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SplatterTribe: So do you get writers block?
Tim Northern:
Of course, I get writers block all the time. (And) This is weird to say, but sometime's I just don't feel funny, man. Sometimes I walk on stage and I feel like, Man, I just don't feel funny," and that's the opposite of some people. Sometimes I just don't feel it. But my thing is, if I get on stage, it just snaps in. It's like, "I gotta do it for these crowds man, even if it's 7, 8 people. The came to hear some jokes. They don't care about all of that (other stuff). All they want to do is be entertained and it's my job to entertain them..........And......I'll do what I can (to).
I hardly ever blame the audience.
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""I'm
a year in my non-smoking....
I read
a book called 'The Easy Way To Stop Smoking'.
It was
effortless... I do cluck like a chicken
sometimes though."
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I mean, sometimes it is the audience, but I try not to blame the audience if the shows aren't that good. To me, it's my fault, cause I'm the one that's onstage trying to entertain them and if I didn't get'm, it's my fault. It's not so much them........Most of the time, you know.........Sometimes it is the audience. It's like the customer is always right right thing, that's bullshit. The customer isn't always right.
SplatterTribe: So if you're on a week long stint and that first night doesn't go well, does that affect you or do you just shake it off?
Tim
Northern:
Naw, I shake it off. Even like a show to show. First show
Friday, second show Saturday, I shake it off if the first
show wasn't that good. It's over. I've got another show to
do. I try not to dwell on it. Don't get me wrong though, I
reflect (on it) and I care (about it), but I try not to
dwell.
SplatterTribe:
Does it make try harder the next night?
Tim
Northern:
Well, like I said, most of the time it's not the crowd. It's
the person onstage, no matter what.
SplatterTribe: Getting back to your writers block, what do you do when you're really sweatin' it?
Tim Northern: I used to panic, but now I do nothing cause I know I know it'll go away. I mean, I have enough material amassed that I can go back and do old jokes and stuff till it subsides. Then I'll slowly start writing new stuff.
SplatterTribe: So you have 2 CD releases, right?
Tim Northern:
No, I just got the one. I was
recording one and it never really panned out right. I'm doin'
another one this coming Tuesday (already passed) at
The (Comedy) Caravan. I'm doin' it with
Nathan Wallace. He's recording a DVD and I'm
recording an audio CD because I'm an audio guy. I'm into the
records, comedy records. To me that's the way I like to
listen to comedy. I don't really like DVD. I like listening
because I like to use my imagination.
SplatterTribe: Is it a major undertaking to record a show?
Tim Northern: Not necessarily, maybe I just put to much unneeded pressure on myself to try and make it the best instead of just letting things happen. I'll set back and nit pick like, "I didn't get the right response for this joke." Then I'll wind up scratching the whole CD even though the show might have been a good show. I might mess up a joke and be like, "Man, I really want that joke to be on the CD." But, I mean, it's just me. I'm neurotic. I could have probably had 5 CD's out by now, but I try to catch lightning in a bottle to much, that's my problem.
SplatterTribe:
So you're not into mix matching shows for a CD?
Tim Northern:
No, I don't want to do that, man. I could, but I don't really want to do that. I want to have one show and just edit it down and be like, "This was recorded 'this night' at 'so and so' and make it special. Make it special, you know?
SplatterTribe: OK, I ask everyone I interview if they have a good, random question to ask the a future interviewee so this question comes from Eddie Spaghetti of the Rock band 'The Supersuckers'. His question is, "What do you eat on the road?"
Tim Northern: I'm tryin' to eat healthy, man. I quit smoking. So I gained some weight. I'm a year in my non-smoking. I gained some weight and so I'm tryin' to get my metabolism back up. I'm eating a lot of vegetables and fruits. (I'm eating) Fresh fruits, fresh vegetables and nuts, berries.
SplatterTribe:
Is it hard to keep that diet up on the road?
Tim Northern:
No man, you can get nuts and fresh vegetables at any store, you know? A lot of hotels have fruit baskets right there, in the lobby. They'll have fruit. I'm trying to eat lean meats (as well), chicken. So I'm trying to eat healthier now. Plus I'm 44.
SplatterTribe: How old was you when you first started doing the comedy?
Tim Northern:
The first time I tried, I was 19. I was young. I thought, "man, I'm to young." I did it a couple of times and people laughed, but I didn't write anything down. I wasn't prepared. I was just getting on stage trying to be funny. You know, I saw it on TV, (and thought) maybe I can do it. (I was) just tryin' to be funny. Then I thought to myself, "I'm 19, how can I relate to somebody that's 25 or 27, out of college, got a job? I don't know what I'm doin'." I figured I needed to do some living. So, I lived for a while and when I was 27, I tried it again and I've been doing it ever since.
SplatterTribe: So what are some of the real world jobs you've had?
Tim Northern:
Ah man, I did it all. Construction. I drove a truck mostly. Restaurants. Drove a cab. I've done it all man, well not all, but most of it.
SplatterTribe: Is there a time that it just hit you that you might do comedy for the rest of your life
Tim Northern:
When I looked at it I thought, "If I really work at this, I can do it for the rest of my life." It could allow me to.......like I like to play golf, I can play golf in the day time....and I don't mind working at night.
SplatterTribe: How much traveling do you do in a year?
Tim Northern:
As much as I can man, as much as I can. Anywhere someone's got a stage and they want me to do some jokes, I'm there. I travel a lot. I drive. I fly. I swam to a gig one time.....Naw, I didn't swim.
SplatterTribe: Have you been all over the States?
Tim Northern:
Basically, yeah, all over the States. The only place's I haven't been is like Maine and the northeast. I've been all over the rest of the States. I haven't been to Connecticut, Rhode Island. I've been everywhere else though, I can tell you that much.
SplatterTribe: You mentioned quitting smoking, can you tell the effects of that, since it's been a year?
Tim Northern:
Naw man, in fact, my breathing got a little worse. I could never catch a deep breathe. It's getting better now. It wasn't hard though (to quit), I read a book called 'The Easy Way To Stop Smoking'. It was effortless.
SplatterTribe: Really?
Tim Northern:
Yeah man, it was effortless.
SplatterTribe: No patches or anything?
Tim Northern:
No, and I'm glad too. I'm glad I didn't suffer through all of that. I'd never really, really tried to quit till I read the book. It took me twice. I had to read it twice but, I got it done.
SplatterTribe: Those first few days had to be stressful.
Tim Northern:
Naw man, it was pleasant. It's amazing man. It's (book) called 'The Easy Way To Stop Smoking' and it's easy. You can read the book in a day. I read the book and I was done. The first time I read it I was amazed. I was like, "I'm done." Two weeks later I tested it to see if I was done. I smoked a cigarette and I really wasn't (done). I started smoking again. So I figured I needed to read the book again. I read it again and I'm done. There's nothing weird like, 'You gotta think about this and that'. It just teaches you how to be a nonsmoker. It tells you why you smoke and you think in your mind. "Yeah, I shouldn't be smoking." So you just quit smoking. There's no will power involved. I didn't crave cigarettes. I still don't crave cigarettes. You don't crave anything. Something just snaps in your mind and says, "OK, I'm done." I do cluck like a chicken sometimes (laughs).
SplatterTribe: In closing, do you have a good random question to ask a future interviewee?
Tim Northern:
Yeah man, what size tires are on their car? (laughs)
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