I've been playing Age of Empires 2 after hours and on the weekends to unwind. Ya I know, saying I play a high stress real time strategy game to "unwind" is a bit wild. The biggest lesson from Age of Empires 2, build order and how you setup your base early matters. When you get the machine started, collecting resources, and managing population space with houses (lucky HUNS). If there is water,…
One Question haunted me to my core about 9 years ago. Would you be proud of yourself, if you stayed doing this for the rest of your career? This question kept me up more nights than I'd like to admit. There are offshoots of this question that can still cut pretty deep. Would my kids be proud to tell others what their dad does for work? What if this is the only thing you ever did for the rest of…
The doomer take on the internet is that it is designed to divide, to polarize, to isolate, to weaponize… maybe in the pursuit of monetization but usually - according to the pundits - a more nefarious purpose. While I consider myself to be a default optimist, the algo does infiltrate my positivity at times. For a few months, I found it hard to hop out of the doom cycle, the negativity. That lasted…
What if there was a way to make a living by posting words on the internet and you were able to monetize that content by having ads on your site, and you got paid when people clicked the ad. Well ya thats how the ad based models worked. Ad Blockers take that option away. Sure I wish there was a better way to monetize or make from $$$ from writing online. But this is my test starting today to turn…
Last week during a text thread with a friend, I mentioned that the chaotic summer we were in. People have always seemed shocked about how much I can get done with chaos going around me. I will credit working in the Emergency Room during the Pandemic as training. I remember an interview where I had a child swinging on my shoulders, and I was able to continue the conversation and be present even…
One thing about having a large network of incredible people, is the potential to have them open doors for you. Now the hard part about having lots of options, is knowing which option or door you want to go through. The Hard Part I got asked a couple weeks ago, "What does Emmett want to be doing?" I didn't have an answer, I have always been in service of others. I have thought of myself as valuable…
Everybody loves an Underdog story, and hearing about Cape Verde's journey to the World Cup, absolutely fits into this mold, perfectly. I relate to Cape Verde. I live a small area in upstate New York. Always having to prove myself to make sure people understand I deserve to in the room. Watching them play in the World Cup. They shouldn't have made it through the group stage. They did with zero goal…
Its starting to feel like spring time here. Which has given me a boost of energy. Feeling like a house plant that got a much needed watering and some sunshine. Of course with the boost of energy and more sunlight time to think about side quests. I got the idea to ask some trusted friends who have known a bunch about my journey, what they think I would be really good at. These were sent via Text,…
While scrolling through the social apps, I came across a video. Saying that the daughter of Steve Jobs replied to him saying "I wish I had more time with you." while he was on his Deathbed. Her reply was "You just would have worked". Listen, if that doesn't stop you in your tracks or mid scroll and make you think about your life. Man.... I don't know what will. We only have so much time here.…
Ten years ago, I called out of work hopped in my best friends car and went on a "surprise" adventure. The surprise was to see David Bazan of Pedro the Lion play a "living room" style show down in Troy, NY. Probably like 30-40 people in a small room, listening to my favorite artist/story teller do their thing. Felt like magic, almost a vision state experience. He took requests and answered…
American Entrepreneurship is a bunch of mediocre middle-inning relief baseball pitchers. They made it to the big leagues, they get the praise of "making it", but mostly pitch a couple of days a week, and get to eat free meals (business dinners) and travel (credit card points). "If I was going to be mediocre I'd be a middle inning relief pitcher in baseball. No Pressure. You can pitch till you are…
There has been a lot of discussion around taste. Look I get it, its the new hot term to use in the age of AI. But what caught my attention is these videos of CEOs trying their "products". They got a lot of flack for being weird on camera, cause its a "food review", not a product. What is a Burger? Bun Patty Sauce Veggie Cheese Simple, its 5 ingredients. Now lets breaks down what an application is…
This morning during coffee and chaos, I read Jason Begg's Post Take the shot He wrote about how he sent a couple DMs and cold emails. It totally changed his life and career. Pretty cool. I also have a story about this. Over the last few years, I had been interviewing for developer roles, or any role that would allow me to work from home. I was working full time in the ER before and during the…
The thought of a child no longer being able to imagine, scares me. Unable to tell you a story they had in their head, in their small voice. The idea of asking the bot, what should we play today? The soul of play and creativity getting sucked out by a machine that can only spit out suggestions of things to do and never enjoy the satisfaction of completing a creative project. Is this what we are…
