the days run together on the road…

I am not really sure of the date, or when I left.

I miss it.

I am really excited for October.

In less corny news I am sitting around the venue in Halifax waiting for load out to be finished so I can go get on a plane.  Going to Newfoundland next!

Also I am tired and not even feeling this at the moment so maybe I will write about how difficult Halifax was when wake up tomorrow afternoon! BECAUSE I DON’T HAVE TO WORK UNTIL THURSDAY!

When I say I don’t have to work I still do just not as much.

Filed under: August 2007

I understand what my father is talking about…

When he see’s more stuff coming into his house.  I am now the proud owner of a very large black Swiss Army Suitcase and Blue Swiss Army Back Pack.  I needed another suitcase.  Annoying yes, needed…yes.  I keep buying stuff and have no plans on stopping.  I am going to ship some stuff home when I get to the U.S. Also I have 10 pairs of shoes. 10 I have ten pairs of shoes on tour…what am I doing with ten pairs of shoes?

Today was better than I thought it would be and all of my stuff is ready for the truck in the morning.  Then I just have to check out and pack up a pallet to go on one of the other trucks.  Then three whole days off in Newfoundland.  I am borrowing a bike from one of the truck drivers there to get around and am so excited to explore what everyone keeps referring to as “the rock”  I thought that was Alcatraz but I guess Canadians need a rock too.  It is supposed to be beautiful, many Canadians have referred to it as the most beautiful place on earth.  I think that may be bullshit but I am ready!

I sent my niece a package for her 3rd birthday and plan on calling home when I leave here tonight.  I have not talked to them in a while.  Then I am going to pack so I can be at the venue at 10 to supervise the loading of my truck.

Anyway back to work…

Filed under: August 2007

I am so homesick for Brooklyn…

I am sitting in the Production office on the verge of a break down.  I just need a good squeeze, like a big bear hug from my friends.  I don’t even miss my family that much, I am used to not having them around all the time but I miss having people that know me and that can just hang out.  Everyone is really nice I just would love to hang out with the people I consider my family.  Go to brunch, hang out in the park, watch a movie, something.

A few of the kids from the tour invited me to hang out tonight and I don’t even want to I just want to sulk and talk to my friends.  Though it is Thursday and they will all be doing something tonight so their availability is not that great.

The people that do the merch at this venue are just so negative.  I am sorry you are a failure at life and doing this when you are grown up and living off of commission but its not my problem.  This is your job, you agreed to it.  I have after two shows almost abandoned checking up on the at opening, intermission and close because every-time I just ask them how they are they complain.  It is not my job to set prices or sell.  Both of those things are out of my hands.  You need to sell and when you all act like douche bags no one is going to buy anything.  Be nice to the customers, smile, get off your fucking cell phone.  I did my job and now you have to do yours.

Blah.

Now that I have completely turned this thing into a live journal there are some good things…

The crew and cast of this tour are great and funny, if they weren’t I would not have the small grip on this that I do right now.  I am FUCKING OUT OF MY MIND EXCITED TO GO TO NEWFOUNDLAND!  It is supposed to be amazing and I have three days “off” there so I will have plenty of time to explore.  It should be good.

Also I can’t wait to get back to the United States so I can call people when I am feeling homesick like this.

Also I just vented and the receiver said, “They are stuck here for the rest of their lives, we are going to travel the world, I pity them”

AWESOME!

Filed under: Uncategorized

Television

I just saw a commercial for the show.

NEAT!

Filed under: August 2007

The water pressure in Halifax is awesome…

I am an hour ahead of Brooklyn.  I got into the hotel at 4 a.m., the load out was pretty fast and then the whole crew hung out and drank beer and smoked pot then got on the bus and drove to the chartered plane.  We got on and I sat next to Mike one of the crew guys we had an empty seat between us which was nice because we both kind of threw our crap everywhere.  The czech twins were across the aisle and then these two really loud guys were behind and across.  The four of them were drinking the most potent smelling vodka I have ever smelled.  Just drinking it like water.  They taught me dirty words and I read my book which is now “Do I come here often” by Henry Rollins.  I finished “Home Before Morning in Ottawa”.  I am determined to keep reading at this pace…If anyone wants to send me a book that would be cool.  Just remember I will probably give it away when I am done so I won’t have to carry it around for the next two months.

October 19th is so far away yet amazingly close.  It goes by so fast, while everyone else is living and doing all these other things at home.  I am with about 90 complete strangers traveling and working around North America.  Why did I do this?  Ahhh yes for the points.  I have signed up for every point plan I can get my average sized hands on so when I have a break from this…whenever that happens to be, I can go to Europe or Hawaii or something.

So today I went to bed around five thirty.  I woke up at 8:30 with a call from my boss and did about four hours of work then spent the rest of my day talking to people from home.  I am now watching “In the land of Women” for the second time.  I just really love Adam Brody.  Also it is kind of a cute story, I have horrible taste in movies and television…and probably just about everything else as well.  That is why I ask so many questions.

So what am I going to get out of this, besides money, free travel and basically free living.  It is cheaper for me to live on the road than it is for me to live in Brooklyn.

I have to get up at 8 again tomorrow, technically today and go have some 30 year old navy guy try and not give me what I advanced that he already agreed to.  I know I will get what I want I am just not in the mood to do this again.  The last city was so great.  These girls ran it and they were great and I will not have that again for the rest of the tour and I know that.  So I get to do that, then I am going to try and avoid having to have dinner with the bosses and I think I have just about done that.  I am going to come back to the hotel after my meeting in the morning, then go out and wander around Halifax.  I am just going to ask the front desk where the downtown area is.  That should work.  Also the number of a cab company for when i get terribly lost.

