Big News

The morning routine is becoming second nature now. Wake up 10 minutes before everyone else to get personal bathroom use, suit up in spandex/jersey/ridiculous-colored-socks outfit, complete my team's chore of the week (packing the trailer), then eat a hearty breakfast of Honey Nut Cheerios + Raisin Bran mix with bananas and a dollop of peanut butter. A luxurious 70 mile ride later, I arrived in Greensville, SC. Yesterday night we feasted on Southern BBQ and explored Handlebar, a (motor-)cycle joint with a bluegrass band. A peculiar lady named Sharon tried to teach us some steps, but after our crew was certain there was no pattern whatsoever to her steps, improvised the night away. Once again, people were surprised by my willingness to groove and jive. Fun times. Today has been a lovely day off, finishing my first book of the summer (White Oleander) before perusing the blossoming city of Greensville. I took in a late breakfast at Gene's classic 1950s 'Country Diner' before rounding up a group for putt-putt. Tonight we are all going to a celebrated local pizza place, which I will be sneaking out of early with a couple riders to catch some A level minor league baseball. Pictures on Greensville will be posted in a future post.

But the title of this post promises big news, so I should deliver. I have declined my offer to Cornell this fall...instead opting to attend Penn School of Medicine. Not only is this an upgrade in quality of education, but I believe it will provide a better environment for my own personal happiness. I have many friends (and maybe some family) that will be in Philadelphia and couldn't be more excited. I guess the more apt title of this post should have been Penn Again.

This does, however, have some implications for this summer's ride. Penn starts earlier than Cornell, so I likely will need to cut my route short. I still intend to get to the Pacific Ocean, but I will not be doing so in California. On August 1, I will leave my fellow riders and head west to water in Oregon. To all those that donated, I hope you do not see this abbreviated route as any swoon in my dedication to this cause. My total riding mileage will still be at least 3,400 miles (which is more than 1,000 miles more than the direct distance between the Charleston and Santa Cruz) and I will only be missing one build day in San Jose, CA. For those of you planning to meet me in Santa Cruz, I am sorry to disappoint, but this was the right decision for me.

So in my life, this definitely qualifies as a big change. Feel free to call me (773.633.3499) if you would like to talk about this more. Otherwise, I ride on, so read on!