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taz_39 **Disclaimer** The views and opinions expressed in this post are my own, and do not reflect the views or opinions of my employer. DO NOT RESHARE ANY PART OF THIS POST WITHOUT PERMISSION. Thank you.
MONDAY
I had only gotten maybe 4 hours of sleep on Sunday before the church gig, and then spent the rest of Easter Sunday packing and prepping Easter food and spending time with Jameson. Around 9pm he was gaming and I finally crashed out, curling up on the couch and dozing because my head hurt from lack of sleep. We went to bed at 10pm as usual, and I fell asleep probably around 10:30...
....but had to be up at 1:30am to head to the airport. Bluuuurgh. Grand total of 7 hours of sleep across two days.
I was very tired but even mundane travel still feels like an adventure, and this inevitably cheers me up :) Loaded up the rental car with my luggage, got to the airport and dropped off the car, and ended up waiting in Delta's baggage line for an entire hour. At least I could sit down on my trombone case, others who were waiting stood or sat on the floor. Apparently the bag drop doesn't open until about 2 hours before the first flight's departure...my flight, 5:30am, so they'd open at 3:30am. Which I suppose makes sense. I didn't mind waiting because by the time the attendants arrived there was a MASSIVE queue behind me.
Checked my big suitcase and as usual, after checking the bass trombone I was instructed to carry it to the side and place it with all the oversized stuff. You all know that I hate having to check my trombone period, but a specific thing that I dislike about checking it with MCO is that their "Oversized Luggage Area" is literally a spot on the floor in a public area where anyone could walk up and grab them.
My trombone is standing up on end to the right of all the golf bags lying on the floor there. There is no oversized cart to put things on, no signage to show that this is luggage belonging to people, and no attendant to watch the bags. I always wait here as long as I can to see the attendant arrive and load my trombone, but this time I could only wait about 8 minutes before heading to the gate. It has an AirTag, it is insured, but I'm sorry, none of that helps me if someone simply grabs my instrument and walks off with it leaving me with no bass trombone for the show. TL;DR I simply wish MCO would change how they handle oversized bags.
Anyway, both of my flights were on time and perfectly normal. I dozed a bit but have never been able to actually sleep on planes. Retrieved my stuff in Hartford (the trombone arrived just fine,) Ubered to the hotel. Got there around noon and they had my room ready. Or rather, my penthouse suite!! I can't show it to you for cast safety reasons but after we've left I'll give you a tour. It really is like a small condo. There's a hallway when you enter, that leads to a huge open dining room/living room. Then to the left is a full kitchen and the master bedroom and bath. And then if you turn right up some stairs(!!!) there is another smaller bedroom with a private bath. The whole thing is lined with gigantic windows, there are THREE tvs!! I sent pics to my sister and she says it's bigger than her New York apartment. WILD. I have no need of such acreage and feel a bit guilty about it. At least housekeeping should have an easy time of cleaning because I'll only use the small bedroom/bath!
Dropped my things and Ubered to Maruichi, a Japanese grocery store across from a Whole Paycheck here in Hartford. Maruichi is a chain that I first encountered in Stamford while on tour with Elf. They are small, but they have high quality Japanese food, cookware, beauty supplies, etc.
Most importantly they have fantastic authentic bentos, sushi, and onigiri made on-site each day!
Got myself an unagi (eel) bento and a maple-flavored milk bun for later. The eel bento was awesome and featured lots of great sides, like fried chicken pieces, dumplings, tamago, sweet kabocha pumpkin, and pickled veg. There was a small seating area so I ate it right then and there in the store.
After lunch I walked across the street for Whole Paycheck. Got everything I needed and then some. Ubered back to the hotel and had started unpacking when I remembered I'd sent coffee pods to myself. Went to the front desk to pick those up and the staff said they didn't have any packages for me. I was confused until I remembered I'd thought we were staying at a different hotel, and had accidentally sent the pods there! Luckily it was just a few blocks away. I walked there and sheepishly retrieved them. THEN I finally unpacked. By the time I'd gotten a shower and into pajamas it was about 4pm. I CRASHED in bed and slept a solid 3 hours. Had a late dinner and typed up this post.
Now as I type this my throat feels kind of dry (arrrrgh pleeeease don't get sick, good grief) and I'm still very tired so it's back to bed with a book for me.
