Dimmer Beach: I’ve said it before: It’s all the little things that make touring hard.
Each little thing taken by itself is no big deal, but roll them all into one big ball and look out. This week I’ll dissect a struggle that every road dog has experienced. I’m going to look at this subject side by side with the same problem while at home.
4 comments:
I could never go on tour. I have a sleep schedule that I can't break so if I go to bed late I still end up waking up at the same time every day. I am also an incredibly light sleeper and can not go back to sleep once woken up. So if I had to get up in the middle of the night Id be screwed, if someone else woke me up same deal. But also looking at the broad view of the article, you just can't feel at home on the road. Not that I have experienced it, but I get antsy after being on vacation for more than a week. Home is home and feeling comfortable is important.
As part of this though I wonder about the health statistics of people on the road. Eating bad food, weird sleep schedules, and high stress. There is no way that is not causing some sort of health issue. It will be single city jobs for me please.
Oof. This was pretty painful to read. I can see how people can tour when they are young. However, I can't imagine touring past age 30. Not only do you not have a home, but you also have no life or privacy. Your life if your work. Your friends are your colleagues. There is absolutely no separation. Again, this is fine when you are young, but touring is definitely not for everyone. As this man mentions, these little discomforts add up to major inconveniences of living life on the road. For young people who want to travel and see the country and get paid for it, touring is ideal. However, I can definitely see why this lifestyle is unsustainable for many. I think the important part about making the decision to tour is to be really honest with yourself if this lifestyle is something you can handle. Clearly, Isaac has made this decision above. Personally, I also don't think I could tour because I only thrive in environments where I can have some sort of life work balance, even if it means my own bed to sleep in at the end of the night and the possibility to go to the bathroom whenever I need to.
As someone who aspires to go on tour, an article of this nature that so deliberately lays out on of, if not the most important decisions you will have to make on tour is something that I really needed at this stage in my college education. There are three things intrinsic to every human. The need for food, the need for water, and the need for the body to get rid of the food and the water. And, unfortunately, we live in a society where it is frowned upon to do this relieving just anywhere. No, we are trained to deposit our waste in special receptacles, a behavior that is not hard coded into us, instead pushed on us from the very first second we put something in a trash can and begin potty training, we learn everything has a place. The bus, however, never seems like the place. Every time I have been on a charter bus and had to use the bathroom, I have instead chosen to writhe in agony, simultaneously not wanting the religious experience of a bathroom that has seen far too many folk, but the shame of being "that guy". Now, when you're on tour, I guarantee there will be moments when I am that guy. But do I really want to be known as that guy when it comes to restroom related debacles? I think not.
This article definitely affirms my decision to stay away from touring in the future regardless of what job I pursue. Being at college and living in a dorm didn't sound like a big adjustment before I came; I've been to pre-college programs, I've lived in dorms before. But after actually settling in and living here for a few months, the whole situation changes completely. I cannot imagine how touring for a living will alter one's life. I know the touring lifestyle is definitely something that many people like and enjoy, but it is a huge commitment and this article definitely helps put everything into perspective and the little details definitely make it a lot more real to me.
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