Today on the blog we’ve got Jeremy Olson. Jeremy has been working at Pederson Seed and Services since May of 2011 and has gotten to see, and drive some of the changes in Pederson Seed over the last 8 years. Jeremy grew up in the area and is a familiar face to many of you, but hopefully this blog post will answer some questions that you may not even know about him after all these years! Jeremy resides near Everest with his wife Sarah, and 3.5 year old son Graham. Welcome to the blog, Jeremy!
Rachel Stevens: What drew you to Pederson Seed originally? And how has PSS changed since?
Jeremy Olson: What drew me to Pederson Seed originally was a family owned seed and agronomy driven business that was growing and had a lot of growing farmers and young operators that had come back to the area.
How has it changed? I don’t think it has changed a whole lot. We’ve gained a lot of agronomy customers and done a lot of things on the technology and agronomy end that has really helped our growers bottom line. I really appreciated that about PSS.
RS: Is there any one technology that you thing has changed the most since you’ve worked here?
JO: I would say the variable rate seeding side of it. When I started here, we were doing essentially nothing with variable rate seeding and you could probably even include the fertilizer side in that too. The variable rate technology has really taken off immensely. That really what I do the majority of the year.
RS: What is your favorite part about working for PSS?
JO: My favorite part is that it’s kind of a family-oriented place that I can bring Graham in and everyone is really open to kids and all of that. Just really understanding and I think that’s one of the best things about this place.
RS: The rest of these questions are so we can get to know the “non-work Jeremy” a little better. Are you messy or organized?
JO: My wife would say that I’m messy. I don’t like to use file folders and as you can see on my desk here I’ve got a lot of random papers of notes that I really need to file better. I do probably lean a little more towards the messy side.
RS: If given a chance, who would you like to be for a day?
JO: I would like to be a WW2 general for a day. I think it would be interesting to see what they had to go through and the processes. Not necessarily be on the front lines but get to experience some of those things. Maybe someone like Dwight D. Eisenhower when he was overseas. Just to understand a little bit more about that history. I think it would be neat to experience what they had to go through and what they had to do.
RS: What do you do for fun?
JO: I like to garden, believe it or not. We’ve got a big garden every year. I also like to boat during the summer and most recently camp. Got a camper to start doing more of that. I also like to golf with my friends and family. In the fall I like to hunt. Right now, I mainly just deer hunt. I don’t get in to a lot of the other hunting. I do like deer hunting. I’d like to get in to more archery hunting but the timeline never seems to work with my schedule.
RS: What is your favorite sport?
JO: My favorite sport use to be basketball, but now I enjoy playing golf more. Watching wise, I still prefer basketball. College basketball is my favorite thing to watch. My favorite teams are KU and K-State equally. I’m one of those guys. I don’t really care who wins I just like good basketball. I try to watch both of them equally and keep up with what’s going on.
RS: Do you watch golf? Are you one of those people?
JO: I do! I used to watch a lot more, but anymore I just catch the majors. The four golf majors.
RS: Do you have any golfers you follow more than others?
JO: Oh, probably Bubba Watson and Phil Mickelson because they are left handers like I am.
RS: What is the one food you cannot resist?
JO: Tacos. Anything Mexican related. Really anything tacos. Soup, salad, bowls.
RS: What food do you enjoy making with your family the most?
JO: We make something called lefse. That’s a Norwegian tradition that we have always done with the Olson family. I enjoy getting our close family together to make lefse.
RS: So, what is lefse?
JO: Lefse is a Norwegian fry bread. It’s has flour, sugar and water in it basically. They call it a “Norwegian necessity.” We try and do it every year on Thanksgiving or the day after Thanksgiving. Its always a nice family get together and everyone pitches in.
RS: So, has Graham got involved with it yet?
JO: Yeah, he’s started helping a little bit last year. But its one of those things where he helps with it for about 15 minutes and then wants to go do something else.
RS: What is your biggest pet peeve?
JO: I’m gonna say, when you go to a restaurant and a husband and wife are across the table from one another and they are both on their phones just texting and that is all they do the whole time they are sitting there. They don’t actually talk to one another. Its one thing to check a message and then put your phone away. But so often when you go out, you see people just sitting there not interacting with each other. Why did you even go out to eat? It’s fairly common to see when you go out anymore. Sarah and I have made it a goal that will not happen to us. To just be more intentional about how we use our phones around each other.
RS: If you could witness any historical event, what would you want to see?
JO: Probably goes along with who I would want to be for a day, the WW2 era. You always hear about all the things that went on in your classes but if you actually witnessed some of the shocking events that happened, you know, something like D-Day or Pearl Harbor, any of those and saw what they actually went through, I think that would really just change your perspective.
RS: What TV show or movie are you a little embarrassed to admit you love?
JO: Big Bang Theory. Probably not the typical guy show. Sarah and I have been through all the seasons. We try and keep up with it. Oh, and also….Gilmore Girls. Sarah has roped me into watching some of those on Netflix.
RS: What shows are you and Sarah currently watching?
JO: Alaska, the Last Frontier is one. We also watch The Voice every year. Another season is going to start up here soon.
RS: What was your favorite book or toy as a child?
JO: I had this stuffed animal bear that was about a 3 foot tall bear that I had to have. I carried it around with me up until probably five or six years old probably.
RS: So, does Graham have anything like that?
JO: Yeah, he’s got a couple big bears. He’s into stuffed animals now. And he’s also in to Harry Potter stuff now. He’s got Harry Potter Legos and now he wants the stuffed animal characters from there too. He’s got Hedwig the Owl. We also read him the kids’ version of Harry Potter that has pictures. They’ve come out with the first three books as kids versions. The real books might be a little too intense for him yet, but he really enjoys the kid’s versions we read him. That’s kind of his thing right now. That and Legos.
RS: Okay, last question. Would you rather be a tiny elephant or a giant hamster?
JO: Probably a tiny elephant.
RS: Well its unanimous so far. Everyone wants to be the elephant. Why would you want to be the elephant?
JO: It's probably cute, I guess? I think of it like the little elephant off of Jungle Book.
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