July 2009 Archives

I re-read "Emo: Where the Girls Aren't" every few months; I always end up feeling vindicated and a little teary.  Punk rock is a better place for having this woman in it.

Six Questions for Jessica Hopper on Girls' Guide to Rocking

fuck off and dance

omg.  child care?  workshops?  concerns about physical accessibility?

I just fell a little bit more in love with Vancouver.

Team Dresch and Erase Errata at the Vera Project, September 20:

WELL, HOLY FUCKING SHIT.

tickets here.

The casters on the cart I use for my amp are about to fall off, so I have been carrying it unassisted lately.  My knees are bruised purple from bumping it against my legs yesterday, carrying it only half a block!  I never expected rock and roll to get me in shape, but my arms are still sore and even my quads ache, so maybe I will have swelling biceps at the end of the summer.  Especially after we get back from being on tour for a week.

Re: tour- I never thought that I would make money playing music, but I never realized how expensive it actually is to go on tour!  We are going to L.A. and back, at the end of August; six days, six cities.

By the numbers:
$325 is what it will cost to rent a cargo van from Rent-a-Wreck.
More than 44 hours in a car.
At least $500 in gas costs.
Over 2700 miles to traverse the west coast.

We have not factored in lodging or food costs, or how much it will cost to get EPs pressed for the tour; and already, we are spending over $800.  If we were going to do this semi-regularly, maybe it would be worthwhile to just buy a van, but none of us has that kind of money.  If we exhaust our band funds, we will be able to pay for the van rental, at least.  But holy cow!  How do all of these other broke-ass punk bands afford this kind of stuff?  Do they borrow their auntie's minivan or have their parents foot the bill on the van rental or something?

Maybe I just haven't paid attention, but I've never actually seen a breakdown of tour expenses for bands like mine, small ones who just do week-long tours several times a year.  How is everyone affording this?  Are there secrets that we, as a really new band, just aren't in on, or is it truly this expensive every time, and everybody else is used to it?  ZEUT ALORS.

So this is our master plan (it worked really well for Ladyfest fundraising): forget about bake sales and benefit shows (besides, I've never heard of a band putting on a benefit show for themselves to go on tour).  Need money quickly for a decent cause?  Bake a bunch of cupcakes, make the frosting look nice, and then go sell them downtown on a weekend night after 10pm.  Drunk kids LOOOVE cupcakes.  And maybe we can raise enough money to offset some of our gas costs, because I'm not foolish enough to believe that every venue is going to be able to pay for even a little bit of our gas.

THESE ARE MY ADVENTURES IN DIY BAND LOGISTICS.  The Girls Guide to Rocking and Book Yer Own Fuckin' Life can only help us so much.

A fascinating and frank conversation with Ruth Bader Ginsburg in the NY Times:

Q: Now that Judge Sotomayor has been nominated, how do you feel about that?

JUSTICE GINSBURG: I feel great that I don't have to be the lone woman around this place.

Q: What has that been like?

JUSTICE GINSBURG: It's almost like being back in law school in 1956, when there were 9 of us in a class of over 500, so that meant most sections had just 2 women, and you felt that every eye was on you. Every time you went to answer a question, you were answering for your entire sex. It may not have been true, but certainly you felt that way. You were different and the object of curiosity.