On my birthday, I woke up at 5am with Backstreet boys jamming in the hallway and a birthday ode.
There were birthday chalking along the way too!!
Kat was my riding buddy and we had a blast taking photos!! We had a lot of quick stops for photos.
And there were some awesome road signs that fit well with the theme of the summer.
And they saved me the last piece of leftover pizza!! This won't mean anything or even come off as an insult to someone who doesn't understand how hungry and desperate we are for food. When I was eating the pizza, people kept asking, "Where did you get that?!" I also thought it was funny when we were pulling into lunch, Rachael said, "I bet you are ready for a drink," referring to an alcoholic beverage since I was newly 21, and I responded, "YES, I literally cannot wait for Gatorade."
Kat and I left lunch early together since we wanted to get into the host on time. The road we were on was a highway, and the drivers were not very kind. There was one car that came close to swiping Kat so we pulled off and vented out our anger. Little did we know, this is somewhat (sadly) of a normal occasion that we would become numb to by the end of the trip. We ended up being so shaken up that we stopped frequently, and other riders caught up.
We were about 3 miles away from the host, and we met up with some of the riders at Starbucks. There was a wine store next door, and Kat and I decided to go check it out since it was my 21st! It was a Mom and Pop store, and the owner was so kind that he signed on to the Bike and Build website to donate to the cause...he also donated two craft beers since it was my birthday. Kat and I thanked him for his kindness and laughed as we packed the two beers in my camelback pack.
On the way to the host, we got lost. It was our first college campus to be on for the summer so we underestimated finding the exact location on a huge, foreign college campus. But we finally found the University Ministries and of course the host was on a massive hill (this was a trend throughout the summer as well).
And then we arrived at University of South Carolina! So I knew that it was a rule that we could not have alcohol at the host, and I am not much of a rule breaker. Being the ruler follower that I am, I pulled JD aside and told him what happened at the liquor store, and how I had two beers in my backpack. He was taken aback, and said he would have to talk to the other leaders. I had a feeling that I was going to get in trouble...oops.
Meanwhile, Kat and I walked down to the town, and fittingly enough found a dress shop, also called "Oops." I bought a orange/red dress that little would I know would be my main outfit for the summer after rides and even as pjs. This was the time that Kat and I really started to get close. We talked about boys from home, our home life, how our friends perceived us. It was our first deep conversation out of many over the summer. We headed to the USC's gym to take showers. We decided it was best to get rid of the beer so we jokingly drank it in the shower, and cheers to not getting hit by a car (the irony).
We headed back to the host, and JD pulled me aside. He said the leaders had talked, and they decided to van me for breaking the rule about having alcohol at the host. I understood. I had broken the rules, and it was very early on in the trip; they didn't want people walking all over them. I have so many RA friends at home that it gave me the perspective to know that they were just doing their jobs.
As more and more riders found out about me being vanned, some were upset or angry, but I loved Eliza's reaction, "Dude, you planned this so right. You can get drunk tonight, and totally don't have to worry about being hungover in the morning." I thought it was a funny, optimist way to look at it.
We ended up all exploring downtown, and the place Rae had research was not open...so we headed to the ever so trusty Mellow Mushroom since all ages could attend. It was a lot of fun to just sit around and talk to people. We took a group tequila shot which was hilarious seeing everyone's reactions. I ended up sitting down next to Laini, Dan and Curtis and got to talk to them individually for the first time.
I headed home with Laini and Kat, and it was a nice walk back. It was a good birthday with awesome new friends!
We were about 3 miles away from the host, and we met up with some of the riders at Starbucks. There was a wine store next door, and Kat and I decided to go check it out since it was my 21st! It was a Mom and Pop store, and the owner was so kind that he signed on to the Bike and Build website to donate to the cause...he also donated two craft beers since it was my birthday. Kat and I thanked him for his kindness and laughed as we packed the two beers in my camelback pack.
On the way to the host, we got lost. It was our first college campus to be on for the summer so we underestimated finding the exact location on a huge, foreign college campus. But we finally found the University Ministries and of course the host was on a massive hill (this was a trend throughout the summer as well).
And then we arrived at University of South Carolina! So I knew that it was a rule that we could not have alcohol at the host, and I am not much of a rule breaker. Being the ruler follower that I am, I pulled JD aside and told him what happened at the liquor store, and how I had two beers in my backpack. He was taken aback, and said he would have to talk to the other leaders. I had a feeling that I was going to get in trouble...oops.
Meanwhile, Kat and I walked down to the town, and fittingly enough found a dress shop, also called "Oops." I bought a orange/red dress that little would I know would be my main outfit for the summer after rides and even as pjs. This was the time that Kat and I really started to get close. We talked about boys from home, our home life, how our friends perceived us. It was our first deep conversation out of many over the summer. We headed to the USC's gym to take showers. We decided it was best to get rid of the beer so we jokingly drank it in the shower, and cheers to not getting hit by a car (the irony).
We headed back to the host, and JD pulled me aside. He said the leaders had talked, and they decided to van me for breaking the rule about having alcohol at the host. I understood. I had broken the rules, and it was very early on in the trip; they didn't want people walking all over them. I have so many RA friends at home that it gave me the perspective to know that they were just doing their jobs.
As more and more riders found out about me being vanned, some were upset or angry, but I loved Eliza's reaction, "Dude, you planned this so right. You can get drunk tonight, and totally don't have to worry about being hungover in the morning." I thought it was a funny, optimist way to look at it.
We ended up all exploring downtown, and the place Rae had research was not open...so we headed to the ever so trusty Mellow Mushroom since all ages could attend. It was a lot of fun to just sit around and talk to people. We took a group tequila shot which was hilarious seeing everyone's reactions. I ended up sitting down next to Laini, Dan and Curtis and got to talk to them individually for the first time.
I headed home with Laini and Kat, and it was a nice walk back. It was a good birthday with awesome new friends!
Kat doing the splits:
Sarah doing the splits:
And the late night adventure in Colombia!
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