Hi all! Every single day, I talk to someone about Illini 4000, and how incredibly excited I am to be a part of this amazing organization. Today, however, brought an interesting conversation. My uncle from Alaska called me, talking about how excited he was for me. Now, my uncle has lead a crazy life, doing everything from working on a salmon-processing boat (imagine dangerous catch without the cameras) to hitchhiking to Alaska from New York, and being struck by the thought that I was doing something on his life was really exciting!However, a much more important realization also happened--HOLY COW WE WILL BE IN NEW YORK IN 5 MONTHS AND 5 DAYS!! It seems so far away, but at the same time, it's coming so quickly! Before we know it, we'll be on a train, heading towards the adventure of a lifetime. I can't believe that in 5 months and 5 days, my bike and I will be heading out with the other completely amazing members of the team. (Also, as my best friend has so nicely pointed out, that's 1.356 X 10^7 seconds. Thank you Computer Science major and WolframAlpha.) P.S. If you're interested in donating, you totally should ;)