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TUESDAY
I'd fallen asleep between 10:30pm-11pm and woke up around 7:30am, so that's 8ish hours and a good job recovering some of my sleep debt. Went downstairs to check out the hotel's free breakfast. Restocked on single-serve peanut butter :D
A slow morning. My throat feels better and my skin feels dry so the scratchy throat yesterday was probably just the change in climate (a 50-degree difference plus massively less humidity.) Breakfast and starting the finale season of Beastars, packing lunch and snacks for the theater, walking to a nearby small bakery and convenience store only to find neither had what I was looking for (stuff that Whole Paycheck doesn't sell like Clorox wipes, tuna pouches, etc.) Lunch and afterward I dozed for a bit, then lubricated the bass trombone slide and played a few nervous notes. Returning to tour after a long time away is always a bit nerve-wracking. What if I suddenly suck? Lol. But it's a real thing that can happen: waking up one morning to find that you've lost your voice (singer,) going to the "white room" (actor,) or focal dystonia (musicians.) These are the boogeymen that come for entertainers in the night.
Anyway, I killed time until 3pm then got an Uber to the theater. Normally I will walk but today I have the 30lb (13.6kg) bass, backpack, tote bag of trombone-packing materials, and my lunch, and a 20-minute walk with all of this on broken sidewalks while wearing my work clothes and getting heckled by homeless folk is not something I want to do. And so I rode to the theater and remembered the backstage immediately, it's cramped and overly warm because it's an ancient HVAC system. But there are more bathrooms than I remember, and they put our dressing room on the pit level instead of on the FOURTH FLOOR like the last time I was here.
Speaking of which, I've been to Hartford MANY times.
Ringling Bros 2013: My first time in Hartford. I got to attend an Elephant Brunch. Thorough exploration of the Capitol building. First time eating at Agave with Jameson, and it would come to be one of our favorite restaurants in Hartford :)
Ringling Bros 2015: I showed a lot of our train yard in this post, and pics from a train yard party too. We ate at Agave again :)
Ringling Bros 2016: I think this was one of our first shows without the elephants (they were removed a year before the circus closed.) Ate at Agave again of course, and I took a CPR/First Aid class.
Ringling Bros 2017: This visit was...rough. And the post is very long and emotional. This was shortly after they'd announced the circus would close. I visited the Hartford circus fire memorial, stood where the bandstand had been, and "poured one out for the guys"...I brought a small bottle of vodka, took a sip, and poured the rest on the ground to "have a drink" with Ringling band members past. I spent a lot of time writing resumes for circus people...many of them had never had to apply for jobs before, having been born and raised in the circus. Jameson wasn't here so I think he had left already to start his job teaching with LA Film School, and that was crushing for me...I wasn't sure if we'd ever see each other again (thank goodness we stuck together!!!) And I took many, many, many pictures of the animals, because we were about to lose them forever, and I was so heartbroken and livid that random strangers, who would take zero responsibility for these animals' care, were getting to dictate what would happen to them. I still don't know where most of these animals ended up, but I'm sure PETA is very pleased with themselves imagining a utopia for them that doesn't exist. Anyway. I can't even read this post tbh, it still hurts too much.
Tootsie The Musical 2023, Part 1 and Part 2: This was my first time here non-circus. I walked around and saw much of downtown, didn't eat at Agave but did visit a favorite halal stand. Jameson was on a cruise with friends at the time. And I ate at a place called The Kitchen which is now called Forge & Fire and serves a completely different menu. It was near the end of the tour, and I wrote about how I was worried for what would come next, and that this might be my last time touring (it was in fact NOT my last time touring. By far. Who knew.)
Now you know some of the places I've already been in Hartford. We will see what I end up doing this time...
I'd gotten there early enough to get set up and then find my trunk and raid it. I'd put so much stuff in there! Thanks, Past Me! The pit in this theater is kinda tight, but we made it work. Remember that DAR, the drummer, and the keyboardists have not had a layoff or a break from the show for quite long time now...DAR seemed very tired and the keys, too, seem like they are ready for a break from the show. Everyone loves being here, but we are organic creatures that need rest and variety and time with our loved ones and away from repetition, you know? Fortunately it looks like DAR has a vacation in Boston, and that's VERY well deserved. It was great to see everyone and be welcomed back :)
The show went well. There is a bit of an adjustment while the five of us who were gone for 3 weeks get settled back in, but I'm sure by the end of the week we'll be settled back in fully. After the show a young lady and her mom came to the pit specifically to see me; the girl has been playing the trombone in band for 3 years! Good for her! It was great to see the mom so supportive of her. I tried to give enthusiastic and encouraging words. That was a really nice way to resume tour :) :)
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Wednesday: Mostly planning to rest and make sure I'm caught up on sleep, but might go for a generic walk. One evening show.