Open your draft folder, and look at all the cool and exciting ideas you got out of your brain and onto the page (screen). Good job, now ask yourself. Why are these here? Why aren't they stuck in this prison cell called /Drafts Its time to free those ideas. Let them achieve their life time goal of being on a URL on the internet. Hit publish. What is the worst thing that could happen? Nobody reads…
A fun question to ask your local hustle bro, "Would you get on a greyhound bus to go see your team?" I bet you 95% of them would say, NO you use your credit card points from your dads credit card. Would you stay up all night in the Montreal Airport, to catch your greyhound back home in the morning? No? You ain't gonna make it, buddy. Some of this is tongue and cheek. But the story starts off.…
After booking and playing over 100 shows I learned a lot about people, and communication. I started playing shows in high school. We would book out a hall, hand design posters with the info. Use the infinite poster hack (top secret). Armed with a backpack full of flyers and a borrowed staple gun, its time to get flyer-ing. One of the biggest struggles or hurdles was learning to be confident these…
4 Years ago today was my last shift working patient registration in the ER. Looking back on my time in the ER is always interesting. I spent 3 and half years working in the ER. Checking in ambulances and patients. Talking with Nurses and Doctors. Consoling family members, making tough phone calls to families during the pandemic. Explaining to the single mom of 4, that her insurance had expired and…
I didn't win a sold gold Ridge Wallet or Giant Trophy made from a Simple Modern Tumbler (would be pretty sweet, though). How did this happen?! Through the power of FRIENDSHIP! Its through showing up daily wanting to help people solve their problems. If you told me at the start of the year, there is no way I would have thought I'd get this "Award", or "Achievement". Step 1: Answer the phone, when…
Looking back in the rear view mirror, tends seen as a negative or being stuck in the past. I don't believe so, by looking at the path you created this year, helps you make decisions on where you want to end up. Year by the numbers Blog Posts: 63 Site Visits: ~5,900 Github Commits: 764 Made money online: [x] Top 5% user on LinkedIn (whatever that means) All the kids in school! Operator's Person of…
That Band you saw. Ya, they are a t-shirt company that happens to get on stage. Their performance is a sales call. The lyrics a pitch to get you to "buy our merch in the back", a CEO/Founder telling their story about how they had a life changing idea to sell B2B software tools that will change the world. The lyrics you got tattooed on your forearm, is getting a tattoo of a Powerpoint you loved.…
If baseball has taught me anything, its that no matter how large the lead or how safe you feel. Make sure you finish the game, the task at hand. In baseball, every day something you've never seen before can happen. It will break your heart. It can be like watching a car crash in slow motion, but you are in the back of the car. No matter what is happening around you, when you get handed the bat you…
Today is the last day of summer vacation. This one is a big day. Tomorrow, every one of my kids will start school. Means that the house will be a clean && quiet house. As any parent knows, those two things never happen together. It's bittersweet, but summertime is such a mental and physical drain for me, without childcare and needing to work. We made it, our own personal version of 75 Hard. Work…
One thing about having kids, is thinking about how they are growing up so much so fast. Time seems to disappear from us faster. I saw a clip from a Mike Birbigila's podcast Working it Out with Bob Odenkirk Clip here: Which reminds me, when my oldest becomes an adult. I will be the same age as my dad when they brought me home. To remember that life is long and fast. The days (mostly weekends) are…
There will be a day, where this patch of grass will grow back. When the echos of my kids yelling “higher” no longer happen. The interruptions while doing yard work to “watch this!” But today this patch of grass reminds me that these are best days
I have a problem. I tend to have lots of ideas for projects, and things I'd like to do. A WebComic My Dashboard Affirmational App Start a physical mail newsletter to friends Leap Year Mug Project Write a Book Release Music Start a Podcast Make an animated series for my kids to voice act over Build a Baseball Scoring App Start a t-shirt brand thats 10 Projects but the list is much larger. My…
Back in 2017, I was in a hard place. I was working 2nd shift as a janitor at my local hospital. The mornings before work I was getting up at 7am driving my wife to work coming home and taking care of the dogs and my son. Then picking up my wife, racing her back home throwing together a "LUNCH" and getting to work for my 3-11:30pm shift and getting home around midnight. Working holidays, and…
I opened my Feedbin feed, and I'm at 294 unread posts. This gives me extreme overwhelm and want to cut my losses. But I will slowly work through these. Its really nice to have a place to unwind and read some things without all the internet noise.
