The Month of April

You think after I post about how I am going to update my blog every day, I wouldn't wait almost a month before posting again... So much for keeping you up to date on my life:)

So that got me thinking.. I decided I will do a little Q & A. If you, yes that includes you (the individual who is currently reading this), have ANYTHING you would like to know about me, my life, my friends, etc... Please comment on this post with your question and I will answer each question. Don't be lame and assume you already know everything about me. I know for a fact there are atleast 12 "secrets" that not a soul knows that I wouldn't mind sharing (if you ask..). So get thinking and asking!

ALSO- HUGE FAVOR HERE:
If you, or anyone you know, is engaged and is planning on registering at Bed, Bath and Beyond (and hasn't already done so) PLEASE let me know. Two of my good friends (who are currently engaged) get a bonus if people say the were referred by them. So please do them a favor and help them out. Let me know if you are interested in being the best person ever.

You are reading this for an update on my life, right? Well, I'd say I am engaged, but no one would believe it:) So I won't lie, i'll just give the hard facts..

What have I done since April 5th? Well, look at these pictures and see!

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them.

Me, Kirby, and Emily (Yes, I know Kirby Heyborne.)

Me and Kirb:) He always makes my day.. Seeing him is the best.

Hanging with Emily... She is asian.

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them.

Elijah, Enoch, Me, Seara ... Janae and Sam's Kids... They are ADORABLE.

Smith Cousin Reunion @ Ole's Cabin!
This + natalie were the people who attended.

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them.

Skj is kind of the best.

I took a break on my way back from heber to take pictures of the mountains..
I guess I got a little distracted :)

I won "Front Row Fanatics" tickets to the Men's Volleyball game.
We got to sit ON the court... Best seats ever!

Me, and Kelly! It was her birthday!

I don't know how she managed to make that face...

Brianna's Ring Ceremony/Reception:)

Bethany left.... :(

Lorin, Kaylee, Me hangin @ their raintree apt

Enoch+Me ... he is THE cutest kid ever.

Me and Elijah... Now, he is a keeper:)

Me and the "same age cousins" @ Nat's bridal shower

yes, we can be normal too.

(just thought this was precious)

me and the bride and groom - to be.

rachel's bridal shower/girl's night!



IN addition to these wonderful events:

1) I had finals week... that was fun.. Oh! Speaking of finals.. I got my grades for Winter semester. Even missing 1/3 of the semester from the surgery, I still managed to get the following grades:
- Stats 221 :: B
- Calc 112 :: B+!!!
- New Testament 2 :: B
- ASL 102 :: A- !

How wonderful is that!? I almost cried when I saw the B+ in calc, especially since I was retaking the class, and last time I took it I got a C-... Woot!

2) I went to an AMAZING show at the Front Line Grille in SLC where Jesse (of j.wride) had a solo show. He was incredible. It was nice to hear him play solo because he really does have some amazing talent that sometimes gets blended into j.wride when they all play. Honestly, I wish more people could have come to the show. He did a great job.

3) I tagged along with j.wride as they filmed for their music video. Be on the look out, j.wride is gonna knock you off your feet:) Apparently I am socially awkward... Sad day.

4) I got a new calling... Service committee, I just got booted from visiting teaching supervisor. I've had that calling for almost a year now...

5) ATTENTION: If you live in or near Provo, on May 7th j.wride is having an INCREDIBLE concert where they will be premiering their new music (coming out on their new cd in a month or so). It's gonna be siiiick. Let me know if you wanna come along. This is not something you'll wanna miss. Their new music is legit.


Anyways, that's all from this teenage drama queen. More confessions to come.

- J

I know... I know...

I go from posting once in a month to posting twice in a day... But I need some help. Yes, your help. So please (after reading this) comment on the post and give me an answer and your reasoning.

I have a dilemma. I can not decide whether to stay or go. Aka, whether to reside in Provo for the spring/summer, or head back to VA. There are pros and cons to both (below are listed some of each).

STAY IN PROVO
Pros:
- Spring/summer is SUPER fun in Provo
- I'd probably be guaranteed a job (could get between 20-40 hrs hopefully)
- Would be around friends from my ward the past 10 months
- Could be around cute boys;)
- Be around to support and help out j.wride
- Continue to work on creating stable relationships with friends out here
Cons:
- Stuck in the same routine
- Not have support of family
- Miss my good friend's wedding in NC this summer

GO HOME TO VA
Pros:
- Be around my family (including nat's wedding and katie's baby)
- Get out of this small town and go to a more familar place
- Have the road trip of a life time!
- Have a better healing process post-surgery with help of family
- See the new Twilight movie with Keva:)
- Finally have some down time/no pressure time
- Get some ASL classes taken at NOVA
Cons:
- I'd miss my friends in UT
- I'm used to things here and the weird utah ways
- I might not get a job
- I'd be living in a house with my youngest and oldest sister
(If you know us... you know that's asking for trouble.)


