My Fair Lady - Modesto, CA and the End of Tour
We had a slow morning in Eugene as it was a late flight.
It turned out to be kind of a wonky travel day, though: first our flight was delayed, then United wouldn't let us check in as a group OR individually. Instead they made us line up at the counter in the order that the bookings had been made, of all things, and then proceeded to check us in AND tag our luggage, person-by-person, all 60 of us. It was absolutely ridiculous, took much more time than usual or necessary, and was probably the least efficient way to check in a large group, ever. I've been a touring musician for 10+ years, and in the hundreds of flights I've taken with all major airlines, no one has EVER demanded that we check in in-person, or in exact booking order, before. Absolute nonsense, and someone at Eugene Airport's United service counter BADLY needs to be re-trained.
Aaaanyway. Thanks to our company management being organized and awesome, it wasn't THAT bad, just idiotic.
Our flight was delayed about 30-40 minutes, and we landed in San Francisco just in time to hit rush hour traffic. The 1.5 hour ride to the hotel quickly became a 2.5 hour trip. I struggled mightily with motion sickness from the stop-and-go traffic, and finally had to resort to wearing my Sea-Bands and eating extra Travel Bagel to stop the acid sloshing around in my stomach. Thank god for that bagel!
When I could do it without my stomach rolling, I looked out the window as there is always much to admire about California.
This is the greenest I've ever seen it here. The last time I was in this area it was badly in drought, and the hills were all brown and crusty.
A housing development in which every single house had solar panels.
We passed many fields of crops, most notably acres and acres of almonds (at least I think they were almonds, the fruit looked pale green and oval. If I'm wrong, they may have been olives instead.)
At the hotel I dropped my stuff and went to Sprouts for one last "Foodie Find," a very small one. Getting just enough groceries for two days; I don't plan to eat out at all here. I found a few fun things to try including Sprout's own brand of seasoned tofu, and a single-serving carton of Woolala Banana Milk (I've had it before but Jameson loved it very much and drank it all :p )
I also picked up some new-to-me apples to enjoy: a cosmic crisp (left), a kanzi (right), and a lemonade apple (yes I've had the lemonade apple recently in another state, but this one looked different and I was interested to try it again since they're pretty rare to come across.)
- Cosmic Crisp: It was pretty good but idk why the big fuss. To me, it seemed like an improved red delicious. The skin was still thick and chewy like a red delicious, but less bitter than one, and the fruit was juicy and had a good sweet flavor. I like at least a little tartness in my apples though, so to me these are, like the honeycrisp, overly sweet.
- Kanzi: And this one was like an improved gala or fuji. Sweet and juicy, thin skin, really nice flavor, and I liked how light and not-woody the flesh was. Some people like a "harder" apple, I prefer ones that are lighter and more "crispy," and this one leans that way. Still more sweet than I prefer but I like it more than the cosmic crisp!
- Lemonade: I'll be eating this guy on the flight home.
Back at the hotel, an auspicious dinner of turkey jerky, nuts, half a NuGo bar, and canned pumpkin. I'm trying to eat down any remaining travel nonperishables, since travel days are about to be over. Unpacked, washed up, felt depressed about the end of tour, and went to bed.
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Woke up on Tuesday a bit disoriented (where tf am I again?) and walked into the bathroom to see water all over the toilet. The room above mine, or pipes I guess, is/are leaking. If there has to be a leak I suppose better over the toilet than, say, over the bed, or my luggage.
Maintenance took over an hour to show up, so I had breakfast and worked on my court reporting modules in the meantime. When they finally did show up he took one look at the ceiling, cringed, and said he was going upstairs to see where the leak was coming from, and I never saw him again after that.
Jameson had a tattoo appointment today and was very excited about it, naturally. I chatted on and off with him while working and worrying about the expanding water zit above the toilet. Finally the front desk called to say that maintenance hadn't been able to access the room above mine because there was a pet in there (they're legally prohibited from entering a hotel room with a pet) and asked if I'd like to switch rooms. I said yes because even if the leak was fixed, there's still standing/stagnant water trapped in the ceiling and I am not a fan of it. They brought a new key up right away and it didn't take me long to switch over.
