[Izz]

Narrator's Note

I'm sure you've noticed that the time between updates on this historical record have been lengthening. Why so? Let me explain.

First, I'm no longer monitoring emergency signals from the Belt. I thought there was an overkill of tedium while 'dump trucking,' but that was nothing compared to this job. At least onboard a ship when I needed a break from writing and researching I could go and do some maintenance, or run some piloting scenarios, or fill out some gaps in the Belt maps. Here, while I was only pulling 12-hour shifts, there was absolutely nothing to fill my time when I needed a rest from baseball history. And the kicker was, after 12 hours sitting at a monitor, waiting for emergency calls that never came (well, I got 1 in my 4 months at the job, so that was something at least - though due to distance and positioning, nobody was able to get to the distressed ship in time), I'd leave absolutely exhausted from doing not much and head straight to sleep.

Already introverted thanks to 3 years alone chasing space-garbage, I was at risk of becoming a complete hermit who could only communicate in hisses and growls. So I did what I had to do: I handed in my notice and went looking for work that would force me to interact with other people.

Thankfully, there's no shortage of demand for experienced spacers, especially so ones who've manned solitary craft. Jack of all trades, I am, apparently, as well as someone who survived a ship malfunction with both wits and body intact.

Long story short, I'm now gainfully employed on the crew of a hauler, pulling backup to everybody. That means I'm a busy body, though there are also considerable periods of down-time when we're just pointed at a destination and burning hydrogen. I share a cabin - bunk beds, just like when I was a kid Earth-side - but I do have access to the Nets, and can still trawl baseball history when I've the time and inclination.

But while the updates might've slowed down, and will continue to come through so for the foreseeable future, they will not stop. I've started this thing and I want to finish it, not just because unfinished projects frustrate me, but because this is a labour of love.

And while I'm not at liberty to divulge the clients, cargo or destinations of our ship, or the identities of any of our crew members (that latter is an unwritten rule but a wise one to adhere to), I will say some of the work so far has certainly been interesting. And I've only been on the job a few weeks!

Enough about that. Back to the baseball!