Here's the deal... You might look at this list and be like "DUH!" but I can't see the "duh" in this, so if you do, make your vote and help me out. I'm getting no clear answer either way, and i'm feeling uneasy about both. So PLEASE give me your advice or suggestions and help me out a little.

Thank you so much, and I'd really appreciate any of your insights into the matter.

- J


p.s. The sooner your comment/suggestion, the better. So get some helping-hands points and comment... Thanks:)

I'm the Worst... :)

I used to be obsessed with blogging and informing the world of my life, but I haven't been lately. For some reason there is this weird satisfaction with posting your life online and having others read and comment about it.. I know I am weird, but I enjoy it:) I watched an episode of the tv show 'House' last week and there was this lady who posted every detail of her life on her blog. Readers would post comments and agree/disagree with certain situations or fights with her husband or medical decisions. Now, I am not that insane. I am pretty sure you'd get bored if I put that much detail out there, haha. But, I do enjoy posting more of my life. Therefore, I am going think about posting daily events on here instead of bi-weekly summaries. (If you get emails of my blog and no longer wish to get them, no worries, just let me know, and I'll take you off the list.)

So the past couple days. I went to a j.wride concert at Muse Music Cafe (you know how much I love that place). J.wride was amazing as always, and if you haven't heard them yet, go to facebook.com/jwridemusic or myspace.com/jwridemusic and take a listen. It will be well worth your time... In fact your life might just be a little bit better if you do.

And, JeanMarie Stewart bought an italian soda and shared it with me. Delicious.



The concert was rather fantastic, especially since Court Eccles has been added in as the bass player. He seriously is INCREDIBLE. He is one of the most talented musicians I have ever known. And, it's kind of fun to have him around. I knew him back in high school and its good to have someone to chat with about my "past life". Plus, he's a real chill guy, a good friend.



Afterwards I went with Nate, Court and Jesse to Denny's (we did this the week before too), and just hung out and talked. It was fun, I really enjoy spending time with the guys. Plus, there's something fun about hanging out at midnight:) They are really great guys. (Hence my facebook status exclaiming j.wride is my ecstasy.)

This up coming weekend they will be playing at SUU, so if you're around- check them out.

This past weekend was general conference, Elder Holland's talks are always good. And I heard Elder Oaks' talk in Priesthood session was good too. If you wanna know my fav's, feel free to ask. Between sessions and before and after I spent the weekend doing homework, trying to catch up. I went through a chapter of calc problems, read some in the new testament, worked on some stats, and caught up a lot in my ASL class. And yet with how much i've accomplished, it's amazing how much I still have to do.... JeanMarie came over today and helped me a ton with calc. Thanks to her, I got more accomplished than I ever would have on my own. She's amazing. I seriously took her forgranted all these years and a big shout out to my pal JeanMarie for sticking by me and always being there to help and support me. If you know this girl, and you know me, you know how amazing she is, and how crappy I've treated her. She never deserved that..

Well... here's highlights from the past couple weeks of non-blogging... enjoy:







































































Anyways, that's all from this teenage drama queen. More confessions to come.

- J

j.wride!

Friends and followers:

If you have a facebook, go to www.facebook.com/jwridemusic
and become a fan!
They are good friends of mine, and are an AMAZING talent.
Take a listen, you'll know what I mean.

Thanks!
- J

"When you can't have what you want, it's time to start wanting what you have."

This week I attended almost all of my classes. I missed one calc lab, and then two classes on Friday (story of why is coming later). So again, progress! Each week I can't believe how far I have come from Feb 17 when I lost all use of my fantastic right arm. I can now write legibly with my left hand, and write in cursive (that was a toughy), but am still working on learning to write those infinity signs you have to use all the time in calc. By the time I get it, I'll probably be able to switch to my right arm again. Lame, I know.