In the time it took me to switch rooms, all motivation for working on court reporting modules went out the window. I just...I feel like once again I don't have a job. Yes, I have a chance to CERTIFY and THEN start working, but for fuck's sake, that means I need ANOTHER job in the meantime!!!
WHY am I always inadequate?
Why is it never enough?
Am I not human being enough to hold just a normal-ass job?
Once again, I was supposed to know to keep applying for MORE work after being offered a job?
Honestly, I was very upset today. I'm so tired of this happening after each tour.
It didn't even brighten my mood to receive an email from The Florida Orchestra about the upcoming disco concert that I'll be involved in; or shortly after that, a text from the Main Street Phil with directions to the costuming building. I should be excited and happy about both of these fun opportunities, but right now I just feel desperate and ashamed.
With all of that in mind I unpacked (again), and walked to a small fruit stall near the hotel.
Modesto smells a lot like Mexico...hard to describe but it's a mix of, like, hot dust, decaying garbage and food and plant material, grilled meats, and perhaps a touch of brine from sea air brought inland. Just something that I noticed, going outside here for the first time today and coming from a different state.
The little fruit stall/shop had a lot more than fruit, namely dried fruits, nuts, chocolates, and honey. Lots of honey.
I didn't get anything because I'd actually hoped they'd have some veggies, and they didn't.
Went back to the hotel, did work on more court reporting, then did a depressive nap until it was time for sound check.
This theatre has an "ok" pit, and the auditorium is nothing special to look at but the acoustics are "ok" as well.
Some actors started crying a bit during sound check; these folks have performed together for twice as long as I've been on this tour, so there are a lot of emotions as our show comes to a close. After sound check we were given a photo op on stage with the Higgins study set piece.
Full cast (I'm over on the right):
Full cast goofy photo:
My Fair Lady Orchestra only:
When I saw that no one was going to the middle, I planted myself there and did what I hoped might be a good Henry Higgins pose. Note that I took care to wear my shiny reflective shoes.
Opening night went well and the audience was wonderful.
Maeghin, the actress who plays Mrs. Pierce, got us each a pair of "My Fair Shadies" sunglasses! How cute is that!
After the show was our closing night party (even though it's not quite closing night, better to have the party the night before due to load out.) The cute cake:
There were lots of photo ops set up around the event space, mainly a My Fair Lady banner that we took turns with.
Here is my set:
Another set with the band (except Abe, our bassist, who got annoyed with having to wait in line for this photo and left):
A moment before the toasts given by some of our creative team who were present. The woman on the left there is Angela Rowles, the Chief Executive Officer.
To be honest...the party gave "not with a bang but a whimper" vibes. Probably because we just got here, and it feels (to me at least) like we should still have a full week of shows before we close out. The impression is oddly like some sort of "soft closing," with just the two shows and not a lot of fanfare. But each tour is different, and going out quietly like this is a new experience for me. Hey, I got a free glass of wine and got to chat with people a bit, and it was a nice time.
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Wednesday, I woke up at 8am to do a last load of laundry and had exactly the amount of quarters needed. A sign! Lol.
Breakfast, partial packing, and started to do court reporting but my stepmom called so we chatted it up and by the time we were done it was time to eat lunch.
If anyone is curious, I DID end up passing that transcription evaluation for employment that I was working on last week!
And then guess what! They wrote to say that there will likely be no work until JUNE. Hahahahahahahahaha.
So now I "have" two jobs, NEITHER of which will actually have me working and getting paid anytime soon.
That means that although I have two jobs lined up, I still need to find even more work.
Now is the perfect time for a crotchety 65-or-older know-it-all to appear and condescendingly sniff, "No one wants to WORK any more." So I can rip their bloody larynx out.
At least both jobs were up-front about it, and didn't leave me sniveling and groveling for updates all summer like some other transcription companies coughFedWriterscough. At least now I know, for certain, that for the month of May it's back to $12/hr data entry and scrubbing toilets for elderly people via Papa Pal.
Look well, all ye who are envious of my touring lifestyle! For this is the price.
Would YOU be willing to pay it, for the adventures I've had?
As much as I gripe and curse and worry and rant...in the end, I Will Pay That Price every damn time, for as long as I can.
That's how much it still means to me.
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I had planned to get my hair trimmed back in Orlando, but a salon nearby happened to have an opening so I did it today instead. One less chore. The rest of the evening seemed to fly by and before I knew it, it was time to walk to the theatre for the final show.
