
February in a post
Willow had her Tonsil/Adenoid surgery. Now our little girl can sleep without sounds like an old Harley Davidson. So happy to have that behind us after having it hanging...

Today, Willow gave me a nice big hug ā¤ļø Then she told me "Daddy, I love mommy way more than you" She really knows how to build 'em up, then knock 'em down.
Until we meet again…
2109 days, 5 countries, countless moments. A lot has happened since I started working at Automattic. We lost our house in a fire, had a child, travelled, weathered a global pandemic. When I joined, there were a ~240 Automattians, but it still felt...
Should you use tiered customer support?
This week someone asked me if I thought tiered customer support was a good thing. My answer was No ... and also Yes. This is because it depends entirely on the purpose and how it's implemented. It's all about the $$$ Most companies implement tiered...
December has come and gone
Winter is here, which means I'll be grumpy for the next 5 months š Over the past month Willow has become really attached to Abbie. Abbie seems to feel the same way as she's started jumping into Willow's bed every night when we are doing story...
It’s off to work I go…
The time is almost here. In 36hrs, I'll be back at work. Having finished my 3 month sabbatical. Such an amazing perk of my work and I'm so lucky to have it. However, that doesn't make this any less difficult š Going back is going to be tough....
Unplug and recharge
August marked my 5 year anniversary at Automattic.This is a momentus occasion for two reasons: First, it's the longest that I've been at job in my adult life. My last four jobs before this were all in the 3-4 year span. I will say though, I hadn't...
Summer is fading
Summer is almost wrapped up. With that, Willow is also wrapping up at her home daycare. We've had Willow in a home daycare since September of last year. Finding the right daycare was a long and stressful process for us. Ultimately though, it was...
Toddler Life Lessons
This past week has been a struggle. I've been working long hours and overnight shifts, leading to an unhealthy lack of sleep. Additionally, a few things have come up in my personal life to add extra stress to the situation. Today looked like that...
Working in CS made me a worse customer
I've been working in the Customer Support / Custom Service realm now for well over a decade. During that time I've learned and worked on becoming more empathetic and understanding on customers. I've learned how to understand what customer's truly...
April Memories
I'm up to 38 rotations around the sun now. https://videopress.com/v/qeKLU9ip?preloadContent=metadata

Things that make me happy. January Edition

Things that make me happy
Because #2020 needs more smiling
August In Review
It was a fantastic month! August In Review

Remembering the good in the world
This year has been tough, on everyone. Pandemics, global disasters, economies crumbling, social unrest... The list goes on. This year (2020) has become sononymous with "shit". It's the year that no one wanted and that everyone wants to end. As a result we are all on...

Un-Socializing – to be more social
A year ago, I decided to make a concious effort to spend less time on social media. Why did I do this? Did my plan work? Will I keep this up? Unplugging: My life, as with many people now, is centered around being online. I work online, I play video games online, I...

My happiest birthday ever!
This past weekend was my favourite birthday party ever. My daughter, Willow, turned one! It wasn't much of a "Party" as no one got invited over, thanks to COVID-19.There wasn't a lot of food.There wasn't even a big pile of gifts.Despite all that, it was my perfect...

What’s in the a bag?
How much can you fit in a shopping bag? It turns out, a lot. In fact two years ago my entire life fit into a shopping bag. One for me, one for my wife. Each filled with clothes and supplies purchased the day before. That was all that we had after a fire destroyed our...

It doesn’t count unless it’s in print…
Today I received a pleasant surprise, a book! That's an odd thing for me to say, seeing as how I don't really enjoy reading and rarely dive into books. This was a little different though. A few years ago, while I was still working at FreshBooks - a customer who I had...

Starting Over
We choose new beginnings all the time. When we change jobs, change our address, change relationships. But what aboutĀ when itās the biggest change of your life and itās not by choice? Thatās what I found myself facing when a fire took my families home and all of our...

What’s your life worth?
I saw this image on Facebook a few years back and instantly loved it. It's a simple message, yet one that resonated with me. So many people I know get caught in the race of life that they end up working, for the sake of working. They push themselves with...