Seth Brunner, Me, Josh Flores

This week was nothing special, at all. I worked on getting caught up more, that was... fun? Friday night I stayed in and studied and did homework.. Then Saturday woke up early for cleaning checks and studying (for a STATS 221 test that everyone else took 3 weeks ago when I was all surgified). Josh drove me to the test and I was like.. hmm.. I'll probably get a 40. Mother said to aim high, reach for the stars, and get a 42. I was like, okay, doable. Seth helped me study and review all the material I either missed or didn't understand completely, and so there I went. When I walked out of the test, I look up where the scores were and saw a certain number. I was wondering if I had accidently looked up my ssn instead of my byu id #, but after checking seriously like 8 times.. I got an...


88%

How great is that?! An 88! Last stats test (that I actually was healthy, and not broken, and attended class for, I got an 83. And I got an 88!) That means that my grade in this class is 100% on homeworks, and an average of 85% on tests. I am seriously so lucky! Best day ever! Josh and I went back to Alta to celebrate and ate nice big bowls of ice cream. It was great.

Last night I did more homework, studying, and planned a sunday school lesson. BUT I had the opportunity to go to Bethany Weiler's "Pi" day party and eat some pie while she helped me with Stats. She made 4 pies, they were delicious! I also had the pleasure of meeting Rani's "friend"/friend Bayden (from her mission). He was great. I'm a fan. p.s. I talked on the phone with another kid from their mission (Josh) and had a jolly ol' time. Thanks for the chattin Rani+Bayden+Josh.

Oh! (For those who already read this and noticed I posted without telling the story I said I would share.. my bad.) So Thursday night I had my shoulder immobilizer off as I was getting ready for bed and I tripped over some chords in my room and lost my balance. Yes cringe if you know where I'm going with this. I tripped and caught myself with my right arm (the one that is all broked) and then it couldn't hold me up because it hasn't healed yet, so I fell and landed right on the shoulder. As soon as I hit the ground I just started bawling. It hurt so bad! Up until 4 weeks, if something like that happens, the surgery may need to be redone. So please keep me in your prayers, that the shoulder will continue to heal, that I don't have to go through this all over again :/

Well, that's it. Sorry I have no other cool stories. But, hey! That's life:) And that's MY life.

Anyways- that's all from this teenage drama queen. More confessions to come.

- J


(Oh! And a shout out to Josh for always being willing to drive me around (since I can't drive yet), I really appreciate it!)

Official Announcement

Road Trip!

I am officially announcing my road trip this summer from p-town, Utah to Washington, D.C.

After the winter 2010 semester concludes at BYU, I will be driving over 30 hours, over 2ooo miles, across the country back to my hometown, where I will be residing for 8 months. Yes, 8 months. And yes, I am super excited to be able to have my car in D.C. where I will be. It will be great to have some independence and my glorious stick shift. Maybe I'll even teach molly how to drive stick. She'd hate it :)

Anyways, you're hearing it from me. It's official. I will be in VA at least from May until December. And we'll see from there. So if you're an east coaster, I'm coming baaack! And if you're a west coaster, well, you better miss me!

Anyways- that's all from this teenage drama queen. More confessions to come.

- J

“Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today.”

This week was tough, I'm not going to lie. Heading back to school was super hard. I didn't make it to all my classes, but I did make it to 7/12.. That's progress for sure. I wish I could have gone to more, but I'm trying, so that's really all I can do. Problem is, I'm not struggling making up the material, I'm struggling making up the written homework. Online homework I am able to get 60% of the time, but written homework takes so much longer. Especially since I have to do it left handed, and I am most definitely right handed. If anyone has any tips... please help me!

So besides drowning in school... I had a rather excellent weekend!

Thursday I went on a date with a boy in my ward Tyler. He is from Cottonwood Heights (salt lake area). We went to subzero! (His first time.) And we just sat there, ate our delicious ice cream, and talked. It wasn't a super intense date, but I had a really great time, seriously! He's an amazing guy.

Friday I went on a date with Michael Slawson, who was willing to go with me, so I could double with Emily the Asian, and her new boy toy Brayden. We went to California Pizza Kitchen (where I used the gift card my gracious mother gave me)! We had a great time, lots of delicious food, Italian sodas, and laughter.

Kenny and Natalie

Then afterwards, we went to Spark Restaurant Lounge for drinks where we met up with Natalie and Kenny, and Christine and Bryan. We mostly all got the double berry martini which is to die for:) Except Em/Brayden who got a Shirley Temple. We loved that cotton candy on top. Brayden, Em and I shared each other's drinks. I had a great time, and since I had a gift card for Spark too, I paid for Bryan/Christine's, and Natalie/Kenny's drinks. I was so gracious that they came with. It was like my people meeting my "family".. haha.

