Oy vey, so much to update! We had four straight days of shows and running around trying to get things done and TCB so this is the first day off we’ve had thus far where we actually don’t have to do… anything! MK got insanely sick while we were in Boston and had to go home, which was a major bummer but we are plowing on, as we must. I am extremely thankful that Sally is on this tour with us, otherwise we would have been screwed in a major way. She has really been helping out with a lot of stuff, even before MK fell ill, and now she’s helping to pick up the slack even moreso, which is great and amazing seeing as she’s technically not being paid (she doesn’t have to pay for gas though, which is pretty much like being paid).
Yesterday was the longest drive yet I think. We had to haul ass from Boston to Montreal to get to the show at 7:30 and even hauling as much ass as we could we still just barely got to the store on time for the show. Everything generally went extremely well, no major problems, except I suddenly and without warning forgot ALL the words to “A Little Respect,” which is the only song I sing by myself. The thing is, sometimes when I get nervous, my brain acts like a wild animal who is being threatened and just shits all over the place. My brain empties itself out completely, and that’s what happened. I was really, really embarrassed but I think I was the only one who really noticed or cared. We sang “Best Ever Death Metal Band” instead, which we hadn’t done in a long time but amazingly we both remembered all the words and chords to somehow. And yet I get stumped on “A Little Respect,” which I had not only been listening to and practicing for about a month, but IÂ had specifically promised someone I’d play in Montreal. And failed. I still feel really bad about it, but to put that in context I still feel guilty about things I said and did years ago. I still feel guilty about things I did when I was five! That doesn’t make ME feel any better though…
After the show, we hauled our stuff back to Gabby’s friend Erica’s house and then headed out for some drinking and dancing fun, which I think all of us agreed was sorely needed after four straight days of running around to shows, me trying to wrangle the delivery of the Freewheel book back home while traveling (a whole story unto itself… all you need to know is it placed an extremely heavy load of stress on my head, and in the words of our Northampton hosts Shannon and Jim, it was “a fucking goat circus.”), and figuring out how to deal with MK’s swiftly worsening illness while simultaneously trying to avoid getting sick ourselves without being jerks to her (which… might have been impossible. Another thing I feel really bad about. Sorry MK…)
The thing about Montreal which is extremely rad is that no one appears to give a shit about anything you do. We smelled pot smoke at least 3 times while walking to the bar and Erica’s boyfriend (Matt I think?) tipped us off on “transit beers,” which we drank while walking from bar to bar. When we went into the first bar, he hid the remaining beers in an alley and they were… still there when we got out! Drinking beers in public without fear of police intervention is something IÂ have never in my life experienced, and it was fucking magical. Unfortunately it was also deathly cold so it was a little difficult to hold on to an ice cold beer but we managed.
Sally decided to go back to the house after the first bar and re-joined us later when we arrived at a more hopping location, after she had tried and failed to get on the Metro. I’m kind of glad she didn’t catch the train because it was way more fun having her there. They were playing so much good music in the second bar and I knew she would want to dance, so I was psyched to have her show up and then we all danced the night away till the bar closed. It was awesome and, like I said, sorely needed. I’m hoping we get to go dancing again tonight because it was SOÂ MUCHÂ FUN!
Also, Canadian beer is great! We keep drinking it, and it’s fucking delightful. I think today we are going to eat poutine, which I am assured can be made in such a way that I can eat it. Apparently there is some place that has 24 varieties, at least one of which is vegan so I’m hoping I can eat that one without getting sick.
I love hearing people speak French. I took French for five years in junior high and high school but my understanding of it is severely limited to reading and maybe speaking a little, but I can’t understand other people when they speak French to me, so IÂ haven’t tried to use it yet. Though actually I kind of hope I get to. I was tempted to when we were getting tickets for the Metro last night, but IÂ was too terrified that the guy at the counter would ask me a followup question so I didn’t do it.
Anyway, my only point is that hearing other people speak French around me is wonderful, even if IÂ can’t understand it.
We have the entire day today to do whatever we want, but it’s really cold and I think we are all exhausted so everyone’s still asleep right now. I’ll probably go back to bed myself after I finish writing this. I figured I would take this rare opportunity to update everyone on the tour, since right now it’s totally quiet and peaceful and no one’s talking to me.
Our last date is coming up on Monday in Rochester but it’s at a school and I’m pretty sure only for students (it’s a presentation in an actual comics class) but maybe if you’re in the area you can sneak in!
