By request...

My dad asked me to post some more pictures of the bus.  So here they are!!  :D
This is what our back lounge looks like.  You can fit about 5 people back here.  We use it more for storing our extra luggage and office supplies that we need in the mornings.  There are 3 small closet areas behind the mirrors, a TV with satellite, and a 'cooler' that we have to fill with ice twice a day.

Below is the front lounge, passenger side.  It has one small couch, sink, coffee maker and a #1 only bathroom.  To the left of the couch and un-pictured is a small cooler for drinks and ice.

The other side of the main front lounge of the bus.  A small couch, a table with seating for 2 is in the back.  The table has cup holders to keep drinks from bouncing and spilling.

The front door to the bus...IDK...seemed interesting at 8AM.  Not so much now that I have woken up a wee bit more.

I also took some selfies in the hub cap of the bus:

Mark, our bus driver, and me.  This is just before he noticed that he needed to wipe off the hubcap so his bus looked cleaner in my pics, lol.  ...and, yes, he does look like Sammy Hagar.

Runner Runner

I was thinking of waiting to post all the issues we have had with runners (drivers), but the list is getting too long to remember it all. SMH. 

- a runner shouldn't need a translator. Why can't the translator just drive by himself??

- a runner should be able to drive. Jenn had to have me drive a runner to pick up some people.  

- a runner should know chicken is not on the vegan menu. 

- a runner should know that black does not mean purple, dark blue or red. 

- a runner should understand a 'two pack' is not equivalent to an 'eighty pack' of sausages. 

- a runner should realize that they should pay with the cash handed to them and not use their own personal credit card. 

There is probably more I can't remember at the moment, but I know for sure there will be more to come too!!

Just The Facts, Ma'am

Tyler (the other PA on the tour today) had to give a backstage tour to some radio contest winners.  In order for him to do so, I had to collect some information for him to give to them.  Just basic tour information, but at the very least it's interesting and informative!

The tour will be over 1 continent, 2 countries, traveling through 21 states, 17 days, stopping in 12 cities, 5 of which we have already completed if we include today.

Starting in Nashville, and finishing in Nashville we will have traveled approximately 5863 miles for a total of about 106.5 hours driving.

We have 4 buses filled with about 48 people, with 2 trailers hauling laundry, office road cases, chairs, merchandise, drapes, a basketball goal and ping pong table.

There are 275 LED pieces used on the set.  

8 cameras running in real time to the screens which have over 61,000 pixels on just the monitors alone.

That all runs on cable measuring over a 1/2 mile in length.

The video media that runs before, after and during the show took over 50 hours to program.  Everything has to time out from video compared to what is being played on stage perfectly.  If it's off by even a tenth of a second, it has to be fixed or everything that runs after it will also be off.

There are 3 laser fixtures.  Each laser runs at 60 watts and if it reaches your eye, it is damaging and can cause blindness.

There are 9 guitars that are being used and transported from venue to venue.  Hillsong United will go through over 200 guitar strings in just this 2.5 weeks on tour.  All of the band is pumped out into the audience by almost 100 speakers.  The speakers will blare at 103dB.  That is almost the equivalent of a jet plane flying overhead at 100 feet!!

Yep, we like it loud!!

The Grand Barron!

I thought I would provide everyone with a glimpse of the tour show...by a professional photographer.  None other than the infamous Andy Barron.  Andy has photographed artists that include Skrillex, Foster The People, New Kids on the Block, Jonas Brothers, The Civil Wars, Paramore, Switchfoot, Big Time Rush, Mumford and Sons and many more!!
http://andybarron.com/#/Gallery/Work/Work

DC is OK by ME.

Second day off on the tour. Spending in Alexandria, just south of Washington DC. 

First order of business was to swim, but the pool didn't open until 3pm.  Reschedule that. 

New first order of business was a nap. Ahhh, sleep. I adore thee. 

Woke up after a couple hours and walked around downtown Alexandria. I walked about 2 miles and passed three different Starbucks. There was one every 5 blocks.  No coffee for me though. 

I walked to Joe Theissman's in hopes of getting a Joe shirt. I called 2 days ago and they said they had them. I was so excited. 10 blocks later, I arrive to find the name Joe does not actually appear on the shirt. It says JT Theissman's. bummer. No shirt. 

Stopped by a burger place on the way back. It was ok. IDR the name of it though, lol. Must not have been that good. 

Got back right at 3pm. I did not pack swim trunks. Hmmmm...genius idea: put on boxer-briefs, pull up the leg part and cover with boxers. Instant swim attire!!!  I was nervous someone would call me out on it on the way there.  Nope. Nobody. 

Once I stepped inside the lifeguard yelled for my attention, "hey you!"  I got butterflies as I looked over. "No food or drink. You need to leave you water on the table away from the pool."  Whew!!  I think she was actually going to call me out on the boxers, but it would have been an awkward conversation had they not been underwear. Awkward for her at least, lol. 

Watching Taken 2 in the hotel room right now and decided on one thing. I'm never going to name my daughter Kim. After Taken and 24, the name Kim seems to mean 'kidnap me a lot'. 

Off to see Thor now. Then if we can find AMC - The Walking Dead!!  

recap

Was 5 hours later than normal to the venue. Still got everything done. 

Got a pressure point massage. It wasn't like a normal massage, all she really did was just press on the muscles. A little disappointed by that during, but I feel better now. 

Connected with more of the crew on our bus by waking up earlier this morning, as did they. I'm typically too exhausted at the end of the night to hang out with them. 

As I got into the shower tonight, I realized I left my shampoo at the last venue. I didn't get a shower per se, but I did at least rinse off which was ok.  

People keep complimenting my Joe shirts. It's kinda nice. 

Tyler, the other PA made a new email for people to submit requests for food to be placed on the bus:

Need@TourBusStock.com

I tried a honey crisp apple today. No wonder they are more expensive!!  I loved it though. 

The Shortest Day

Today we arrived in Pittsburgh kinda late.  We knew that the earliest we could arrive would be about 9:30am.  We didn't get here until 1pm.  1PM!!!!  That gave us half the typical amount of time to do everything we would normally do.  Nothing can really be taken out of our day, because everything that we do needs to be done for things to run smoothly.
Same amount of work, half the amount of time.
Luckily for us we have been doing a few shows together already.  We knew for the most part what each person did and what needed to be done.  We worked very hard as a team and did most of our tasks together which made everything get done a lot faster.  By the time 6pm hit (when doors open) we had just barely had enough time to get everything done.  Yes, everything.  We were even able to do 3 laundry runs to wash towels and some clothes.
As things come to a wrap today, we are all fairly exhausted in the production office.  We are ready and in great need for our day off.  Our hotel has a pool, so if I can find something to wear in the pool - I will be taking advantage of that for sure.
Plus, I think I found a place to buy a 'Joe' shirt tomorrow.  That makes me happy.