I am not a very boo-hooey person, and still don't even know half of these people, but can empathize with the emotions that they felt tonight. The audience was fantastic and supportive, and cheered heartily for everyone. They knew.
I played the show "like normal," but was so conscious that this was our very last time together. We'll never be here again.
So, ya know. I wore my shiny shoes. For posterity :p
At intermission I joined everyone in signing our very last wall tag, at the top of the stairs leading down to the pit.
And before I knew it, it was over. We were playing the bows, and our MD was crying and so was half the orchestra, the audience was giving us a standing O and I don't know what was happening on stage but can guess lots of emotions :) And then we all started packing up like normal, but shook hands and hugged and gave goodbyes. I said, "See you down the road" to everyone because that's the traditional circus parting phrase, implying that you're not saying goodbye; your paths are just forking and they'll come together again someday.
Walking back alone, on a quiet Wednesday night in Modesto, was strange. My mute bag and trombone felt heavy. I had many mixed feelings. But quietly, in the bottom of my shriveled cantankerous little heart, I felt the tiniest ember of hope that this show may be revived overseas. That's the rumor, but as for reality we'll just have to wait and see.
At the hotel packed carefully to protect my mutes and Jameson's souvenirs, and the luggage scale says I'm below 50lbs so hopefully all's well for flying. I missed a text from our MD begging for an impromptu band toast down at the hotel bar...I think he forgot to announce it in the midst of emotions post-show. I felt bad for not going but, I have to be up at 4am tomorrow for an entire day of flying, and though the sentiment is sweet, I don't want to drink tonight (or get weepy haha.)
Packed up, shoved a foam cone into my trombone bell, washed up, typed this blog. And went to bed.
And the curtain is closed on My Fair Lady.
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Tomorrow (or today depending on where you read this) I'm up at 4am, 4:30 shuttle call, 5am departure on a 2-hour drive to SanFran airport. I'll eat breakfast at the airport, then a 5 1/2-hour flight directly to Orlando. Jameson should be able to pick me up, maybe we'll get dinner and groceries.
And the next several days will be spent unpacking, cleaning, catching up with my sweetheart, and preparing for the stationary life.
It turned out to be kind of a wonky travel day, though: first our flight was delayed, then United wouldn't let us check in as a group OR individually. Instead they made us line up at the counter in the order that the bookings had been made, of all things, and then proceeded to check us in AND tag our luggage, person-by-person, all 60 of us. It was absolutely ridiculous, took much more time than usual or necessary, and was probably the least efficient way to check in a large group, ever. I've been a touring musician for 10+ years, and in the hundreds of flights I've taken with all major airlines, no one has EVER demanded that we check in in-person, or in exact booking order, before. Absolute nonsense, and someone at Eugene Airport's United service counter BADLY needs to be re-trained.
Aaaanyway. Thanks to our company management being organized and awesome, it wasn't THAT bad, just idiotic.
Our flight was delayed about 30-40 minutes, and we landed in San Francisco just in time to hit rush hour traffic. The 1.5 hour ride to the hotel quickly became a 2.5 hour trip. I struggled mightily with motion sickness from the stop-and-go traffic, and finally had to resort to wearing my Sea-Bands and eating extra Travel Bagel to stop the acid sloshing around in my stomach. Thank god for that bagel!
When I could do it without my stomach rolling, I looked out the window as there is always much to admire about California.
This is the greenest I've ever seen it here. The last time I was in this area it was badly in drought, and the hills were all brown and crusty.
A housing development in which every single house had solar panels.
We passed many fields of crops, most notably acres and acres of almonds (at least I think they were almonds, the fruit looked pale green and oval. If I'm wrong, they may have been olives instead.)
At the hotel I dropped my stuff and went to Sprouts for one last "Foodie Find," a very small one. Getting just enough groceries for two days; I don't plan to eat out at all here. I found a few fun things to try including Sprout's own brand of seasoned tofu, and a single-serving carton of Woolala Banana Milk (I've had it before but Jameson loved it very much and drank it all :p )
I also picked up some new-to-me apples to enjoy: a cosmic crisp (left), a kanzi (right), and a lemonade apple (yes I've had the lemonade apple recently in another state, but this one looked different and I was interested to try it again since they're pretty rare to come across.)
