By Shawn Lackie
I never really know when it's proper to share a personal anecdote. Some might find it self-indulgent. I always tend to think that if there is a truly funny story, it should be shared. The power of laughter. So indulge me if you will. This DOES lead to something of relevance to Real Estate.
Back in 2003, when I was running Communications for the Canadian Football League, I invited the people at This Hour Has 22 Minutes to come to Regina and do some skits about Canada's biggest and most popular annual party—the Grey Cup, especially when it's out west—ooh boy, they know how to have a good time.
So, the show sent Mark Critch and Shaun Majumder out to create chaos and provide some laughs for the show. Wow! They did that and more.
On the Saturday afternoon before the big game, my main job was to sit with the head of the Football Reporters of Canada and draft up a seating list for the writers attending the game. It's usually pretty dry and takes forever. Almost like doing a seating arrangement at a wedding, there were way too many parallels here. I think you get my drift. At any rate, as we were just getting knee-deep in the press politics, in blows Shaun Majumder and Mark Critch. These guys were insane and just ready to light it up.
They thought it would be funny if they each wore a jersey for the opposing teams in the Cup, Edmonton and Montreal, and ran around town to all the fan events, starting fights and generally being crazy. So off they went and mayhem ensued. Let me say these are two funny guys; I had a headache from all the laughing that afternoon. Yes, we got the seating plan done, and no, it didn't meet with anyone's approval because it never did.
Fast forward to November 2022. Shaun Majumder was playing at the Regent Theatre in Oshawa. We bought tickets very early, so we were able to score third-row, centre seats. I tried to get in touch with Shaun, leaving messages with the show promoter and on his website. Ten minutes before the show, my phone goes off and it's a number I don't recognize, so I ignore it. Two minutes later, the same number calls again, this time leaving a message. I'm thinking, who is this nut? So I listen to the message and it's Shaun, saying, "I got your message. Where are you?" So I texted back, 'third row, centre.' He agreed to hang around after the show so we could catch up, which is what we did.
This is one funny guy, so after he was done cracking up the audience, he just carried on. Where I am going with all of this drivel is that Shaun had just been hired to do podcasts for CREA (Canadian Real Estate Association). This blew my mind. Usually, these organizations put stuffy, unfunny people in place, and they blather on and on (kinda like what I'm doing here). In contrast, this guy was a breath of fresh air. He's completely out of character for this organization and should instill some humour into a business which has been sadly lacking something like this for years.
I am looking forward to this influence, and if you're interested, you can find him at www.crea.ca, under the Real Time category. Enjoy the shows.
Comments