Thursday: We have an "allieship" meeting, which I'm looking forward to, and one evening show.
This post covers Monday and Tuesday.
--- --- --- --- --- ---
MONDAY
I had only gotten maybe 4 hours of sleep on Sunday before the church gig, and then spent the rest of Easter Sunday packing and prepping Easter food and spending time with Jameson. Around 9pm he was gaming and I finally crashed out, curling up on the couch and dozing because my head hurt from lack of sleep. We went to bed at 10pm as usual, and I fell asleep probably around 10:30...
....but had to be up at 1:30am to head to the airport. Bluuuurgh. Grand total of 7 hours of sleep across two days.
I was very tired but even mundane travel still feels like an adventure, and this inevitably cheers me up :) Loaded up the rental car with my luggage, got to the airport and dropped off the car, and ended up waiting in Delta's baggage line for an entire hour. At least I could sit down on my trombone case, others who were waiting stood or sat on the floor. Apparently the bag drop doesn't open until about 2 hours before the first flight's departure...my flight, 5:30am, so they'd open at 3:30am. Which I suppose makes sense. I didn't mind waiting because by the time the attendants arrived there was a MASSIVE queue behind me.
Checked my big suitcase and as usual, after checking the bass trombone I was instructed to carry it to the side and place it with all the oversized stuff. You all know that I hate having to check my trombone period, but a specific thing that I dislike about checking it with MCO is that their "Oversized Luggage Area" is literally a spot on the floor in a public area where anyone could walk up and grab them.
My trombone is standing up on end to the right of all the golf bags lying on the floor there. There is no oversized cart to put things on, no signage to show that this is luggage belonging to people, and no attendant to watch the bags. I always wait here as long as I can to see the attendant arrive and load my trombone, but this time I could only wait about 8 minutes before heading to the gate. It has an AirTag, it is insured, but I'm sorry, none of that helps me if someone simply grabs my instrument and walks off with it leaving me with no bass trombone for the show. TL;DR I simply wish MCO would change how they handle oversized bags.
Anyway, both of my flights were on time and perfectly normal. I dozed a bit but have never been able to actually sleep on planes. Retrieved my stuff in Hartford (the trombone arrived just fine,) Ubered to the hotel. Got there around noon and they had my room ready. Or rather, my penthouse suite!! I can't show it to you for cast safety reasons but after we've left I'll give you a tour. It really is like a small condo. There's a hallway when you enter, that leads to a huge open dining room/living room. Then to the left is a full kitchen and the master bedroom and bath. And then if you turn right up some stairs(!!!) there is another smaller bedroom with a private bath. The whole thing is lined with gigantic windows, there are THREE tvs!! I sent pics to my sister and she says it's bigger than her New York apartment. WILD. I have no need of such acreage and feel a bit guilty about it. At least housekeeping should have an easy time of cleaning because I'll only use the small bedroom/bath!
Dropped my things and Ubered to Maruichi, a Japanese grocery store across from a Whole Paycheck here in Hartford. Maruichi is a chain that I first encountered in Stamford while on tour with Elf. They are small, but they have high quality Japanese food, cookware, beauty supplies, etc.
Most importantly they have fantastic authentic bentos, sushi, and onigiri made on-site each day!
Got myself an unagi (eel) bento and a maple-flavored milk bun for later. The eel bento was awesome and featured lots of great sides, like fried chicken pieces, dumplings, tamago, sweet kabocha pumpkin, and pickled veg. There was a small seating area so I ate it right then and there in the store.
After lunch I walked across the street for Whole Paycheck. Got everything I needed and then some. Ubered back to the hotel and had started unpacking when I remembered I'd sent coffee pods to myself. Went to the front desk to pick those up and the staff said they didn't have any packages for me. I was confused until I remembered I'd thought we were staying at a different hotel, and had accidentally sent the pods there! Luckily it was just a few blocks away. I walked there and sheepishly retrieved them. THEN I finally unpacked. By the time I'd gotten a shower and into pajamas it was about 4pm. I CRASHED in bed and slept a solid 3 hours. Had a late dinner and typed up this post.
