A Very Good Year, 2013

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZmCQyKGktc

I still have a draft post titled ‘2011, a year for the epic books‘ hanging out, waiting to never be published. That was an amazing year.

I don’t have a draft saved for 2012. I’m very good at thinking about all the things I would put in a round up post, but then putting it all off until weeks after and then ditching it entirely.

This year has been a very good year. It likely goes alongside 2011 as a year for the epic books, so it should get a write up. I’ll forget less then.

Work: 10up and Washington State University

I started off the year as a happy director of web engineering for 10up with a fantastic team. In April we put together our first developer summit and had a great time over a few days in Portland expanding on workflows and knowledge. I’m so grateful for the time I had, the people I met, and the friends I made while working with #team10up. The entire experience of my 1.5 years with 10up took so much to the next level.

In July, I started a new position with Washington State University. As senior WordPress engineer there, I’m leading the charge to build out a central publishing platform built around WordPress at WSU. Our efforts have been very well accepted so far and I’m looking forward to an extremely exciting and productive 2014.

Vagrant, WordCamps, and WordPress

At the end of 2012, I unleashed the fun that is Varying Vagrant Vagrants in the hopes of breaking up with MAMP. It was a success and not only provided for a MAMP free 2013 for me, but lead to talks at meetups in Seattle and Portland, an unconference session at WordCamp Portland, and talks at WordCamps Chicago and Vancouver. Throughout the year we’ve spread the word of VVV. We pushed version 1.0 just a few weeks ago and Vagrant has grown in general as part of the WordPress development workflow.

WordCamp Seattle was the only WordCamp at which I didn’t talk about Vagrant. I did have a great time sharing the floor with Tanner and Kailey for lightning rounds on WordPress coding done right.

In October, I attended the first WordCamp Europe in October. That experience was amazing. Not only did I get to spend a full week walking around and learning about the beautiful town of Leiden, I met so many people in the WordPress community that I hadn’t yet had the chance to meet and made several new friends. The week was full of great conversation and made a great impact on my view of the overall WordPress community and what we’re working toward.

Due to my new position at WSU, I was able to spend a ton of time consumed with WordPress core for August and September. I’m now more familiar with the multisite portions of WordPress than ever and was recognized as a Recent Rockstar for the 3.7 release, my favorite thus far. I’m looking forward to a very productive 2014 in the world of WordPress.

Location

The year was almost a 50/50 split. We made the 352.3 mile move from Portland, OR to Pullman, WA half way through July. While I miss quite a bit about Portland–mostly people, Pullman has been welcoming and all around great so far. We’ve settled in well and are enjoying it enough to start thinking of Pullman as a home for many years to come.

Beer

This year was a pretty big year for beer. Not only did I expand my knowledge (probably a bit far) on the various styles of beer in the world, I became a home brewer a few months ago. I’ve brewed a pretty weak IPA, a nice stout, and a yet to be determined porter. In 2014, I’m looking forward to making some really nice IPAs and exploring the world of Belgian Ale’s thanks to a new book Michelle got me for Christmas.

Homebrewing aside, the highlight of the beer year was a trip to the De Molen brewery in Bodegraven with Konstantin while in the area for WordCamp Europe. We had many wonderful beers, among them the Hel & Verdoemenis, considered the best brew in the Netherlands. On the way out of the brewery, I was able to grab a couple of the best beers in the world, the Westvleteren 12. Even though I drank that in a hotel room after carving away at the wax with inefficient tools, it was great.

My goal for beer in 2014 is to be more focused in consumption and more crafty in creation. Any visitor to Pullman, WA will be guaranteed a good brew. 😉

Miscellaneous notes for 2014

For Christmas I got two amazing things. An Aeropress and a guitar.

As a mass consumer of coffee, the Aeropress has already changed my life. I’m looking forward to drinking smaller servings of more quality coffee throughout the year and cutting the habit of drinking coffee because it’s always there.

And the guitar! In 2011, that epic year, I sold 3 guitars, a mandolin, and a couple amps. My love of music had dwindled a bit, mostly because I hadn’t made time. Michelle came through this Christmas with an acoustic guitar that has lit the fire again. I’m looking forward to a 2014 full of music. 🙂

And last, but not least. You all rock. Happy New Years!