Also I will take pictures.  I can’t promise that I will upload them in a timely fashion.  So ok.

Leave a fucking comment would you people I know you read this shit I have a stat thing.

LOVE YOU ALL…mostly.

Filed under: August 2007

I can shop better than you…

So today I woke up to my second “day off” and worked for about three hours, just making sure everything was where it needed to be for the first show in Ottawa tomorrow. So around eleven I walked up to the spa I found that carries dermalogica and then to the Rideau Centre, which is a lovely mall of 180 stores that I took full advantage of…

3 pairs of sneakers

2 pairs of pants

4 tops

1 sweater

1 jacket

like 450 dollars in two hours.

There goes money. Thank god I don’t have to pay rent while I am away.

So tomorrow I am off to the venue to be there at 10:30. I am going to take a cab over because the shuttle does not really fit in with my schedule very well.

Filed under: August 2007

I am lazy…

So I got into Ottawa at 4 am and immediately passed out.  I bought a camera in London, Ontario and have taken a few pics but nothing to impressive.  I still have not uploaded them.  So today I slept and then woke up around ten, did work and ate then passed out again.  I got up around eight walked around got the best iced latte ever at Second Cup somewhere downtown.  Its funny they have a hipster area that is like Williamsburg but much less crowded.

Tomorrow I don’t have to be at the venue but I have a bunch of errands to run and will be out most of the day, hopefully I will take some pics then and upload them tomorrow.

Christ I am boring.

Filed under: August 2007

Tonight I go to Ottawa…

So I am sitting in the production office, yesterday the Production Manager told me it was silly for me not to use the empty space since there is normally an open spot or two. Also there are couches. No more folding chairs, yay!

The venue has wireless throughout the building so I can hide away and do what I need to do which is nice. I have been told that this is one of the nicest venues on the tour so I am going to enjoy the next twelve hours in the nice, new, overly air conditioned Labatt Centre.

Today is load out day, I need to check out with the building merch person then wait until my truck is ready to be loaded then I am off to the airport for the private jet that will be carting us around North America. Dana the girl who is training me is going to stay on until the 13th of August, I am happy for the help and to have a friend with me for the first two weeks. It is weird how much this feels like going away to college, the people that already know each-other stick together pretty much all the time. There is also a pretty clear separation between the artists and non-artists. Non-artists are the production people. I have bridged the gap a bit and made friends with brothers who stand on each-others heads and a boy who does trapeze all in all good boys who have bodies like nothing I have ever seen before.

Yesterday was really sunny and hot so they all laid out on the loading ramp with no shirts on and I almost lost my shit. I wish I had the guts to take a photo of them, but not to fret I will be getting pics of these boys as naked as I can get them.

I bought a camera yesterday, a canon sd 1000. about a hundred bucks cheaper than the sd 750 and with the little hole you look through. The view finder?

This morning I got up at 9 and packed got dressed and came to the venue. I hope they don’t forget to pick up my stuff out of my room. That would be horrible.

I am really excited for the first move and Ottawa, after Ottawa is Halifax. Halifax is very important, all of the head Cirque people will be there along with my bosses and I need to be sure that everything is perfect. That the pulls are adequate, the booths are set up well and that the sellers are doing their jobs.

This is an amazing opportunity, I hope I don’t blow it.

Filed under: August 2007

I am tired.

So I skipped a movie with an acrobat.

I am an idiot.

Filed under: August 2007

“Hi I am your merch girl!”

Today was really long so bear with me. A few things of note, people say “eh” in Canada and I can’t help but laugh. I try hard (lolnoidon’t) but I just can’t help it. Also Canadian money is fucking pretty. Its all colorful and has shiny stuff in it, also loonies and toonies are great for playing “threes”.

So now for the boring part, I woke up at four thanks to a wake up call by Ryan (clapclapclap) and got my stuff together. I called a car and went to the airport where I found that my bag was overweight. Whatever I paid the 25 bucks and went to my plane. I passed out almost immediately as did the boy who was sitting next to me, we woke up an hour and a half later sleeping on each-other in Detroit. Oddly we just got up and deboarded the plane. (please note that i did not mention getting off in any way)

Detroit’s airport is fucking nice, although huge. I had to take a tram to get to my gate for my flight to Canada. While on said tram my dad informed me of the small fortune I would incur should I choose to use my cell phone in Canada. So I informed my boss of this and she said she would pay for work calls but to use a calling card as much as possible. I will attempt both of these things. So no texting and no calling me. Thank you.

So I get to Canada and got interrogated and all my stuff searched through, the lady did not think I was going to go back to the U.S. I said “I live in New York, why would I move to Canada.” I could actually see her bangs go up a little in shock. Then I explained that I always pack to much, its a curse blah blah blah.

Go to hotel drop off stuff, take cabbies directions and walk to venue. As soon as I got there I started counting. Made a pull and then helped set up the booth. This is not my job. However the people doing it were pretty incapable. Edit: My boss that came today and my boss that I talk to all the time are totally equal apparently, just very different personalities. Like good cop bad cop. He really completely knows that I have no experience doing anything like this, but watched me work all day and for some reason thinks I will do a good job. I have to say I agree with him.

Highlights:

-Shirtless pull up party

-Caterings chicken salad and balsamic dressing, super good.

-Tight clothes on boys

-Two brothers from the czech republic who can do one handed hand stands on each-others heads.

-Teaching a girl from china to play ds.

-Root beer floats in a can at the corner store down the street from my hotel.

-Surviving the day with two hours of sleep

-The bath I am about to take.

FYI: I will be buying a camera tomorrow.

Filed under: August 2007