Now as I type this my throat feels kind of dry (arrrrgh pleeeease don't get sick, good grief) and I'm still very tired so it's back to bed with a book for me.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
TUESDAY
I'd fallen asleep between 10:30pm-11pm and woke up around 7:30am, so that's 8ish hours and a good job recovering some of my sleep debt. Went downstairs to check out the hotel's free breakfast. Restocked on single-serve peanut butter :D
A slow morning. My throat feels better and my skin feels dry so the scratchy throat yesterday was probably just the change in climate (a 50-degree difference plus massively less humidity.) Breakfast and starting the finale season of Beastars, packing lunch and snacks for the theater, walking to a nearby small bakery and convenience store only to find neither had what I was looking for (stuff that Whole Paycheck doesn't sell like Clorox wipes, tuna pouches, etc.) Lunch and afterward I dozed for a bit, then lubricated the bass trombone slide and played a few nervous notes. Returning to tour after a long time away is always a bit nerve-wracking. What if I suddenly suck? Lol. But it's a real thing that can happen: waking up one morning to find that you've lost your voice (singer,) going to the "white room" (actor,) or focal dystonia (musicians.) These are the boogeymen that come for entertainers in the night.
Anyway, I killed time until 3pm then got an Uber to the theater. Normally I will walk but today I have the 30lb (13.6kg) bass, backpack, tote bag of trombone-packing materials, and my lunch, and a 20-minute walk with all of this on broken sidewalks while wearing my work clothes and getting heckled by homeless folk is not something I want to do. And so I rode to the theater and remembered the backstage immediately, it's cramped and overly warm because it's an ancient HVAC system. But there are more bathrooms than I remember, and they put our dressing room on the pit level instead of on the FOURTH FLOOR like the last time I was here.
Speaking of which, I've been to Hartford MANY times.
Ringling Bros 2013: My first time in Hartford. I got to attend an Elephant Brunch. Thorough exploration of the Capitol building. First time eating at Agave with Jameson, and it would come to be one of our favorite restaurants in Hartford :)
Ringling Bros 2015: I showed a lot of our train yard in this post, and pics from a train yard party too. We ate at Agave again :)
Ringling Bros 2016: I think this was one of our first shows without the elephants (they were removed a year before the circus closed.) Ate at Agave again of course, and I took a CPR/First Aid class.
Ringling Bros 2017: This visit was...rough. And the post is very long and emotional. This was shortly after they'd announced the circus would close. I visited the Hartford circus fire memorial, stood where the bandstand had been, and "poured one out for the guys"...I brought a small bottle of vodka, took a sip, and poured the rest on the ground to "have a drink" with Ringling band members past. I spent a lot of time writing resumes for circus people...many of them had never had to apply for jobs before, having been born and raised in the circus. Jameson wasn't here so I think he had left already to start his job teaching with LA Film School, and that was crushing for me...I wasn't sure if we'd ever see each other again (thank goodness we stuck together!!!) And I took many, many, many pictures of the animals, because we were about to lose them forever, and I was so heartbroken and livid that random strangers, who would take zero responsibility for these animals' care, were getting to dictate what would happen to them. I still don't know where most of these animals ended up, but I'm sure PETA is very pleased with themselves imagining a utopia for them that doesn't exist. Anyway. I can't even read this post tbh, it still hurts too much.
Tootsie The Musical 2023, Part 1 and Part 2: This was my first time here non-circus. I walked around and saw much of downtown, didn't eat at Agave but did visit a favorite halal stand. Jameson was on a cruise with friends at the time. And I ate at a place called The Kitchen which is now called Forge & Fire and serves a completely different menu. It was near the end of the tour, and I wrote about how I was worried for what would come next, and that this might be my last time touring (it was in fact NOT my last time touring. By far. Who knew.)
Now you know some of the places I've already been in Hartford. We will see what I end up doing this time...
I'd gotten there early enough to get set up and then find my trunk and raid it. I'd put so much stuff in there! Thanks, Past Me! The pit in this theater is kinda tight, but we made it work. Remember that DAR, the drummer, and the keyboardists have not had a layoff or a break from the show for quite long time now...DAR seemed very tired and the keys, too, seem like they are ready for a break from the show. Everyone loves being here, but we are organic creatures that need rest and variety and time with our loved ones and away from repetition, you know? Fortunately it looks like DAR has a vacation in Boston, and that's VERY well deserved. It was great to see everyone and be welcomed back :)
The show went well. There is a bit of an adjustment while the five of us who were gone for 3 weeks get settled back in, but I'm sure by the end of the week we'll be settled back in fully. After the show a young lady and her mom came to the pit specifically to see me; the girl has been playing the trombone in band for 3 years! Good for her! It was great to see the mom so supportive of her. I tried to give enthusiastic and encouraging words. That was a really nice way to resume tour :) :)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday: Mostly planning to rest and make sure I'm caught up on sleep, but might go for a generic walk. One evening show.
Thursday: We have an "allieship" meeting, which I'm looking forward to, and one evening show.
