Success is something that has always been difficult for me to accept and recognize for what it is. It isn’t that I’m not proud of what I do, or that I think it isn’t good, I just don’t expect other people to enjoy or appreciate it, let alone champion it in any way. I am always so suspicious of any sort of praise or recognition that my artistic endeavors garner—whether that is Limited Engagement, any of my writing, or actual artwork (as I dip my pencil back into that realm)—that my knee jerk reaction is to first show gratitude (I like to think I’m not a rude individual), and then immediately begin dismissing it, brushing it off to the side, looking to see if the person behind it is working some angle, or whether there is a qualifying “but” or “if only” clinging to the underbelly. I am in a perpetual state of waiting for the other shoe to drop. In my mind, success is something that happens to other people.
Why am I bringing this up? Well, Limited Engagement was named Best Podcast in this year’s edition of PHOENIX Magazine‘s annual Best of the Valley issue, which is awesome! It means that people like the show. Even more important, people are listening! I’m not just some guy sitting in his office at home ranting out into the ether! I really do feel proud of this achievement, and I am thankful to the folks at PHOENIX Magazine for the recognition—it really does mean a lot to me. However, you read all that stuff in the first paragraph, right? I am trying really hard to simply enjoy the moment. It’s a struggle, but I think I’m getting there.
This week’s show is the first of another two-parter. I packed the recording gear into a bag, traveled down to Ernesto Moncada’s place, and we sat at his kitchen table discussing anything that came to mind. There was very good coffee involved. Ernesto pretty much does it all: he’s a writer, actor, teacher, comedian, artist, he just directed a wonderful version of Paul Auster’s Laurel and Hardy Go to Heaven, and he’s a wizard on the stilts. No, that’s not a typo. Ernesto’s got some amazing stories, and it was a great conversation.
Best,
Jared
Listen to LE 45 – Ernesto Moncada Pt. 1
Limited Engagement 