Saturday I played Settlers with a few friends in the ward: Moises, Spencer, and, Natalie L. I almost won, and then out of no where Moi was like BAM, and won the game.

Saturday night I went to a benefit concert for Clark Kimble who was diagnosed with a fulminant hepatic failure, a life-threatening liver disease, at Muse Music Cafe. Four different groups performed. First, Ask for the Future. They were the only band I had never heard before, and they unfortunately had one of their band members pass away the night before. But they were incredible. I loved their sound, their music. After which was a band I love, Double or Nothing. My friend Nate Smeding is the drummer, and man oh man, he is incredible. Then followed Nate Baldwin and The Sound. Lastly, was j.wride. And you all know how much I love j.wride. They were amazing as always, but this time had a little bit different of a sound. Garrett was back! And he played the electric guitar, and Court Eccles (from Springfield, VA) joined the band and now plays the bass. Court is seriously amazing. His talent is far more experienced than anyone else I know. As Jesse said, "No human should be able to do that".

Double or Nothing
(Nate is in the back.)

Me, Nate, Melissa

Jesse, Court, Me

Jesse, Court, Me

(j.wride)
Garrett, Austin, Court, Jesse

I was able to talk to some amazing people last night. Melissa Barnes met me there and hung out with me:) I also was able to talk to one of Jesse's best friends Brittney who is actually in Jon(my cousin)'s ward. She is a pretty great girl, and we have a lot in common. I met this guy named Ben, who actually worked at the cafe. And he was hilarious. I think I talked to him for 2 hours.. I was a fan. I also met a kid named Travis, who is in the band Empirates, and he played some for us, and he has got some talent! Later on, I met Ben's cousin Parker, who Melissa actually knew from freshman year, and beyond. Pretty much the night wasn't anything that special, but ended up one of the most amazing nights. I just had such an amazing time.

So thanks to all those who made this week possible. And thank you to all those who have driven me around because I still can't drive myself, lol. Seriously, thanks!

Anyways- that's all from this teenage drama queen. More confessions to come.

- J

Progress is Possible.

I would like to state the accomplishments I have reached this past week:
- I went out in public for the first time since my surgery.
- I showered/bathed all by myself.
- I dressed myself for the first time.
- I am almost able to sleep through the night.
- I am pretty much off percoset.
- I used my right arm to type this blog post (supposedly its healthy to do so).

What a week I would say!

Although... I am still in quite a bit of pain, and am up to missing 3 weeks of school now. Will I ever catch up?! I need you to keep me in your prayer now more than ever... This is a struggle I am drowning dealing with. It is hard knowing I am missing work (aka not making any money), not attending school (aka failing school), and missing out on a lot of life's events...

I did attend one event I would like to share this week:

Friday night was our ward's valentine's formal event. We were each paired with someone from our ward. I was paired with Shey (mentioned in an earlier post). We kind of doubled with his cousin and another girl in my ward. He picked me up, crippled and all. I went to the dinner and ate two large plates of salad, roll, and lasagna. We chatted, I caught up with some people in the ward I hadn't seen in a while, and life was good. (Besides the point that I was dying in pain, even taking a lot of pain meds.) Then there was the "dance" part. Seeing as I only had one arm, dancing was awkward. So we got our picture taken, and we had so much fun doing that- making random/weird poses and just being insane! Then we played some games in the game room. Afterwhich we went to the dance for a little bit. Some friends dedicated a song as a "one armed dance" because I only had one arm of course.. and I had a few slow dances with Shey. Of course it was a little awkward being one armed and having the brace/sling on and everything, but he was such a good sport and danced with me anyways :) What a champ. So yes, I was in a lot a lot a lot of pain, but yes, I had a lot of much needed fun. So thank you Shey- for going with a cripple, in pain, to a dance, where I may have been a lame date and danced awkward, but for still making it an unforgettable evening.

Anyways- not much else has happened seeing as all I do all day is sleep, watch movies, and eat... Unless you can count watching 'Forever Strong' 9 times doing "something".

Thanks for reading, feel free to comment on my lame life...

Anyways- that's all from this teenage drama queen. More confessions to come.

- J

Realizing We All Have Regrets.

