Reasons why I want to be on tour...

After 2 gigs in 4 days, I'm now looking forward to 2 gigs in 3 days. Lostprophets are playing 4 gigs in 5 days and I'm going to 3 of them. This makes me more excited than I can articulate.

So, Tour Week started off yesterday with Cambridge.

Pre-gig:
- Getting woken up at 6am... then 6.05... then 6.10... then 6.15... then 6.20... Finally getting up at 6.25
- The mad panic of leaving the house at 7am to get to the station in time
- Trying and failing to fall asleep on the 7.27 train to Cambridge because someone was eating almonds really loudly behind me.
- Free extra cream and chocolate on my latte at Cambridge station (win)
- Walking down to the Junction before realising this meant I'd gone 20 minutes in the wrong direction
- Arriving a bit after 9 at the Corn Exchange
- Realising I knew Annie and Chloe at the front of the queue
- Huge, free tour posters being given out XD
- Ian Watkins' HAIR HOTLINE. "Hi, you have reached Ian Watkins' hair hotline. Press 1 if you think I looked awesome with a fauxhawk. Press 2 if you think I should wear a hat more often. Press 3 if you loved my blond stripes. Press 0 at any time for more options. Press 4 if you love my quiff. Press 5 if you think I have dandruff. You have pressed 5... I DO NOT HAVE DANDRUFF BITCH!"
- Buying a 5ft Welsh flag at the market for eight quid XD
- More coffee with free cream!
- Susie (KATH!!!) arriving with far too much Valentine's stuff for me :')
- Giving Kath her Valentine and watching her face light up
- Panda arriving!
- Jay and Jocko walking past but too quickly for me to give them my letter.
- Frequently getting asked by people if we were protesting (I love Cambridge) snd only being asked if we were homeless when we said no.
- Chatting to a gay guy in Lush about Lostprophets and how he went to the same high school as Stu. His dad worked at the same place as Stu's dad, too!
- "I feel so old!" "It's nostalgia night at Lush!"
- Buying Millie's Cookies, and Kath buying a huge multicoloured hoodie from a sports shop. Good times.
- Having Panda do my makeup
- Getting covered in glitter in the toilets
- It started snowing... "OMG IT'S IAN WATKINS' DANDRUFF!"
- Eating really nice food (pizza, dough balls, and chocolate fudge cake) for a tenner at a little restaurant opposite the venue.  Did I mention I love Cambridge?
- "Eat?" "Why, are you trying to fatten me up?" "Yup!"
- Being the first into the gig and walking to the barrier. Not running. Walking.

Gig:
- Laughing at We Are The Ocean and spying Jocko and Lee sidestage
- Getting metal hands and a huge grin off Lee \m/
- Getting metal hands off Alfie, the guitarist
- Calling Sam for a couple of songs
- Poking Dan in the leg every time he came and sang on the barrier in front of us
- Dan crowdsurfing... and getting lost in the crowd... and re-appearing 10 minutes after their set finished

- Aled not being quite as dead in Kids' set!
- Calling my friends and having an awesome singalong
- Jocko laughing from sidestage at me and Kath doing the macerena
- Shay grinning madly at everyone who was dancing
- "We have a singalong challenge every night. So far Leeds are winning. You beat them in education, can you beat them in singing?" "FUCK LEEDS!" "Alright, calm down love!"
- Kath putting up the Valentine's card I made her with Sunshine lyrics on it and turning it over madly so it matched what Aled was singing
- Singing "Monday" instead of Saturday
- Getting a setlist :D

- Befriending a photographer and getting a sort-of job offer from her magazine - I have her business card with a photo of Jack Barakat on it.
- Lee stealing Ian's white jeans XD
- Epic fun just... dancing and singing and waving various Welsh flags
- Ian's reaction to my sign
- Mike seeing my sign for him and just shrugging in response. Yeah, I'm too cool to wear Nikes...
- Getting splattered by Ian spitting out water. Yay... wet
- OMEN! It's an omeeeeeen!
- JAY'S EPIC DANCING AND DRINKING
- Spending A Thousand Apologies just air-scratching records
- Getting mega-huge grins off Lee
- Stu spending the whole set looking like he needed his Superman cape billowing behind him, just grinning like yeaaaaah
- Yelling random shizzle at Ian and having him stare at us... so Panda got into an argument with him. And won.
- Happy birthday to Keith!
- Jocko giving me a wave when I spent half one of the songs just grinning at him
- "Can you play ballroom music on there? What about bar brawl music?" "No but I can play this!"
- Last Train Home... too beautiful
- "PLAY GODZILLA, DAMMIT!" It started off with just me and Panda, but we managed to get the chant going enough to get them to play Godzilla. Hellyeah!
- Ian pretending to be deaf when the crowd cried for Shinobi
- The Light That Shines Twice As Bright as the encore, holding Kath's hand and calling Vikki. <3

Post-gig:
- Kath finding an LP plectrum on the floor
- Walking past Joel at the doors out
- Phil coming up to Kath and telling her that he loved her sign ^^
- Chatting to Aled - I got a cwtch and my setlist signed,
- Aled proceeding to wish Kath a happy anniversary for her 10th show and signing her valentine's card and sticker... when really Shay should've signed her card XD "He's the only guy you'd ever go straight for!"
- Having a long and detailed discussion about the Hertfordshire music scene with Alfie from We Are The Ocean: "You've got Hitchin at the top which is My Passion country, St Albans in the middle which is Enter Shikari country, and the south is..." "Watford, Gallows country!"
- Alfie guessing I was 18 or 19... he's only just turned 18 himself, bless'im.
- Chatting to Dan about getting lost in the crowd and laughing at him

All in all, it was a mighty, mighty good day.
And I want it to happen every day for two weeks, for a month, for half a year. I want to get a job as a tech and scramble around gathering up cables and adjusting mikes. I want to be a merch girl, sorting out the tshirts and hats and display board. But most of all, I want to be a journalist and document my travels with whichever band I end up with. I want to tell the world about every amusing detail I can find, so that everyone else who wishes they were on tour too can feel like they are.

One day I'll be on a tour. I promise. For now, I'll have to put up with the £200 or so of expenses that comes part and parcel with Tour Week.

And I cannot bloody wait.