- Cosmic Crisp: It was pretty good but idk why the big fuss. To me, it seemed like an improved red delicious. The skin was still thick and chewy like a red delicious, but less bitter than one, and the fruit was juicy and had a good sweet flavor. I like at least a little tartness in my apples though, so to me these are, like the honeycrisp, overly sweet.
- Kanzi: And this one was like an improved gala or fuji. Sweet and juicy, thin skin, really nice flavor, and I liked how light and not-woody the flesh was. Some people like a "harder" apple, I prefer ones that are lighter and more "crispy," and this one leans that way. Still more sweet than I prefer but I like it more than the cosmic crisp!
- Lemonade: I'll be eating this guy on the flight home.
Back at the hotel, an auspicious dinner of turkey jerky, nuts, half a NuGo bar, and canned pumpkin. I'm trying to eat down any remaining travel nonperishables, since travel days are about to be over. Unpacked, washed up, felt depressed about the end of tour, and went to bed.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Woke up on Tuesday a bit disoriented (where tf am I again?) and walked into the bathroom to see water all over the toilet. The room above mine, or pipes I guess, is/are leaking. If there has to be a leak I suppose better over the toilet than, say, over the bed, or my luggage.
Maintenance took over an hour to show up, so I had breakfast and worked on my court reporting modules in the meantime. When they finally did show up he took one look at the ceiling, cringed, and said he was going upstairs to see where the leak was coming from, and I never saw him again after that.
Jameson had a tattoo appointment today and was very excited about it, naturally. I chatted on and off with him while working and worrying about the expanding water zit above the toilet. Finally the front desk called to say that maintenance hadn't been able to access the room above mine because there was a pet in there (they're legally prohibited from entering a hotel room with a pet) and asked if I'd like to switch rooms. I said yes because even if the leak was fixed, there's still standing/stagnant water trapped in the ceiling and I am not a fan of it. They brought a new key up right away and it didn't take me long to switch over.
In the time it took me to switch rooms, all motivation for working on court reporting modules went out the window. I just...I feel like once again I don't have a job. Yes, I have a chance to CERTIFY and THEN start working, but for fuck's sake, that means I need ANOTHER job in the meantime!!!
WHY am I always inadequate?
Why is it never enough?
Am I not human being enough to hold just a normal-ass job?
Once again, I was supposed to know to keep applying for MORE work after being offered a job?
Honestly, I was very upset today. I'm so tired of this happening after each tour.
It didn't even brighten my mood to receive an email from The Florida Orchestra about the upcoming disco concert that I'll be involved in; or shortly after that, a text from the Main Street Phil with directions to the costuming building. I should be excited and happy about both of these fun opportunities, but right now I just feel desperate and ashamed.
With all of that in mind I unpacked (again), and walked to a small fruit stall near the hotel.
Modesto smells a lot like Mexico...hard to describe but it's a mix of, like, hot dust, decaying garbage and food and plant material, grilled meats, and perhaps a touch of brine from sea air brought inland. Just something that I noticed, going outside here for the first time today and coming from a different state.
The little fruit stall/shop had a lot more than fruit, namely dried fruits, nuts, chocolates, and honey. Lots of honey.
I didn't get anything because I'd actually hoped they'd have some veggies, and they didn't.
Went back to the hotel, did work on more court reporting, then did a depressive nap until it was time for sound check.
This theatre has an "ok" pit, and the auditorium is nothing special to look at but the acoustics are "ok" as well.
Some actors started crying a bit during sound check; these folks have performed together for twice as long as I've been on this tour, so there are a lot of emotions as our show comes to a close. After sound check we were given a photo op on stage with the Higgins study set piece.
Full cast (I'm over on the right):
Full cast goofy photo:
My Fair Lady Orchestra only:
When I saw that no one was going to the middle, I planted myself there and did what I hoped might be a good Henry Higgins pose. Note that I took care to wear my shiny reflective shoes.
Opening night went well and the audience was wonderful.
Maeghin, the actress who plays Mrs. Pierce, got us each a pair of "My Fair Shadies" sunglasses! How cute is that!
After the show was our closing night party (even though it's not quite closing night, better to have the party the night before due to load out.) The cute cake:
There were lots of photo ops set up around the event space, mainly a My Fair Lady banner that we took turns with.
