  It’s been horrible… but it’s also been great.  The world is changing… and the clock is ticking!  I am evaluating my life and the serious business of being happy.  Are you using this time creatively to improve your life in this “Brave New World?”