No Time for Worry Cause We’re on the Roam Again…

Well, we aren’t on the roam again yet, but will be soon enough!  I have just gotten back from visiting my brother in Boston.  After a nice but very hot trip, I realize that Rhonda and I have less than a month before we go on tour.  Before I go any further, I have to explain that phrase “go on tour” as some of our readers might be confused by that.  When we say that we are going on tour, this doesn’t mean that we are going with the band.  Hardly.  They take a private plane to their gigs.  We drive.  When they do drive, someone drives for them.  We drive ourselves.  They get food no matter what.  We are lucky if we remember to eat.  They can request special food and beverages.  Sometimes, we drive or walk around for hours trying to find something that would work.  So, why do we say we are going on tour if we aren’t going with the band and we certainly aren’t playing ourselves?  Honestly, it is phrase that we have used for years and so have a lot of our friends.  To us, to go on tour means that you are going to multiple shows and that those multiple shows require traveling of some sort (usually a plane).  It means seeing Duran perform in more than one city, state or country in a very short period of time, like a week.  We are sorry if our use of the term bothers people but we like it and plan on using it still.  🙂

Back to the topic at hand, I just got back from a trip and Rhonda leaves on her family vacation very soon.  We leave to go on tour in less than a month.  What does this mean for the Daily Duranie?  It means that we have things to do, details to sort out!  Now, this isn’t our first tour and (hopefully) won’t be our last.  Thus, we have gotten pretty good at getting everything together.  We have quite a few of the big things sorted, including flights, hotels, and car rental.  The general information for the meetups are set with some minor details to fill in.  For example, we have to message the people going to the Biloxi meetup.  We also have to reserve the car service for Atlanta.  Speaking of that, if you are going to the Atlanta show and want to ride the party bus to and from the venue, let us know!  We are looking for more people!!!  It will be a good way to avoid parking, traffic or getting a taxi!  Plus, it will be a heck of a lot more fun!  We are also trying to find fun places to go after shows.  If you know of any fun, open late places in Atlanta, Durham and Portsmouth, please share!

Now that most of our “tour” is planned, I have the job of organizing it.  I have a binder, which has been affectionately named the “tour binder”.  It is obnoxiously anal as there are various dividers in the binder, including a section for plane information, hotel information, ticket information, restaurants and clubs, city information like maps, a place to keep track of costs and more.  In the very front, I will have a typed agenda, which includes dates and times and a general plan of activity.  Some might say that all of this organization is overkill and unnecessary.  Others might say that it takes all the fun out of a trip.  I disagree.  Let me explain.  First, everything important is kept in one location, which makes it that much easier to keep track of, which can save time.  This is very important when you are traveling on a daily basis or when you have consumed an adult beverage or four.  Second, this allows complete freedom while actually on the tour.  I’m sure many of you are questioning how this allows for that, especially with an agenda.  The agenda, while including times and dates, isn’t that specific.  It is detailed enough so that we know when we have to get on the road in order to be on time for the next activity or when we have to be at the airport, but it is open enough to allow choices.  That said, the more research done ahead of time the better.  For example, the agenda might say, “Get dinner”.  That’s logical, right?  Well, then, one just has to go over to the restaurants section to find a list of places that people recommended or looked good.  Thus, time would not be wasted on finding a place.  The agenda gives an outline, nothing more and nothing less. 

Here’s the thing.  No one wants to think on vacation.  No one wants to waste time on vacation with such limited time.  The more prepared we are ahead of time, the less thinking and wasting time happens during the actual trip.  Less thinking equals more fun.  At least, it does for us.  Of course, I’m sure that there are a lot of other ways people get ready for a tour.  How do you do it?  Do you just get the big things taken care of and will by the seat of your pants for the rest?  Do you map every minute out?  I would honestly like to know.  While we think we have a good system set up, I’m sure that there are other ways of getting ready that we could learn from. 

No matter what method or what system is used, the same thing is true.  Planning and organizing a tour means that a tour will happen.  Now, that I, officially, have the binder out, it means that it is serious now.  The tour is quickly approaching!  I cannot wait!!!

-A