Acting Like A Guy

February 3rd is they day my career begins. I left for Florida 3 days ago, met the band I would be touring with yesterday and moved out of my lovely, comfortable hotel and into a big tour bus that I would be sharing with like 9 other guys. I got given a bottom bunk because I was a little small, but believably a man’s height so not that small. Compared to some of the guys on this bus, I looked like a little child.

My suit case went under the bus in storage while all my camera equipment went in my bunk with me. It was a case that went the whole width of the bunk and came out like 30cm. I think I’m going to like being on tour, waking up in a different state every day. I’ve decided to stay off alcohol for just in case reasons but other than that this is going to be a fun 3 months.

After putting sheets on my bed, Tino, the drummer of the band, told me that they were going to do sound check. I grabbed my Cannon camera, with some lenses and my laptop then left the bus. I really like the look of the outside of the building, because it was like one of those old diners. Up on the board they had ‘AMERICAN DREAM TOUR’ with sold out underneath. I took a quick photo of it then went inside, showing my pass to anyone who asked for it. The inside was just another venue; every venue is basically the same.

The band I was taking photos of aren’t the headliners of the tour but by googling them last night they seemed like a pretty decent band. I liked their name ‘Of Mice and Men’ because I really liked that book as a kid. I mean I wasn’t born in America, I was born in a place called Sheffield in England but moved to LA when I was 8 years old and I lost my British accent a long time ago. Thank god for that cause it was such a whiny girl’s voice that would fuck this all up.

I looked about the inside of the building a little then just went into the dressing room designated for the band I was kind of a part of. Austin, this tall lanky dude who screamed in the band, was on his computer and he was the only person in the room. He looked up and smiled at me.

“Hey Ali” I got the guys to call me Ali since it’s my actual name and also a nickname of Alexander. It was just in case I forget to answer to Alex.

“Hey Austin” I nodded dropping down on the sofa and turning my own laptop on. Austin started a conversation about his band and just told me things about them since I’m going to be staying with them for 3 months.

With Austin’s description and somewhat my own thoughts, the guys I’m going to be touring with are really nice people and already I feel bad about lying to them but it has to be done. Austin lets me take some photos of his and I upload them to my computer just to edit them. The guys asked me to email them any photos of themselves once I had finished with them so around noon I emailed Austin the pictures of himself then when to find lunch somewhere.

I ended up in a coffee shop called ‘Drunken Monkey Coffee Bar’ with Alan, the small ginger guitarist of the band and Jordan, the keyboardist of the headlining band. I ordered a black coffee and a cheese toasty then got a table. Jordan followed me then we were shortly joined by Alan.

“So Ali, where bouts are you from?” Jordan asked me curiously with his thick British accent, he sounds very similar to my dad but let’s not talk about him.

“Originally, Sheffield in England but now Hollywood” I thanked the waitress as she brought over all our stuff and grabbed my coffee mug. Coffee is my drug, along with nicotine. That’s all I live on because I’m always busy doing things.

“I’m from Sheffield, what part you from?” he wondered, I drunk some of my warm coffee then answered.

“We lived in a house right next to Meersbrook Park, stayed there till I was 8 then moved here with my mom and siblings” Jordan nodded. “I like it here way better, its warmer”

We start talking about some other random stuff like football and music, I’m totally shocked that they haven’t figured out I’m a girl yet. I do act really manly, I’d say that I should actually be Alex and Alex should be me because he’s a pussy girl.

After lunch I go back into the venue but the two guys stopped to talk to some of the people who were already waiting outside. It’s good they live in a warm state so they’re not freezing their asses off to get to the barrier. Before I went inside I did take a couple shots of the guys with fans but I have to set my camera’s up.

I stayed in the dressing room setting up my cameras and connecting the cameras to my laptop so when I take the photos they go straight to my laptop. I was interrupted a couple times with guys coming and going, also Alex was texting making sure I was okay. I think I’m going to miss being away from Alex because we spend every day together, the longest time we’ve been away from each other is a couple days. I’m 22 years old and have never been away from my twin, it’s hard because he is my best friend and I already miss him.

I leave the dressing room to take some pictures of the proper sound check where the whole band is present. They run through the set list a couple times making sure all there instruments are in tack, voices sound good and ear pieces work properly. This take’s just under an hour then they swap instruments with the first support band. That’s my queue to leave; I just go back to my laptop. I like having all my work done as soon as possible so later on I can do what I want.

“Hey, you’re Alex, right?” A bald man with a camera hanging from his shoulder entered the room asked me.

“Uh, yeah” I breathed out shutting my laptop over so I could give the guy my full attention.

“I’m Adam, the other photographer. I just came by to say hi” He smiled, I heard Adam’s name bounce about a lunch a bit. He sounded like a good guy, but he’s a guy and that just proves my point that the music industry is overrun by guys.

“Hey man, it’s nice to meet you” I stood up and shoot his hand.

“You seem really calm for first day” He said plopping down on the sofa opposite the one I was on. “I'm fucking stressed that I won’t get everything done on time” he rubbed his bald head a little.

“I do every when I get it, so it’s less stress full” I opened my laptop and showed him that I was already working on the sound check photos. He came over and took my laptop, he skipped threw the folder of photos with a smile on his hairless face.

“These are pretty good” He put the laptop back on my lap. “You’ll need to take all the photos when I’m gone”

“What?” I asked confused, where was he going?

“I’m away on another tour next week, this is only a couple days thing cause it’s in my home town Florida” See, he’s a lucky bastard.

Being a guy means that he can go do any tour he wants, he’s jumping from tour to tour and when I was being a girl I couldn't get one single job touring. My work is probably just as good as his but because he’s a man he gets the job and I don’t. Society is still sexist, even if they don’t mean it.

Notes

Ali now has to be a man:( - http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/set?id=111487090