"3 ... 2 ... 1 ... You're on the air." These are the words I am so used to hearing. I volunteer my time at Continental Cablevision. There are a variety of jobs that I have been doing, including director, cameraman, graphic designer, audio and even host.

One Halloween night I ventured to Continental Cablevision for an open house. I wanted to get involved so badly that the people there invited me back. At first I started typing messages on the community bulletin board and disc jockeying on cable radio. Soon I graduated to working on the productions.

The studio productions are very difficult. One slip of the tongue during a taping makes for a half hour of editing. Sometimes editing can be fun when a collage of clips are being put together, but when things do not go right, editing can be an agonizing time.

Bob Belliveau, the program director, granted me my own air time because of my enthusiasm. I am the host of a teen talk show "Totally Teens" that is viewed on the South Shore. Some topics covered include the DARE program, three South Shore bands and summertime. I had other teenage volunteers who made up the crew. Right now the show is on hold for a season because most of the crew went off to college and replacements have not yet been found. Today, few teenagers want to get involved in behind the scenes work, but hopefully "Totally Teens" will be back over the television airwaves after January.

Working behind the scenes of television is fun and educational. It has enhanced my knowledge greatly and I will be pursuing a career in this field. I have learned that you do not have to be an artist to work on television, you just have to have an open mind. fl