Sometimes it is as if I am the only person in the world. I feel so lost, so lonely, and I wonder where my life is taking me. This surgery has really impacted my life. As I sit on the couch in the home where I am healing, I lay there just thinking. I wonder why I chose to cheat on a test, kiss a certain boy, skip school, quit my swim team, ruin a precious friendship, hurt those I love. I recently have realized I have a lot of regrets. Regrets I didn't know I necessarily had, but have affected my progression. I somehow got stuck on the thought that since I had already screwed up, I was already a screw up. Someone reminded me of something I think I had always known, but never remembered- Just because we have regrets, doesn't mean that if we were given a second chance to "fix" those regrets, that they'd change our future, or make us feel any better about the situations that caused such regret. If I were given a chance to never cheat on a test, how would that change me? If I never had my first kiss with the boy I did, how would that change the way I fall in love? If I had never quit my swim team, what kind of person would I be right now? If I had never made my mother cry, how much stronger could our relationship be?

I've convinced myself that if I open up my heart to friends and family alike, that it increases my chance of getting hurt. I'm scared of getting any more hurt than I already have in my life. Can I even handle one more heartbreak, one more betrayal, one more failed relationship? But then again, can I handle being this lonely?

I can be in a crowd of thousands, a room of hundreds, a house of many, and yet in the midst of strangers, friends, and loved ones, I can still feel completely alone. Maybe I just haven't found someone or something that makes me feel complete. But then again, maybe the hole that we all feel at one point or another doesn't need someone else to fill it. I don't need someone to temporarily sit in that hole until they tear me apart. There is a possibility that I can sit down and really think for a second about my life. Maybe I will realize that even if I was given a second chance, I might not choose to change the ways I "hope" my life would change. It could just be that my life would be the same it is today, but with a little bit of knowledge added onto it.

So take a second and think of how you could live your life if you had no regret. What if you were satisfied with all your decisions, good and bad, just because you knew that life will happen one way or another? How would that change our lives. Maybe it isn't the act of "changing that past" that will change our lives for the better. I believe that it is the act of changing our views of our past and present that will make that change for better. It isn't that we make mistakes, its that we choose different paths for ourselves so that we can learn, grow, experience things. If we never try, we'll never know. If we never know, we'll just have regret. So wouldn't you rather have lived, than never lived at all? Wouldn't you rather have tried and failed, than never tried at all? Wouldn't you rather have experienced life, than watched it pass you by? I feel that there is more risk in regret if we do not experience life as it happens. If we choose to seize the day continually and let our hearts and minds rule our decisions instead of the pressure from our work, friends, and society- wouldn't that be a better way to live?

So maybe at times I am lonely. I may cry. I may wish to be anywhere else but where I am. But then when I look back at my past, I almost laugh at it. Was it really worth the extra few points on that exam? Was it really as good of a kiss as I remember? Would I ever have become the professional/Olympic swimmer I swore I was destined to be? Could I have changed someone else's life, like some certain individuals changed mine?

So why am I scared of the future? Is it because I am still scared of the past? Or is it because I am scared that I might wake up one morning and realize that I might possibly be happy with the way my life is turning out?

If this post doesn't make you think about your life in perspective, I don't know what will. All I know is life is too short to have regrets. And life is short, and I don't want to wake up and realize that twenty years have passed and I am still wishing that I would've tried a little harder in my life and aimed my goals a little higher. People die every day, and we never know when we'll go. So is it worth it to spend our lives wishing we could fix the past when in reality we should be out there living in the present and making our lives the best we possibly can?

I wish you luck friends, family, and strangers. May you make your life everything it should be, and even more than you could ever imagine.

- J


"A few years' experience will convince us that those things which at the time they happened we regarded as our greatest misfortunes have proved our greatest blessings." - George Mason

The Miracle Behind My Surgery

*I just posted this on my other blog, so I apologize if you get this emailed to you twice. Thanks for reading :)

As most of you know, one week ago today I had surgery on my shoulder. Why I bring this up here, why it is good that has happened? Well, for two years I gave suffered with intense shoulder/neck pain. Pain I would say has averaged between 4-7/10 (on pain scale) constantly. I've been to at least 5 doctors- regular doctors, orthopedic specialists, and a rheumatologist. They have all ended up giving me 3 pieces of "advice": 1) try this new/different pain medication, 2) try physical therapy, 3) ... and good luck. So I've been on at least 9 different perscription strength pain meds, received cortisone shots, attended physical therapy for over 16 months, had multiple MRIs an x-rays... and guess what. "Good luck" was the best advice I got for 2 years.