Here is my set:
Another set with the band (except Abe, our bassist, who got annoyed with having to wait in line for this photo and left):
A moment before the toasts given by some of our creative team who were present. The woman on the left there is Angela Rowles, the Chief Executive Officer.
To be honest...the party gave "not with a bang but a whimper" vibes. Probably because we just got here, and it feels (to me at least) like we should still have a full week of shows before we close out. The impression is oddly like some sort of "soft closing," with just the two shows and not a lot of fanfare. But each tour is different, and going out quietly like this is a new experience for me. Hey, I got a free glass of wine and got to chat with people a bit, and it was a nice time.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, I woke up at 8am to do a last load of laundry and had exactly the amount of quarters needed. A sign! Lol.
Breakfast, partial packing, and started to do court reporting but my stepmom called so we chatted it up and by the time we were done it was time to eat lunch.
If anyone is curious, I DID end up passing that transcription evaluation for employment that I was working on last week!
And then guess what! They wrote to say that there will likely be no work until JUNE. Hahahahahahahahaha.
So now I "have" two jobs, NEITHER of which will actually have me working and getting paid anytime soon.
That means that although I have two jobs lined up, I still need to find even more work.
Now is the perfect time for a crotchety 65-or-older know-it-all to appear and condescendingly sniff, "No one wants to WORK any more." So I can rip their bloody larynx out.
At least both jobs were up-front about it, and didn't leave me sniveling and groveling for updates all summer like some other transcription companies coughFedWriterscough. At least now I know, for certain, that for the month of May it's back to $12/hr data entry and scrubbing toilets for elderly people via Papa Pal.
Look well, all ye who are envious of my touring lifestyle! For this is the price.
Would YOU be willing to pay it, for the adventures I've had?
As much as I gripe and curse and worry and rant...in the end, I Will Pay That Price every damn time, for as long as I can.
That's how much it still means to me.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
I had planned to get my hair trimmed back in Orlando, but a salon nearby happened to have an opening so I did it today instead. One less chore. The rest of the evening seemed to fly by and before I knew it, it was time to walk to the theatre for the final show.
I am not a very boo-hooey person, and still don't even know half of these people, but can empathize with the emotions that they felt tonight. The audience was fantastic and supportive, and cheered heartily for everyone. They knew.
I played the show "like normal," but was so conscious that this was our very last time together. We'll never be here again.
So, ya know. I wore my shiny shoes. For posterity :p
At intermission I joined everyone in signing our very last wall tag, at the top of the stairs leading down to the pit.
And before I knew it, it was over. We were playing the bows, and our MD was crying and so was half the orchestra, the audience was giving us a standing O and I don't know what was happening on stage but can guess lots of emotions :) And then we all started packing up like normal, but shook hands and hugged and gave goodbyes. I said, "See you down the road" to everyone because that's the traditional circus parting phrase, implying that you're not saying goodbye; your paths are just forking and they'll come together again someday.
Walking back alone, on a quiet Wednesday night in Modesto, was strange. My mute bag and trombone felt heavy. I had many mixed feelings. But quietly, in the bottom of my shriveled cantankerous little heart, I felt the tiniest ember of hope that this show may be revived overseas. That's the rumor, but as for reality we'll just have to wait and see.
At the hotel packed carefully to protect my mutes and Jameson's souvenirs, and the luggage scale says I'm below 50lbs so hopefully all's well for flying. I missed a text from our MD begging for an impromptu band toast down at the hotel bar...I think he forgot to announce it in the midst of emotions post-show. I felt bad for not going but, I have to be up at 4am tomorrow for an entire day of flying, and though the sentiment is sweet, I don't want to drink tonight (or get weepy haha.)
Packed up, shoved a foam cone into my trombone bell, washed up, typed this blog. And went to bed.
And the curtain is closed on My Fair Lady.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tomorrow (or today depending on where you read this) I'm up at 4am, 4:30 shuttle call, 5am departure on a 2-hour drive to SanFran airport. I'll eat breakfast at the airport, then a 5 1/2-hour flight directly to Orlando. Jameson should be able to pick me up, maybe we'll get dinner and groceries.
And the next several days will be spent unpacking, cleaning, catching up with my sweetheart, and preparing for the stationary life.