6439 miles on a tandem bicycle.

On August 1, 2009, The Pedouin family embarked with their 3 daughters (ages 6, 4, & 2) on a cross country bicycle journey starting in Kentucky and arriving in Fairbanks a year and 6439 miles later. Over the last winter they wrote a book about their incredible journey on a 5 seat tandem bicycle. Now they are traveling by bus across the country doing a book tour.
On friday the Pedouin family stopped at REI for a few hours to sign and sell copies of their books.  They are an incredible and inspiring family. My shift ended early so I was able to go and talk with them for awhile. They showed me around their bus and the little girls told me stories of their bike ride. It was so much fun! The mother and her 3 girls all gave me a hug before they left and the father told me "Abbigail, whatever you do, live big"

Check out their website www.pedouins.org

I don't know if I'd ever do a 6500 mile bike trip across the country, but at some point in my life I want to do something that qualifies as "living big!"... most of the ideas that I come up with I kinda chuckle at and say to myself  "haha, come on Abbi, think realistically here"... but maybe thats the point, to NOT think realistically! so here's my list of UNREALISTIC adventures I would like to attempt!
- Climb Mt. McKinley.
- Motorcycle trip from southern point of South America to northern point of North America
- Back-packing trip from Pacific to Atlantic
- Bike from Alaska to somewhere in the lower 48 states
- travel to Antarctica
- travel to the MOON!
- .... ok i cant think of anymore at the moment. but i'll come up with some good ones later.

a watched phone never rings.

I started reading "Eat Pray Love" this last week while I was on the treadmill at the gym (yes that means i'm only walking on the treadmill but i'm also at a 15 degree incline- really works the booty). I'm through the first part of the book where Ms Elizabeth Gilbert experiences the pleasures of Italy.  I am envious of this womans opportunity to travel to this place... and the way she describes her meals in Italy... Well it probably isn't the best book to be reading at a gym. So far this book just makes me very hungry. But I am loving the book and I do enjoying reading it. It does a good job of filling up my time with something to do.

I'm still waiting on a call from REI about a job. Last Saturday I went in for an interview with the retail supervisor. I couldn't have imagined a better interview! It was fabulous! She first asked me specific questions about my sales experience and then graded my response to 'what if' scenarios. We ended up talking about a long term commitment to REI. She shared with me her experiences working with the company and some of the benefits REI provided to their employees. We talked about my plans to go to business school and how REI has tuition reimbursement programs for their employees searching out a business degree! We talked about the possibility of transferring to a store in Salt Lake City when I can afford to go down for school. She told me about the dozens of stores she's helped open and the people she was able to meet. So far everything I have heard about this job seems wonderful. It pays less than my last job for now, but I can see long term results coming from this. She told me that I'd hear from her this week sometime letting me know if I got the job or if I didn't, but she wouldn't leave me hanging with no response. She was so nice and I am getting so anxious! I tried keeping myself busy today but I still watched my phone praying for it to ring with good news...  Hopefully tomorrow it will. Megan and I plan on sushi and costco chocolate cake to celebrate when I get the job... or to cheer me up if I don't... Lets hope for the first. I don't like being broke.