Local comedian Jason Weems may be the most inspiring person I know (sorry Michael “The Situation” Sorrentino). For most of us, being a Baltimore City school teacher, a new father, or a full time standup comedian would be difficult undertakings. Jason Weems has taken upon himself to do all three, and still manages to be one of the nicest people you could hope to meet.

When I asked Jason in a recent interview if he is at all familiar with the human concept of sleep he assured me he was before his son (Shawn Christopher) was born when he was fortunate enough to get in “about three hours a night.” Now he sleeps “maybe 45 minutes and that’s kind of stitched together.”

Man, remind me not to complain next time I have to get up at 6 for jury duty.

Jason’s ubermench efforts have payed off. He may not have his own Comedy Central special quite yet but he has managed to make it all the way to NBC’s Last Comic Standing, after less than half a decade into his comedy career. When I asked Jason what his students think about his success he explained that they “literally think I’m the hugest star on earth (and) as famous as Kevin Hart. They think I know every celebrity. (One student) asked if I could help him get a record deal.”

It was at this point in the interview I decided against asking Jason for Mr.T’s autograph.

Jason’s insane work ethic and personal friendliness are not the only things I admire about the man. His honest, conversational, stand up style is a rare find, in a comedy world where, all too often, humor is replaced by mean spirited, cheap, shock and awe gags (ha! That comedian says the f-word a lot and jokes about abortion! Brilliant!).

Weems, though never censoring his onstage speech, says he cringes at comedians who just “curse and think that’s a punch line” and that he thinks standup is “funnier when its just complete honesty.” Jason also assures “I’m definitely not going to go up there and talk about having sex with puppies or something like that”.

Hey, that gives me an idea for a bit.

Unsurprisingly, Jason’s commitment to greatness, aids from some outside inspiration. He says he recently acquired a new mantra from the late Steve Jobs that he has been saying to himself before shows: “stay hungry, stay foolish.” (I’ve definitely had success at the latter). He repeats this to internalize the words of one of Job’s greatest speeches.  “We’re already naked” explained Jason, “there is no reason not to follow your dreams.”

When I came to Jason with a few questions for this column he, in true Weems form, gave me nearly an hour of wisdom, humor, and good conversation. It’s a shame I could only fit in a few snippets here. I highly encourage everyone to explore this Baltimore great for yourself, so you can one day brag that you knew of him before he hit the big time.

Find his new DVD,  Jason Weems Vol. 1: Intellectual Property (and listen for my obnoxious laughter in the audience) as well as tour dates and everything else Jason Weems at http://jasonweemscomedy.com/.