Accomplishing something

We're going to start this week of blogs with a bang.  No, not an Emeril Laggase bang, but an "Oh I'm super excited to read this blog because it's Jeremy's blog" bang!

It was two weeks ago that I was talking with one of my friends about my wild and crazy adventures.  I was informing her that I was attending Weber State.  She looked at me kind of befuddled and asked, "What are you doing now?".  This took me back a bit.  I told her that I eventually planned on opening a little cafe/restaurant but right now I needed something to ground me.  I also needed something to help me make the money that I needed to start this restaurant.  I couldn't however shake that conversation off of my back.  It was like a very uncomfortable monkey had attached itself to me and wouldn't leave.  It was grooming through my brain eating everything that kept me from feeling at peace and forgetting what I had spoken to this friend about.  I kept having these strange thoughts pop into my head.  Among these were the thoughts- what am I doing with my life, why am I again studying at another University, and the clicker, what have I actually accomplished since I left the dungeons of Weber High School.  It seemed that no sooner did I start having these thoughts that I started to notice all of these people I went to school with and all of the amazing things that they were doing.  Instead of becoming severely depressed, I decided to write a list of all that I have accomplished in the last nine years.  So, for better or worse, the following is a list of the most important things that I have accomplished (or that I feel are accomplishments), in the past nine years.

1. On February 28 2009, I took my then girlfriend on a spectacular date.  We went down to Salt Lake and built our very first child out of cotton and fir.  We named him Alex.  He came out brown and very furry.  That's how I knew he was mine.  We then went out to eat.  We then drove and bought ice creme and went to the park that we had dedicated as the park we fell in love with each at.  We ate our ice creme and talked.  I had brought my little Ipod and told her to put one of the earbuds in her ear.  We listened to "Everything" by Lifehouse and danced in the snow(we were still in the winter).  I told her to close her eyes as the song was ending and I let go.  When it ended I had her open her eyes and I was on one knee.  I asked her to marry me.  What makes this an accomplishment is that she said yes.  Melissa and I got married a few months later but my biggest accomplishment in the last nine years is that she said yes that winter night!



2.  After a few losses Melissa and I decided that we were going to wait to have children.  It was heartbreaking and we didn't want to risk going through the pain again.  A few weeks after making that decision we found out that Melissa was expecting.  Paige Adyson was born on December 13.  Almost two years later, we decided that we were ready to try for another one.  We found out that Melissa was expecting again but there were a lot of complications and the doctor wanted to terminate the pregnancy.  Melissa was really strong and said that she had such a good feeling and didn't want to do that.  Parker Alexander was born nine months later on June 30.  My posterity is such a huge accomplishment in my life.  I see myself in their eyes.  They light up my life and I love teaching them and helping them learn about the world around them.

3.  When I finished High School I received a Scholarship to attend Culinary Arts school.  Over the past few years I had developed a passion for food and cooking.  I decided to accept the offer and attend.  Two years ago, I decided that the education that I received at the culinary school I went to wasn't enough for me, so I went back to another one.  I now have a certification that allows me to work at any restaurant, high class or...low class?(is that the word) in the United States(not that anyone would hire me, I haven't worked a day in a restaurant in my life).  That's what I was doing two years ago when I was down in Orem.  I wasn't sitting on my butt having arousing games of thumb wars with my wife.  I was learning and growing.  Although, thumb wars with Mrs. Melissa Ann can be quite intriguing...she cheats!

4.  I've lived in both Puerto Rico and California.  It was for 13 months, and it was for an LDS mission.  But, I learned so much and I accomplished so many amazing and great things.  I helped so many people and I made friends that are lifelong and eternal(wow I'm so Mormon). 

5.  In the past 9 years I've been to the following places: Mexico, the Dominican Republic, I went back to Puerto Rico twice, I've been to California three times since I live there.  I'm also going to New York in two days to watch my brother get married.  That might not seem a lot to some of the readers of this blog, especially those who travel to South Africa every year, but for me that is a lot and quite an accomplishment.

6.  I've learned to read, write, and speak fluent Spanish.

7.  I moved out of my parents house and up to Logan, UT.  I loved Logan.  It was the first time that I felt grown up.  I was out on my own.  I loved Utah State University and would still be attending, or would have gone back, had it not been for the D-bag who was extremely rude to me(that is a story for another time).  I felt at home in Logan.  It has this feeling about it that welcomes all to it.  I met some incredible people during my time in Logan and did some amazing things. 

8.  This one is more ridiculous than anything but I kind of feel accomplished by it simply because I lived in the same place for nineteen years of my life.  I lived in three different apartments in Logan.  I then moved to a basement apartment in Ogden.  I then moved down to Orem and lived there for a year.  I even rented an apartment in Arizona for a day or two.  I then moved to Idaho so that Melissa could finish school and now I'm back in Ogden. 

9.  I took a course to get my phlebotomy license.  I did this shortly before I left Logan.  I'm now a phlebotomist.  If you don't know what that means, I can draw your blood, examine your urine, and take poo and semen samples.  Now, that's the high life.

After thinking about all of these for a few weeks, I've come to the realization that I've accomplished a lot in the past few years.  Yeah, it's taken me a little longer to finish my degree than others, but I got married, had two kids, and explored the Caribbean, Mexico, and California.  I went to Culinary School and received a license to take peoples blood.  I learned a language other than my own and moved around a lot.  Above all, I drank a lot of energy drinks.  That's the biggest accomplishment of them all.

-J.Scott-