Raymond Orta: Bright lights, little city

San Antonio is filled with people miserable to be here. It's lame, there's nothing to do, and what there is to do has already been done. It's this kind of sentiment that makes us look towards Austin with equal parts love and loathing as the destination for fun.

What we forget is that many people in the Valley, look at SA as the "big city" and land of plenty. Seriously, there are kids sleeping in Harlingen right now, dreaming of making it big in San Antonio. I know because one of these kids grew up to become comedian Raymond Orta. At 15, Orta began his now decade-long immersion in standup comedy by blending Latin-based humor with spot-on impressions. While his act draws on his experiences growing up in the barrio, his jokes are designed for audiences of any background. And as one of the few Valley acts, Raymond developed quickly, opening for acts like Paul Rodriguez and Gabriel Iglesias. He recently quit his popular morning show DJ gig to take on San Antonio, where he finds himself working at Rivercenter Comedy Club for the very first time. I'm sure he'll adapt quickly to his new home and by this time next year be saying things like "This place sucks. There's nothing to do." Very puro. Ortega opens for Sean Patterson this weekend; $15; 8:30pm, Wed-Sun; additional showing at 10:30pm Fri-Sat; RiverCenter Comedy Club; 849 E Commerce; (210) 229-1420; rivercentercomedyclub.com.