Update

So, since the last post... I have made considerable progress on fundraising. I suppose most importantly, I got my letters sent out. 53 of them. It took me 6.5 hours from 3 to 9:30 AM, but I did it. Although, after hearing from other members, I don't think that's nearly enough letters. I'm kind of at a loss as to who else to send letters to. But, when I go up to Grapevine over the winter break, I plan on going up to the high school and giving some letters to my former teachers and maybe some administrators. Also, I have a dentist's appointment over the break, so I think I'll take a few letters with me there as well. I'm not sure if anyone even reads this, but if they do and they have ideas as to who to send letters to, please share them. Hopefully I will be hearing from those people who received my letters soon.

But the more exciting news is that I have collected two donations from people here in Austin already, from Steffi and Danielle, so that is awesome and I am very grateful to them for that. Doing something like this kind of revives your faith in people seeing the generosity of some people. I also have at least 6 other people who have told me they plan on donating, so I just need to hit them up for that and what not. Yay!

The exciting news doesn't end there. I talked to a friend of the family in Seattle who is a published author and has a new book coming out soon, and she said she would donate part of the proceeds of the book to my funds! That is one of the coolest things I have ever heard! I'm so amazed! She also has many friends and business contacts in Washington who she said she would share my letter with and what not, so her help should be a great asset in my fundraising campaign.

So, as of now, I sit right at about $130 in donations, but I am confident that I will reach the $4,000 mark by the time we leave. I hope to raise at least $5,000. However, this $1,000 deadline that is quickly approaching may not be so easy. I am pretty sure I will end up having to front the money I lack myself. But, with the news I've shared with you, it shouldn't take long to get that money back. Things are going well.

Oh yes, and one last tidbit of exciting information: Yesterday, I got fitted, er "pre-fitted" I suppose for my bike! Basically, they took my helmet and shoe size, measured my inseam and got an idea of what size bike I will need. I was super excited about it, just the fact that it's another step closer to getting a bike and going to Alaska, so I was pretty nervous, so I probably seemed like a total goon to the guys who measured me. I couldn't even remember what size my mountain bike is, so I probably seemed like a total idiot to the guys. Oh, and I've been wearing a size 14 shoe for some 5 years now, but when they measured my foot, they said I had a size 13 foot... So I'm starting to wonder if my feet have shrunk, if that's even possible. But I do know that my achilles tendon has been hurting me on and off this semester, as well as my feet in general, which hasn't happened to this extent before. I read that a lot of those problems can come from ill-fitting shoes, so I may have to look into this whole issue. But beyond that, the guys probably thought I was an idiot for fumbling my words, not knowing what size bike I have and not even knowing my shoe size. Gah, it was embarrassing. But, I can't wait to get my bike!! That is all for now.

Peace and Love,
TremblingTito