**Note: MRIs and x-rays showed tiny labrum tear, small chip and crack in shoulder joint/bone, tendinitis, bursitis, global instability, extreme immobility, etc. But all of these things a) shouldn't be causing the amount of pain I am in, and b) should've mostly been fixed by all the medications and physical therapy.**

I finally went back to a family doctor expressing my concern that I couldn't even drive, scrape ice off my car, cook, write/type, carry groceries, etc. without extreme pain that was past unbearable. He suggested I go back to my orthopedic specialist and ask that he scope my shoulder. So, one day that next week I did. And after waiting almost 2 hours, and explaining my concern and pain, he agreed. Unfortunately, he made a point to emphasize that it was very unlikely that he would find anything.

Wednesday the 17th, the surgeon went in expecting an unsuccessful exploratory arthoscopy. I was expecting to be in surgery for 30-45 minutes. Turns out...

GOOD HAPPENS!...

The doctor found a very substantial tear. This tear was an almost completely torn ligament, aka the labrum was barely connected, it was pretty much gone and just 'hanging' there. You can research more if you're interested.

Why is this good news? Yes, I may be in pain now, and be in a sling, and have to do more physical therapy. But in 6 months, I am not going to be in constant pain anymore. I'm going to be okay! :) What a miracle it was that he found the tear when he did, and that he was able to fix it when he did. As much as I am in pain, and my life has kind of been put on hold right now, I am so lucky that the doctor found the tear when he did, an was able to fix it. Cause i'm going to get better! I am so fortunate :)

- J

The One Where I Got Surgery... (on my shoulder)

My swollen hand (right)
because it has been hanging in a sling doing nothing for days..

The nasty IV that sat in my arm forever.
It fed me lots of strong medications after surgery.

Me finally back- at the Potts home.
In monstrous amounts of pain.. :(

Surgery Schedule:
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
@ 12:00 am - No more food/liquids
@ 1:30 pm - Sister Becky Potts picks me up and we drive to the Surgical Center
@ 3:45 pm - Finally head back to pre-op and get prepped for surgery
@ 4:00 pm - Received IV and saline (1st "liquid" since previous day)
@ 5:00 pm - Head to surgery?
@ 7:30 (time is fuzzy after they drugged me... hahha) Surgery completed.

* note: Surgery was supposed to be 30-45 min, but instead lasted 90 min.. Turns out my doctor while performing the arthroscope surgery found that the slight tear in my labrum that was shown in the MRI taken Oct 2008, was now a completely torn (barely still connected at all) ligament. The surgeon was able to reconnect it, but dang is it painful!

@ 8:00ish pm - I start to wake up from anesthesia in a lot of pain..

The rest of the evening was filled with pain, vomiting, tears, screaming, coughing, and more pain. By about 10:30 pm they gave me morphine in the IV and I crashed right away. They kept me over night to monitor my pain and vomiting. I was lucky they did so because they were able to keep giving me drugs to ease some of the pain.

Thursday, February 18, 2010
@ 5:30 am - I wake up and the night nurse gives me pain meds, and remove the IV. The nurse spends some very difficult 20 minutes getting me dressed. It was sooo painful and hard to do..
@ 6:00 am - Brother and Sister Potts pick me up from the surgical center and I am released.
@ 6:30 am - I arrive at the Potts Home.

Since being released I sleep probably at least 50% of the time, and am in constant pain. The drugs take only the edge off the pain and I always hurt, no matter the position I am in. The Potts family have been so good to me, taking excellent care of me. I owe them so much.

Last night I was able to take my first bath since surgery. I was a most pitiful and painful bathing experience, but it felt good to be at least somewhat clean.. I felt ridiculous struggling so much just to bathe, but I could barely stand at times..

So I am in an immobilizer shoulder brace for 4-6 weeks on orders not to use my right arm/hand/shoulder at all. And you'd be surprised how much pain I can be in with how little I do, and how much pain meds I am on.. Its ridiculous. Then after those 6 weeks, I will start a rigorous set of physical therapy to gain back strength in my arm and shoulder. Fun fact: after the right arm heals... we get to do it all over again with the left arm :( sad life.. ha ha.

** Note: For all those who may not know what this surgery was indeed for... It was a shoulder arthroscopic surgery. The purpose was to "fix" the constant pain that I have been in the past 2 years. And no, I never did anything to injure or break myself... my body obviously likes to break itself. **

So, if there is one thing you could do (besides sending me flowers... haha, just kidding), please keep me in your prayers, I need all the prayers I can get.

Thank you! Wish me luck on life, and catching up with school and work..

- J


p.s. TYLER POTTS GOT HIS MISSION CALL!! And I totally guessed he was going to England...
so I win! :) He reports May 28, 2010 to the England MTC, and he is serving in the London England Mission. Congratulations Elder ;) I'm SO happy for you :)