Reporting from Moon Base Beta, a.k.a. I’ve safely traveled to Traverse City

Despite having lost Monday to whatever fatigue I’m battling through, I managed to pack up my 2006 Chrysler Pacifica today (with the laundry-folding help of Aunt Annie), run my pre-trip errands and “head out on the highway” around 4 PM this past afternoon.

I drove through some particularly heavy storms on my way to Lansing, but the trip up US 127 to Grayling was utterly smooth, and I arrived in Traverse City around 9:15. I’ve unpacked, I’ve had a late dinner (the traditional Burger King burger was eaten in-hotel as the dining room was closed due to COVID protocols…though nobody is wearing a mask up here but me…), and my credit card has been charged $975 for the first half of the $2,081.25 hotel bill.

So I’m up in TC for the prospect tournament and main camp, and, thanks to your generosity, my credit card didn’t bounce.

Now it’s time to rest up for a day, prepare for practices, games and Zoom availabilities via old-fashioned Ethernet cable, and get going.

In the interim, I’ve got $200 left in the hotel fund hamper, and a week from today, the other $1,106.25 gets charged, so I need to ask those of you who are new readers, returning readers since TMR 4.0 kicked off in late July, and whoever else is willing to drop a couple bucks in the hat ensure that I won’t have to get a job at the hotel to pay my way home. Raising $900 + expenses should be doable…

And while I’ve got your attention, I’d like to let everyone who’s donated thus far know that the thank-yous are heartfelt and coming your way. This is the NPR of blogs, and I think the fact that I’m up here with half a hotel bill and groceries and gas paid for by readers is just frickin’ awesome.

So:

If you’re willing to lend a hand, you can use Paypal at https://paypal.me/TheMalikReport, Venmo at https://venmo.com/george-malik-2, Giftly by using my email, rtxg@yahoo.com, at https://www.giftly.com, and yes, you can contact me via email if you want to send me a paper check.