Wind, Light, and Lightning

     Introduction:
     I've been somewhere in the middle of Illinois for a bit now.
     The layer strategy is the way to go. Some days it's sunny and mild, others it's cold and Windy.
     I would never curse the Wind though—I just Love it too much.
     Not that changing weather patterns are interesting to anyone, but I really have to be able to function (that is, ride bike) with just what I'm carrying, along with stay warm (enough) at night to sleep, so the weather is the biggest thing on my mind.
     We are escaping from the cold! We're gonna make it!

     As I'm growing and changing, so will this blog.     I plan on less walls of text and more pictures and such.
     Shorter posts—I'll try to keep it on Mondays but that might not be possible sometimes.
     All sorts of things happen during the week and I learn a lot every day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwnoNVOj1Fs

     I want this blog to be just a few select things that I want to share with all of you.

Just some awesome Chicago Street Art I saw on my way outta the city and into:

The Plains of Illinois:
 

Heading outta Chicago.

See yah later Windy City!

My new tent (:
Much thanks to all my friends in Chicago!
Ross, Jenna, Garret, Trent, Ben, Emily, and Sergio!
I'll definitely be back in town to visit you all again!

 I would later be kicked out of this park by the cops.
Whatever, I was too cold to sleep anyways.

 There is a peaceful beauty to the land here.

I wonder what happened to inspire this totem
I left an offering as well

There are streams
Every now and then

 Little towns
Each with their own sort of small industry
Interspersed by 10-20 miles by all the corn fields.

 Every once in a while
You just find some random thing or structure

 Found a good corn field to set up in.

I cooked rice in my pot that night.
Ghee is a good butter to travel with.

 They haven't got me yet!

 No Lake Privileges.

 Lemon Pepper Parmesan Basil Risotto!
Just a small thank you to the kind folks that housed me.

 I loved these two.
The Light Blue fish reminds me of someone

 Thanks again for everything Tom and Tina!
You are both amazing people and I hope we meet again one day!
Take a trip to New England and try our maple syrup!

 And back on the road.

 I could see these wind generators from afar
So I rode towards them

 I was kinda fascinated by these things.

 Alone ina field.

There's nothing wrong with the Cow's Life
I just want to live differently.
It's my story that I'll look back on and either
regret
or be satisfied with.

Farm Land Sun Set
Time to find a place to camp for the night...

 I made a camp fire under this bridge and smoked my toast!

 Fog rolled in the next day.

 It was a cold morning.

 Suddenly, A Dog appears!

 Her name is Sophie.
I gave her some cheese
and she became my best friend.

 Once I hit 3377 miles I stopped and took a picture.

I made it to The City of Urbana!
Still goin'

The Illinois Corn Fields make Ohio and Indiana look like Jiffy Pop!
I'm just pedaling away out here
Trying to get as South as I can by day
And trying to get as Warm as I can by night.
I wonder how far I'll get in the coming week
I wonder how far I'll get in the coming months.
I'm just a dude on a bike
but it's more than just a bike ride to me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gs069dndIYk
The World is Beautiful!
I hope ya'll get a chance to see it too
If you haven't already.