No platitudes, I promise.
How do you talk about yourself without sounding trite or banal? It’s not terribly difficult in person; in fact I seem to be a natural at it and tend to make friends wherever I go. Online, however, is a little more difficult, because you can’t see my dazzling smile… Or pick up the physical cues that tell you I’m poking fun at myself.
I currently live in Northern Virginia with my husband, our daughters, three cats, two bearded dragons, and a steady stream of friends hanging out in the kitchen. I enjoy entertaining and cooking, and have had to learn to share the kitchen with my husband as he also loves to cook. It works out pretty well, and our friends certainly seem to enjoy themselves!
When I have time, I love to read – mostly science fiction, fantasy, and horror. I’m pretty up to date on current events and generally get my news from the web instead of dead-tree editions. I manage to spend a substantial amount of time on the web, and am always involved in one project or another. At any given time, I’ve got at least three personal websites in various stages of completion. Some of them, sadly, have been “in progress” for several years. Work tends to get in the way and there are only so many hours one can spend in front of a computer.
I’ve started building websites in the early days of HTML and Lynx. Admittedly, back then there wasn’t much to build. After the rise of Netscape Navigator, things got a little more interesting. I still remember the early browser wars – you kids get off my lawn – and still get giggly and excited with new and upcoming technology.
For the past several years, I’ve been guiding others and leading various teams building sites and web applications. Coming from a development background gives me an insight into project management that many people don’t really have. I understand the challenges and hurdles that have to be overcome, and I know how to explain it to clients in terms they understand without having to “dumb down” what I’m saying and make it appear as I’m talking down to them. I’m able to bridge the gap between the technical teams working on projects and the end clients who are paying for said projects. It’s fun and rewarding work, this cat herding business.
While it’s pretty slim right now, eventually this site will contain details about my current personal projects, my theories on project management and the different methodologies, and maybe even ridiculous blog posts about the state of the web. There won’t be notes about projects done for my current or previous employers, but if you have any questions regarding my previous work, you can always send me an email via my contact form. In fact, feel free to use that for pretty much anything; project proposals, job offers, comments about the site or broken links, offers to put me in your will, etc.
Ciao~!