Some pictures from the trip as an addendum.

Start of ride at Boeger place, site of proposed housing.
West Virginia around Blackwater Falls State Park.

Some more photos

Made it to D.C. - can you imagine?

Well, we made it all the way the Nation's Capitol. All three of us. All the birthday comments were enough to psyche me up for the final push. They made me feel supported. Al and Mary Lou took me out for dinner and gave me a present. Now we have the final mission to talk with our legislators.

So far we are scheduled to meet with Roland Burris and another congressman from Illinois. We plan on stopping by Dick Durbin's, Melissa Bean's, Mark Kirk's offices to request a meeting. We are carrying our message all the way to Washington D.C. that supportive housing for individuals living with mental illness in Illinois is both a necessity and a great set of benefits for the individual, the community and the state. Not to mention the nation. As it stands, people in the North and Northwest suburbs of Chicago need to leave their home communities for housing only available elsewhere.

The rezoning request was denied by the village council in Arlington Heights. We have some reorganizing and rethinking to do to prepare another option. We still have our basic message to bring to the legislators.

I guess we could ask anyone for something we might need to remember to mention. Leave a comment if you wish. Maybe you have a personal story. You can email me at maier.nathan@gmail.com. We will be meeting Tuesday with Illinois legislators.

birthday in appalachia

Much fun celebrating my birthday riding for supportive housing. Nestle
d in the mountains.
Hope everyone is doing well in Illinois.
Next trail is either c 'n o toe path or w 'm id path.

A note on the Amish

I assume that if you're reading this, you're not Amish.
But I'd like to express my amazement at their capabilities. I think that it's remarkable that they still use horse and buggy, and horse and plow.
We went up and down some steep hills with an Amish horse and buggy. We met in passing them, a family on a buggy or wagon. There's a sign on the roads to let you know that there will be horse and buggy. But you can also tell Amish farms by the fact that there is no electical lines or telephone lines going to the farmhouses. Some of them are pretty large with alot of acreage to cover.
They wear plain black, brown, and white clothes and the men have beards. The kids play in the front yard. It's remarkable.
-Nate

Day 14 - Friday to Pennsboro

It's been a while since I've been able to get to a computer. Here in Pennsboro, although there is no cell phone service, there is a computer with internet at the B&B.
Can't really tell you accurately how beautiful it is here. It's amazing what you see when you step outside your own town. So far we are just in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, though these hills are not small. We have had a lot of ups and downs... physically. I mean that before we got on the "Rails to Trails," trail at Parkersberg, WV, the roads went up and down. Lots of speed on the downhill, carrying you up as much as possible to the next hill.
You can imagine that we have to keep our bikes in top shape, and so our bodies. Although Mary Lou and Al don't seem to agree, I'm sure we get stronger every day.
We got a donation last night in Parkersberg and the couple was very enthusiastic about our ride. I just hope we can really follow through with the legislators.
BTW, I am wondering about the Town Hall meeting. I haven't heard anything here.

Some Pictures

The "Monstrous" Dam.
The Circus Arts Center in Peru, IN.
The Kankakee River
The Kankakee River