Project 52 (26/52): On Cleo Caliente (And Why Radio's A Bit Sadder Without Her)

.:Project 52 (26/52): On Cleo Caliente (And Why Radio's A Bit Sadder Without Her):.

Aaaand that's a wrap!

Cleo Caliente recently left the Disenchanted Kingdom and radio in general last Monday, and it's a bit weird knowing she probably won't be coming back anymore.

I still remember meeting her like it was yesterday: less than a month into the Disenchanted Kingdom while they were still a morning show, I guested to promote my second major show, Bound And Gagged, and that's where I ended up being an unofficial part of the Disenchanted Kingdom for the past three years. It was awesome, obviously.

And then I just hit it off with Cleo. Things just fell into place. And I don't mean this romantically.

Three years of ups and downs and general insanity. Good times. Bad times. Times when you'd want to strangle each other. Times when no words are necessary and you simply understand. Times when you'd walk across Binondo on Good Friday, and see a guy peeing in a plastic bag in full view of you. It's gonna be weird not having her as part of the Disenchanted Kingdom now, although that certainly doesn't mean Cleo and I would cease being friends. Still, there's a pang of sadness surrounding her departure from radio.

Of course, most people who don't know me too well would probably never forget that infamous run-in Cleo had with a hotel, and how that issue blew up to a point nobody expected it to. It was one of those key points in my life where I realized that as a friend, Cleo was a keeper, and I became more than just a fan of her talent on air and outright a fan of her as a human being.

I don't really need to go into the politics or the behind-the-scenes stories because they're irrelevant to one simple fact: we lost one of the good ones this week. The most disappointing part about it is it could have been avoided, and everything about this situation could have been turned around to unprecedented heights if enough people beyond the DK itself actually gave a damn. But noooo...

Cleo's unique point of view, her ability to quickly switch gears from demure to witty to provocative to abrasive at the snap of a finger, and her sheer desire to better herself were assets that her station happened to be very lucky to have. Unfortunately, they just let her go gently into that goodnight. A whimper instead of a blaze of glory, through no fault of her own, or the entire team, for that matter.

A shame, really. I take consolation in the fact that better times lie ahead for Cleo Caliente, and she will continue to blaze a trail only she can. I definitely wish her success, and I'm sure she can kick @$$ in anything she'd truly put her mind into.

Godspeed, Cleo! You will be missed on radio, but the radio industry's loss will surely be a different industry's massive gain.

Here's to nearly three years of friendship, and to hopefully less running-into-dicks-during-Good-Friday for us!