There I was, innocently listening to the radio in the car. Ross Noble and some other chick were hosting, and since I think Ross is rather funny, was enjoying the show. Then I hear the announcer say, “You’re on Triple J with Terri Psiakis and Ross Noble.”
All of a sudden I’m back in primary school. I’m the smartest kid in the class, but also one of the most unpopular (just in front of the smelly kid who carries his mouldy, 6-month-old school lunch around in his bag, but just behind the foreign kid)...but it’s my being smart that defines me to everyone else, probably myself included. My only rival: Terri Psiakis. She knows every answer just like me, she’s in the advanced group that meets to do macrame on a Wednesday afternoon (why, I still don’t know). She’s been in my class every year, despite there being three classes of my grade that are shuffled each year. As usual, it’s her difference that defines her to the rest of us; she’s Greek, with a slight moustache well ahead of any of us boys. For some reason I assumed it was her ethnicity that made her smart; she’s more cultured, or has a head start because foreign kids learn faster or something. At an age where girls are the enemy (girl germs’ll kill yer quicker than a taipan’s bite) she’s as close to a female friend I could have. She’s quiet, but confident; probably a little more mature than the rest of us. But she’s got brains to spare, and she pushes me every inch of the way.
Fast forward to the present: she’s a stand up comedian and DJ on Triple J.
I’d seen her on RoveLive a while back, but it never occurred to me to follow it up. Apparently she’s writing regularly for RoveLive and has a Triple J spot as well as a bunch of other things. It just strikes me as bizarre that someone you only ever knew as a kid grew up and ended up in comedy for a living. That’s one of the strange things about comedy I guess – it’s not really predictable. Had we had yearbooks, she probably would’ve been voted “most likely to succeed”, but “least likely to be a stand up comedian”.
On second thought, that mantle probably would’ve gone to me.
1 comment:
She’s been on triple J for about 2 years or so. I first noticed it was her from her voice, which for some reason was familiar. She started off I think doing weekly spots for Adam and Will (she would talk most weeks about her father who sounded semi-nuts, like everyone elses fathers), then went to relief stints when people were away. I think I mentioned this to you about 18 months ago?
Ah Terri, how you’re sister Maree desired me in Grade 6. She even wrote “luv Maree” on my Grade 6 placement that we made and had signed by everyone in the class. And true “luv” it was…
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