Live via: Philadelphia, PA

The crew has been laying low this trip. This is Day 4 (bleeding into Day 5) of the trip and we've set up a tradition for ourselves of spending every possible moment in the hotel. Yes, it just may have occurred that after three years on and off the road, iLL-Literacy is tired.

Definitely not tired of doing shows or seeing each other or interacting with fans, don't get me wrong. This isn't the precursor to a New Kids On The Block-esque meltdown that ends with Dahlak setting the carpet on fire. It's more of a response to our trip a couple of months ago that entailed a ridiculous amount of driving, a side trip to canada, and staying out late each night (for various reasons including but not limited to bars, frat parties *don't ask*, and being lost in the middle of nowhere). With it came ten straight days of getting back to our beds so exhausted that our limp bodies dangled from the sheets well into the next afternoon.

This trip we've played it safe. Less wide-eyed and gawking at new towns. We booked our hotels in the outskirts of the cities and much closer to the airports. Pretty much isolating ourselves from the world, curtains draped and rooms pitch black even though it's past noon. We scurry from hotel to hotel like war bunkers, only catching whiffs of the outside air when completely necessary--airport...hotel...show....hotel...grocery store...hotel. It's been our way of mustering energy during this awkward mini-tour, in hopes to be bursting with adrenaline and ready to take on the country (literally) when we're on the road all of April.

For the past few days I've been using the news as my window to the world. I read TIME (a.k.a. Propaganda Shit Magazine) for the first time since high school. At the airports and hotel rooms we've all been plastered to CNN (a.k.a. Propaganda Shit Channel But At Least Not As Bad As Fox News). Tuesday was nail-biting/exhausting. What was supposed to be a 5-hour transit ended up taking 10 because of storms, flight delays, and reroutes. While we hopped from airport to airport, we watched the election results with deep anticipation, and later disappointment.

That night placed us in this Philly hotel room, huddled together at midnight munching on sandwiches and fries, Nico and I tossing back shots of Appleton Estate and cursing at Hillary on the television.

"Why won't she just give up!" moans Nico. I reply with some mumbo-jumbo about delegates and caucuses and other terminology that I'm pretty sure I was unfamiliar with just a month ago (not that I know anything about it now).

In the end, it's all this waiting that's draining. Waiting for the next show. Waiting to see what's going to happen with the election. Waiting to see what the next metamorphosis will be with this ever-fickle group named iLL-Literacy. Just six months ago we swore we wanted to be on Broadway and now we're basking in our recent experimentation as a funk band. All this uncertainty makes life interesting and worth living, but it definitely takes a lot out of you.

No complaints though, just gripes. Tomorrow we split off, kissing different corners of the country. Ruby to Atlanta, Dahlak to St. Louis, Nico to Providence and me to NYC. Then no more traveling until the very very end of the month. Then CRAZINESS!!!!!!!!!! We'll be ready.