****Update: woohooo! We did it!  Read more at the bottom!****

Hi friends — this is a blog post just for those of you who know me well and love me still.  If you don’t know my work or my music or my community very well, then you should maybe start somewhere else and don’t worry about this post. This post is for the veteran fans, the enthusiasts.

Hello all. This is my fall tour.  Portland to Portland and back again.  It is a long way, and I am excited to drive it, but also my car and I are getting a little bit older. Aren’t we all! And my car decided it was time to ask for some help.  And that made me decide that maybe I should ask you guys for some help.

I’m proud of my Subaru Forester. She’s my Good Old Girl.  I’ve driven her 115,000 miles through 49 states and Canada in a very short time — she’s 185,000 miles young.  And I’ve had only a few major repairs. She’s the only piece of property I truly own — I paid her off just this spring.

I gave my trusty car a thorough checkup before setting out, like I always do, and **thankfully** we found a number of things that needed fixing.  I say “thankfully” because I very much hope that we found it all now, in advance, and because the price tag was $1000 or so less than we briefly thought. So I am trying to be thankful.  Thankful in the face of Substantial Subaru Subsidies.  It’s not that hard when I think of how far we’ve come together and what a good car she’s been.

The final repair bill was in the neighborhood of $1500 plus a $150 car rental. We had to do the timing belt and drive belts and some pumps, plus a wheel bearing and a second-opinion inspection that I’m very glad we did.

$1650 is not a lot for some of you, but it’s really a lot for me. Sometimes I can absorb that, but this time around I couldn’t, so it’s all going on the Credit Card of Death. (I considered not doing some of the repairs, but right after this trip I had hoped to sell my Good Old Girl — to my Mom. And failing to repair a car that you’re selling to your Mom is how you get a premium platinum membership to H-E-Doublehockeysticks.)

So I’m asking for a little help.  Not because I’m the best cause out there (I’m not) or because it’s truly critical (it’s not).  If you only have $10 to give to charity this month, you should maybe choose something else more crucial.*** (See note below!)

But a lot of you have already told me that you want to know about this, and that you want to assist. Thank you.

Here’s how to help:

• tip with my tip jar
• tip by picking up some music at Bandcamp and setting your own price (no Paypal required) — if you own it all, give some to a friend!
• tip and get lots of sweet exclusive benefits by joining the Donors’ Circle for $200 or more (installment memberships available)

Before I even asked some of you jumped in, and together you’ve contributed over $600, so we’re well on our way!

I don’t have the time or space to create a rewards system or set up a fancy fundraiser website, so this is lo-fi, it’s bootleg, it’s simple.  I don’t want to make a ton of noise about this, because I’ll probably have to do a big fundraiser in spring and I try very hard not to ask too often.  If you opt to help me cover the cost of my car repairs, you won’t get a shiny new toy — your reward is that I will be starting my tour in the same-old-amount of Crushing Debt rather than tons-and-tons-more Crushing Debt.  And that’s something.  If that sounds like a reward to you — if you like my music a lot and hope I can someday make music without all the Crushing Debt — then you should join the effort.

Fundraising is my least favorite part of being an independent musician but it has been part of nearly every artist’s life forever.  So thank you for your support — thank you for your patience — thank you for asking me if you can help, even before I have asked you.  You guys are amazing.  You’re the best.  And I hope I get to visit you on tour or play a concert for you online very very soon.  I’ll drive til I’m numb, I’ll travel all I can, I’ll work my butt off to bring you art because I believe in the power of art. You guys have always met me there, and I thank you. Unceasingly.

Love from the road —

Marian Call

*******Update! You guys are incredible — you funded me all the way in just a few minutes! Thank you!  I’ll be making a contribution from some of the excess to one of these good causes, to show my gratitude: “If you only have $10 to give to charity this month, you should maybe choose something else more crucial.” They range from shark conservation to artists (yes, my Mom, no shame, she needs & deserves it) to ebola to red cross to microlending to net neutrality.  If you got here after the fundraising was completed, do consider one of these causes instead for a tip! Or go tip another artist who could use a lift!  Almost no feeling is as good as the feeling of helping someone else.  Go get that feeling.

If you’re super into helping *me* specifically after this short read, then you should tell all your friends about my fall tour, or sign up for my email list so you don’t miss shows near you, or post a blog or a tumbl or an Amazon review or a whatever about one of my albums, or give some songs to a friend, or just go listen to my music and enjoy it.

Thank you a million times over!******