The Past... meets the Present

So I figured I should tell some about my past.
My name is Jesse David De Groot the 1st. I was made in the United States of America in Southern California by Charles De Groot and Janice Haringa De Groot. I love them very much and am very proud to be there son! I am the last of this immediate clan and I am considered the baby, that would bother most, but it has always made me feel cared for and loved! I have a sister named Colleen, who has been in my life as sort of my conscience at times. Colleen teaches 5th grade. Then there is Tom, who has been a cynical part of my life. I don't exactly what Tom does. He tends to always be criticizing something I have or am doing. Lastly there is Ernest, the oldest of my clan. Ernest takes care of the dairy operation. He has shown me that hard work may be time consuming, but it is necessary for a good life.
I should probably mention that I was born 3 and 1/2 months premature at 2 lbs 2 oz. I was a peanut. Not so much anymore. Being 6'2" and a healthy 180 lbs I have conquered the odds, so to speak.
I have lived in a few different places. As mentioned above I have lived in California for 7 years. From there we moved to Washington state. My dad found wanted to branch off of his dad and start his own dairy farm. I think growing up on a dairy farm has helped me grow to become not so much a peanut anymore. We lived in Washington for about 9 years and then out of the blue, my dad decides we are moving. We moved to the neighbor state of Idaho. The reason being was land was less expensive and we could get away from environmentalists. My family hates environmentalists. I lived in Idaho for 5 yrs. I graduated from Nampa Christian, where my sister now teachs, but she never attended. In and out of the last couple years of Idaho was spent at a private college in Sioux Center, Iowa. I hated it there. Moved back to Idaho for a few months and then moved to the scorching desert of Arizona.
My friend Paul convinced me to move there, that I would love it in AZ. I lived in Arizona for almost 5 years. Those five years were very interesting. I attended cosmetology school for about a year and a half. This is where I dated a girl by the name of Brandy for about 9 months. We got pretty serious and even talked of marriage. Thank God, I never went any further. This is something my parents didn't know. (I apologize, mom and dad for not telling you about this.) Ok, so then after that I moved to the downtown of Phoenix, AZ where I met some amazing people. My friend Dusty was living there and convinced me to move to that area. I knew him from college in Iowa. Dusty and I eventually became roommates along with my friend Jen, who at the time of moving in, I did not know her very well. Turns out, we did not have good roommate chemistry. I am however, still very good friends with both of them. One of my closest friends in Phoenix was Jason Louiselle. I met Jason when he was tattooing at Divinity Tattoo in Scottsdale. He gave me my first tattoo and still is the only one I will go to for my tattoos.
So times got rough in Phoenix and I decided to leave and go to CA for a possible job. When in for three interviews at a Renewable energy company, but did not get the job. I decided to stay in CA. I did not have a job for two or three weeks. Luckily I got a part time job at Pei Wei Asain Diner. Then I stumbled upon Jimbos, Naturally! Jimbos is a natural food grocer and health store. I had this job for almost a year and then go fired.
During the last year of living in CA, and a little of the last part of AZ I had toggled with the Idea of cycling around the U.S. Only now it is more a reality than ever. Having no job, and not being sure of what I want to do. A cycling trip is what I have decided to do. I am going to discover the United States for myself. I plan on getting to know myself way better than I have ever known. I also want to show the importance of buying locally and keeping things here in the U.S. Not only that, but also seeing how and if people still care for others.
I have the most important pieces to the puzzle, myself, my bike, and my drive! I will do this trip! I promise.

Sorry for the scatteredness of all of this. That is me, scatterd. As I continue writing this I will fill you in on more details.

Until next time...