Day 3: Wilmington, Vermont to Albany, New York (J Version)

Tweaking bottle hook up

Good morning! I'm at a Starbucks in Albany, NY updating. I wanted to go to a different, new café but nothing else was open when we left the hotel. Just for clarification, today is technically day 4; however, I'm mostly writing about yesterday which was day 3. Today, he's aiming for some place in between here and Auburn, NY. Oh, and his start time was 7:40 today! I think we found the secret. He gets breakfast by himself while I pack up. That saved us a lot of time.

Cleaning the prescription
goggles

The biggest thing from yesterday that stood out to me were the horrible roads. I was on the same route as G but ahead of him. It amazed me how terrible they were aka. NO shoulder at points, grooved pavement, and construction. I really could NOT fathom how G was going to get through some of the roads. Whenever I doubt his ability to not ride, I always get proven wrong, and I'm glad I was wrong. He is an animal!!! If you read his entry, you'll know that he attributes it all to his bullet proof (literally) tires. He tells the story of how the lady at the store told him to pay it forward when she hooked him up with a drink because he didn't have cash. What my humble hubby didn't say is that he is the KING of paying it forward (one of the reasons he captured my heart). Last week at the pet store in our town a cat lady couldn't find her money in her purse, so I think G felt more sorry for the potentially hungry cats than her and foot the bill for her cat food and told her to pay it forward. That's not to be confused with watching the movie Pay It Forward, which by the way is a great premise but that ending??? Come on.


Three things I learned from yesterday's journey:
1. Music from my IPhone is a necessity. I had a mini meltdown for 2 min when I couldn't find the adaptor for the phone to the truck stereo. I don't mind all the driving, but I didn't realize how much I depend on my tunes blasting. To get a bit more specific the upbeat sounds of Usher really put me in a good mood, too.

Not my actual phone

2. As much as the IPhone is amazing, the darn thing overheated on me (sitting on the dashboard) and had to "cool" off. When you're relying on the phone as a GPS this can be problematic! Way to go Apple! Always be
familiar with your route incase that happens.

3. Use a regular GPS, so you don't have the IPhone over heating problem, and if someone calls you, you can actually talk to them without losing your directions.

Another item I forgot to bring on the trip is my blue boogie/kick board for pools/water. I don't know how to swim and kind of have a slight fear of water, so I rely on that blue board for comfort. We have two at home because I've forgotten mine before and had to buy another one when we were on vacation. Yesterday, at Walmart the only kind they had was an Avengers board, so I got it! haha



Soft kitty, warm kitty...

Our nephew and niece who are staying at our house sent us a picture of Tiger! I miss that furry guy, but he looks so happy, so I'm happy. Our nephew said Smokey is in hiding mode because she's a bit scared of their dog. She'll come around with time. I know it.

Since last year and all the way up to the present, we've told hundreds of people about our cross country cycling trip. This includes people that we encounter even on the trip as well. There are about three immediate reactions we get:

1. "OH MY GOD! ARE YOU CRAZY?" in a negative tone. These people usually always immediately turn the conversation to themselves with, "I would never do that," or " Why would you ever want to do that???" never thinking that just because maybe it's not your cup of tea, it could be someone else's. Or another common immediate response that falls in this category is, "40 days? You really think you're going to make it?" Wow. Thank you, Debbie Downer.

2. "Wow" in disbelief. "Good for you. That's awesome! Good luck!," in a calm tone. These people are supportive and genuinely excited for you. It's not their thang (yes, thang) that they would want to do, but they are totally cool with you pursuing your passion and wish you well. People like this rock.

3. "I WANT TO GO THERE!" These people  are your all star cheerleaders. They are in complete

awe of the journey and wish they could do it themselves with you. It's really quite flattering and awesome when you meet people whose immediate reaction is so uplifting because I would say all three of these category reactions are pretty even from people. Our cousin R made a funny comment saying how cool it would be if G started a Forrest Gump following and turns around one day and there's people following on the bike. hehe

Have a wonderful morning!!!

Having fun with Photo Shop!!