Mine hits 5000 and it's all blurry pics of my dog.

Did you notice the taste difference right away or did it take a few loaves? I went the same route about two years ago and honestly the fresh cracked grain thing is no joke, my rye bread went from good to something people actually ask me to bring to parties. Yeah the arm workout is real, I do about ten minutes for a boule and my right shoulder is way stronger than my left now. The noise thing matters more than people admit too, I can mill at 5:30 in the morning without waking the whole house up. Stick with it, the first month is the hardest and then you stop even thinking about the electric one.

Get what you mean about the soul part. I still pull out the dough by hand when I bake for my kid's birthday or holidays, even though my mixer sits right there on the counter. Something about feeling the dough come together under your palms, that little bit of resistance when it starts to tighten up, you just don't get that standing there watching a hook spin around. The mixer makes good bread, no question, but there's a difference between good bread and bread you put yourself into. Sounds like you already know which one you want for the big days.