I finished school about a week ago.  That was a huge relief.  This was a really hard and long semester.  So now that I have a little bit of time, I decided I would actually write something on my blog, since I haven't touched it since Christmas break!

Some updates on my ride this summer...About a month ago I decided to switch routes from the South Carolina route to a route that goes through the Southern U.S.  I will be starting in Jacksonville, FL and traveling along the Gulf and building in the Hurricane Katrina disaster area.  I will be ending in San Francisco, CA and I will be starting a couple of weeks later.  My start day is June 10th now.  I am really excited about this route! (not that I wasn't excited about the other) But this one has been growing on me.  We will spend a week building in New Orleans area and ride through places like the Grand Canyon, the Navajo reservation, Lake Tahoe and ride into San Francisco by way of the Golden Gate Bridge.  It's going to be a REALLY hot route because we'll be riding through Arizona in late July and early August, but it will be worth it for the beautiful sights.

I just completed a 350 mile bike ride for Habitat for Humanity of Indiana called Cover Indiana.  It's a ride that I do annually and goes to fund Habitat homes around Indiana.  It was the beginning to my training for the summer.  I got a very sore butt, but had a blast.  My dad rode for the second year in a row (he's obsessed with biking now) and my mom drove the SAG vehicle and did a wonderful job of picking up broken bikes and people.  She learned the key to being the best SAG driver is to have the most bananas in the back of your van :) We had some crazy days, riding through thunderstorms and then riding through waist deep water the next day (but that was my fault because I decided to not take the new route that was planned around the flooding!)  It was the best adventure of the week though.  If I can figure out how to post pictures on here I will put up some of the pictures from the ride.  

Bike and Build: The Cause...

Bike and Build is a non profit organization that brings together college age students to raise awareness for affordable housing issues through creative means.  We will be biking across the United States this summer form South Carolina to Santa Cruz, CA.  There will be approximately 10 days that we will trade our bikes for hammers to build with the communities that we will be passing through.  We will be building with organization such as Habitat for Humanity and Rebuilding Together.  In Colorado Springs our group will be stopping there for a week to build an entire house from the ground up.  Bike and Build provides students with the opportunity to learn and educate about the affordable housing issues in our nation.

So, what's the affordable housing issue?

        The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) considers housing to be affordable to a low-income family as long as the cost of housing does not exceed 30% of the families income.  In 1997, 3 million low to moderate income working  families spent more than half of their income on housing.  By 2001 this number had jumped to 4.8 million - a 67% increase.  Over time people are not making enough each year to keeping pace with rising living costs.  

        One of the most basic problems facing low income families is that the federal minimum wage is too low to afford even a one bedroom apartment at the local Fair Market Rent.  The minimum wage was created in 1938, and only in July 2008 was it increased from $5.85 to $7.35.  The other issue with the minimum wage is that it is not indexed with inflation.  This means that as the cost of food, fuel, and rent rise each year, the minimum wage is not increased unless Congress votes to do so.  Despite states' efforts, there is no county in the country where an individual can work 40 hours per week at the minimum wage and afford even a one-bedroom apartment at the local FMR.  

        Other affordable housing issues besides cost burdens include physical inadequacy and overcrowding.  Studies have shown that children in overcrowded home situations are much less likely to complete their homework than are students who have adequate homes.  Having enough space promotes healthy relationships among family members.  

        It is the stability and protection of a home that Bike and Build is striving to help construct in communities across America.  Along the way the riders will be learning from the communities we stop at about how they deal with this problem and we will also be educating other communities that we stop in.  We are simply striving to spread awareness about this problem and well as actively try to help it.  This is just one of the many creative ways people are helping with this problem across the U.S.