Mobile, AL. People spend more money on their cars than they do on their houses!

Passed two great signs. "lawnmowers guns and ammo" and "BEEF It's what You're eating for dinner". I laugh a lot while i ride.

Too hot and too dehydrated to finish today. Made it to mile 45. Alabama scenery is beautiful and the people are friendly polite and lovely overall.

Just made it to alabama! WOO! 70 more miles to Mobile.

Eating lunch in Niceville! Stopped for a photo op at some beautiful cement blocks on a military testing ground with 14 people this morning

Playing mindgames and singing Beatles songs to make it through this heat. Less than 15 miles to go but it feels so far. PS So much roadkill! Poor armadillos...

Crossed our first time zone today halfway to Panama City, FL. Went swimming and soaked in the hot tub at the holiday inn across from the church we're staying at

Build today. Renovating/deconstructing a flea-infested house. Showers after and free time. Off to a bike shop for a fitting now.

Tallahassee. Less miles & rolling hills=happy me! Zoomed up the hills until i had an asthma attack from the heat. Took it easy after that. Free chipotle too :)

Riding sweeps today (ppl at the end who ensure everyone makes it and is okay). Currently sitting with a girl with saddle sores at a gas station. 72 miles to go

The hot road looks wet and curved. I'm currently walking my bike down a road that turned to sand for 4 miles. Staying hydrated and dinner will be delicious!

1st build day and bike day. Build=long but satisfying. Bike=longer and harder than expected. Over 90degrees. I drank SO MUCH and still bonked @ mile 73 of 75

Last weekend home

I've been talking to lots of friends, trying to say my last goodbyes, and everyone asks me the same things: Are you nervous/excited? Are you ready?

Yes I'm definitely nervous & excited. But in a great way. I feel like I've been preparing for this for ages, and now that it's just around the corner, the suspense couldn't be greater! When I applied to B&B back in November I was definitely excited, but I didn't know anything about it. Now I know everything about it, but I haven't even started yet. It's time to start!

Ready? Yes I'm ready! I've been training, fundraising, asking questions, buying gear, testing that gear, packing, re-packing, and doing whatever else is necessary to prepare me for this trip over the past 5 months. I think I can confidently say I'm ready, or as ready as I'll ever be! There's this funny thing about the future--you don't know what's going to happen, until it does--and I LOVE that. I love going into a situation knowing anything can happen. I love that In 2 days I'm going to fly to Florida, stay with friends I haven't seen in 4 years, meet a group of 33 people for the first time, then spend the next few months building houses with them and biking to cities I've never been to. I don't even know all the details of how our trip works, but I know our leaders do, and that's enough assurance for me.

So how have I been spending my last weekend at home? Well, it's actually been quite relaxing and not too eventful. On Friday I woke up at 6:30am, went for my last ride, and got a massage (recommended by Galen, one of my teammates). Post-massage, I felt GREAT. Today (Saturday) I feel incredibly sore, as if someone used me as a punching bag last night.
My brother's prom was Friday night, so I was entertained by that whole ritual (the hair! the dress! now we have to take pictures!! Awwwww).
I did some baking today, one of my favorite hobbies. I will definitely miss baking while I'm on the road. I'm sure I'll eat great food down south, but nothing beats a home-cooked meal accompanied by some fresh-baked bread mmm! This morning I made some biscuits, my tradition. (For any Kiwis/internationals reading this, I mean baking powder biscuits that I make for breakfast, not cookies :P) I also have been trying to finish a colored-pencil drawing I've been working on. I know if I don't finish it before I leave...it will never get finished heh.

Tonight I'm getting more serious stuff done. Boxing up my bike & packing my duffel bag. Those who have seen me travel know I'm a pretty light packer. WELL my B&B friend Daisy came over and totally re-vamped my packing strategy so instead of using a large duffel she got everything into a regular sized one! (Magic, I swear!) Having a down sleeping bag definitely helps...
Here's a photo of my bag half packed for reference:

Now I'm off to skype a few more friends, finish packing my bag, and hopefully get around to that colored pencil drawing.

Next update will be from FLORIDA! 


PS: OH YEAH I MADE IT TO (and passed) MY $4,000 FUNDRAISING GOAL! Thank you everyone who donated! And if you would still like to donate you can here (more support for affordable housing!)