Lostop #2: Daz, Part 1

(What's a Lostop? Click here!)

I first became aware of Daz during my freshman year at Eastern New Mexico University. She had blonde hair and striking green eyes and came from Chicago. I know I had seen her on campus from time to time, but I really didn't start taking notice of her until the Spring semester. I had a Theatrical Lighting class that began at 10am, but no other classes before that. I decided to check our Dr. R's Beginning Acting class to see what happened on the first day and what I missed out on. Daz and Scod were in that class with some other students. (Pad took the class during the Fall semester.) Daz was a Radio/TV major, but I did not find that out until later.

During that class, Dr. R asked for volunteers to come up and do prepared monologues. Scod offered to go up on stage first and show off his best stuff. He did Snoopy's WWI Flying Ace monologue from "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown." Scod performed it with a lot of energy and jumping around on the stage, but Dr. R was quick to point out that it wasn't acting. Dr. R had him do the entire monologue again, but this time, he had to act like he was telling a regular story while he was sitting down and drinking a cup of coffee. Dr. R spent 20 minutes of class time getting him to actually act the monologue. After he was done, class time was almost over. Dr. R asked for another volunteer. Daz went up and performed a piece I was not familiar with, but it involved a lot of anger. After she was done, Dr. R praised her and said that was more like what the class would be working toward.

During sophomore year, she auditioned for "A Midsummer Night's Dream." She was cast as a member of the entourage. We were only on stage together for the end, when the mechanicals present their play. We didn't really hang out much together during the production. It almost appeared as if she had started up something with Toilethead, but I couldn't really tell for certain if they were a couple or if she was just draping her arms around him while he was doing make-up as a kind of fooling around manuver. It didn't really matter to me. I thought she was out of my league.

The next semester, if I was around the lobby when she finished a class she had there, she would ask me if I wanted to walk her back to her dorm. The first couple of times, I didn't think much of it. But once, when she was leaving, she looked at me in disbelief and asked, "Fayd, aren't you coming with me?" This was when I started to think maybe she liked me somewhat.

I started sitting down and having lunch with her from time to time. She introduced me to all of her friends, so it looked like she really did feel something for me. So yes, I got up the nerve to ask her out. However, every single time I asked her if she wanted to go do something, she would say, "Oh, I'm doing something with the sorority that weekend," or "Oh, I promised my friend I would hang out with her Saturday night" and any other number of excuses. It made me wonder if she really did like me. After awhile, I gave up.

The first time I mentioned Daz in this blog, she was hoping to get a job from our Announcing Techniques instructor, who was one of the owners of KTQM-FM/KDKA-AM in Clovis. She managed to get that job. And somewhere along the way, she got a local reputation as a country music singer. I don't know how that happened. I never did see her perform.

We graduated the same year. She was hired to temporarily run the promotions for the ENMU Arts Departments for the summer of 1986. Afterward, she got a part-time position working at my radio station, KZZO-FM. I was a little upset at first because she told the Program Director that she wasn't going to work the overnight shift for more than a month. I thought that if I was the Program Director and a potential part-timer made that demand before I even hired her, I'd be saying, "That's okay. I'll hire someone else." I'm sorry, but with all the overnight shifts I had to put up with, and knowing I couldn't have made that demand and gotten away with it, I sure the heck wasn't going to let someone else think they were better than the rest of the staff.

I went to visit her on one of her overnight shifts. Tod (from yesterday's post) was there when I arrived. Daz made some comment about how she liked having two cute guys keep her company during the shift. I was still smarting from her putting me off three years earlier, so I decided not to take the bait this time. Tod wound up dating her and after awhile, they started living together.

Eventually, Daz started working full time as our morning newsperson and graduated into the role of the co-host of the station's morning program. Tod was the Program Director and afternoon drive guy. By this time, I was working the 6pm to midnight shift. One Monday, I came to the station a couple of hours before my shift and saw that Tod was playing a song that was not part of the normal roster. He was breaking format. (When I go into more detail about working at the station, you'll realize what a big deal that is.) I asked Tod why he was playing that song. He said it was his last day to work at the station, so it didn't matter what he played. The comment about this being his last day was rather shocking, but not as much as his format-breaking.

Tod told me that the station's co-owner yelled at Daz about something literally minutes before she did the news. She was in tears when she was on the air. Tod and Daz decided to put in their two weeks' notice. After submitting the notices, the co-owner told them not to bother with the two weeks and that would be their last day of work.

Prior to their departure from the station, Tod and Daz had made plans to get married at the Clovis Zoo. They still went through with the ceremony, even though they didn't have any jobs. Her parents actually came down to see them get married. I was not there.

A couple of weeks later, I got a call from Daz telling me that they needed my help at their apartment. Something went wrong with Tod's back and he couldn't get off the floor. I came and helped pick up Tod and drive them to the doctor's office. While talking to the staff, Daz mentioned that they had just gotten back from their honeymoon and the women started giggling. After the visit, Tod was able to walk again and I guess he was okay after that.

A couple of weeks later, I saw in the trade publication "The Gavin Report" that KBIM-AM in Roswell was hiring for two positions, one full time and the other part-time. I saw this at midnight and immediately called Tod. I don't think he liked me waking him up, but he was appreciative of the information. The next day, they drove down to Roswell and landed those jobs. Tod got the full-time slot.

And that turned out to be the last time I saw them. But I still kept in contact with them after that. I'll have the rest of the story tomorrow.