Still Exhausted: A Day On Tour
I have yet to catch up on my sleep. I feel like walking cabbage. I don’t know why I said cabbage…hmm, for some reason I think that image is fitting.
Tour has never been this busy before, the new record release demands a lot from us. Here’s a typical day on tour:
Somewhere between 7-9AM: Wake up to Sean (tour manager), in his strained morning voice, “Who’s showering first?!” Shower, get ready, pack my life back into a side bag and a suitcase, head to the van. Try and catch another hour or two of sleep while the van makes its way to the next destination. Usually Shane (sound-engineer) or Sean do these drives.
11AM-1PM: Somewhere within this time frame we show up to a university in the city we are playing later that night. Then we play an acoustic set for music classes, school events, etc. I find it pretty tough to sing this early, especially when I’m trying to project my voice through a room without a microphone.
2PM-LOAD IN (4 or 5): Run errands, grab some lunch/breakfast/coffee. Drive to venue (usually pretty close to the university). Then we unload our equipment and put our gear on stage and get settled.
6PM-12AM: The show usually is done by 11, but it takes us a good hour or so to meet fans, see friends, pack up the trailer etc. The show itself is a lot of waiting around, warming up, getting changed, finding dinner, keeping up with emails and web-trinkets like this blog.
1-2AM: Show up at hotel, get situated. Throw some jams on the ipod, go to sleep.
Usually we get anywhere from 4-7 hours of sleep, depending on how long the drive is the next day. Longer drives mean less time in an actual bed, more time napping on a bench in the van. Of everyone in our ship, I get the most sleep to make sure my voice doesn’t go to shit, which it has a few times on this tour. It’s so stressful, and I feel like a diva making sure I get good sleep. I’m sure it’s annoying for everyone else. I feel very un-liked sometimes on tour…
Well it’s almost 2AM now, I need to sleep. I don’t mean to complain, but I do want to vent. Still waiting on my nervous breakdown…I’m only half joking!