To the man, smoking a cigarette 20 feet from the firework stand, that is setup in a gas station parking lot. That is freedom. A great reminder of "You can just do things". Because you can, doesn't mean you should. But what if you miss out on the experience of a life time (yes, I know thats a little dark). This is humor. I laugh to myself every time I drive by and see it. One day that cigarette…
Somebody recently told me they wanted what I have, and I almost lost my mind. Before I dive too deep into this, my brain looked around at the house I had picked up and cleaned about 10,000 times before noon. The screaming and fighting of my kids. I haven't had a heart-to-heart with my wife in what feels like months, because life has been busy and crazy. How could anybody want that?! Then the…
It's the time of year when the grass is growing faster than you can manicure it. With all the rain we have had, it's been hard to find time to take care of it. It adds another pretty big project to the to-do list. But what's better than a perfectly manicured lawn? Getting to see baby bunnies bouncing around the yard. Sometimes, NOT doing something is an incredible benefit to somebody else. Getting…
We just did something incredible. As of today, June 11, 2025, I have reached the same number of visitors to this website as I did for the entire year of 2024. It hasn't led to a dragon's hoard of money. But I am very proud of it. I posted more and shared my writing in more places. Evidence 2024 graph. AND THE COOLER ONE! 2025 YTD graph Now to figure out what to do hitting this milestone. The plan…
My most recent and largest work project was to let brands use survey responses from their customers to make better decisions by pushing data into places The ability to create workflows within Shopify Flow based on customer survey responses enables brands to tag customers or orders and build Slack notifications based on a range of variables they can control within Shopify Flow. Looking back on…
When somebody shares a project that they are excited about working on. You should encourage them to keep building. DO NOT SAY THESE THINGS Looks terrible, please fix Oh, that won't work Somebody else is already building that I shared something with the community that I enjoyed building, and getting negative comments (when I didn't ask for them). kills all enjoyment of working on the thing. DO…
I listened to two things yesterday from internet friends. It got me thinking about the open internet, RSS Feeds, and Forums. The discussion of creating places or ways for people to share ideas/projects/things they enjoy freely. Creating connection and inspiration. Yes, there are Discord and Slack communities, as well as Twitter and even Facebook groups (yes, Facebook groups are still a thing). I…
Oh Well, Maybe Next Time. I've wanted to speak at a conference for a while now, so I figured why not give Laracon a shot and apply? They wanted STRONG and HIGHLY Technical talks to be submitted. Which set off ALL of my impostor syndrome alarms. I will never be technical enough to give a talk, or WHO AM I to say I'm very technical. I'd say I'm mostly technical. My talk pitch was about Dashboard…
After many years of being close internet friends, I recently had the opportunity to catch up with my friend Sanjay . We got chatting about past roles, I worked at a Chandelier factory, which sold made-to-order fixtures. Lighting fixtures for hotels, fancy houses, you name it. My role there as a finishing technician. My job was to make the parts the right color through a process of powder coating,…
What a Quarter! January: Looking back January took forever. I got to work on some cool things. There were zero snow days for the kids. Started #Create30 by Matt Ragland February: What a BRUTAL month. We got DOWN with the sickness. 2 weeks out of the month we were OUT sick. Kids missed their winter break due to sickness. I think out of the month they only made it to school 10 days out of the 28th.…
I was listening to an episode of Colin and Samir with Jack Conte . They were talking about liking dashboards, and they mentioned an app idea where it's a dashboard that shows your face and asks if you are proud of the person on the dashboard. This idea was like an earworm, I couldn't stop thinking about it until I built it. Here it is, the only Dashboard you'll ever need. The Dashboard Side Note:…
Listening to the latest ShopTalkShow , and Chris and Dave got on the topic of Developer Journey. Which got me thinking, that my journey was a long winding adventure. 2006-2010 Building out HTML/CSS Myspace pages for my bands nobody told me I could make money doing this! 2010-2013 Went to College for Electrical Engineering Wanted to build guitar gear Learned C Graduated with an Associate in…
The vibe coding trend looks and sounds cool. Sure, it gives the thrill and experience of building something as a weekend project. I worry that these projects won't turn into anything meaningful. Just like that guitar collecting dust and getting embarrassed when somebody asks if you play. "Oh, I just VIBE". I guess we will see, but Vibe Coding to me feels very much like the dude at a party who…
Time flies when you are having fun, especially at work. I met Jeremiah via Twitter (all my opportunities have come from that place). I think it was based on some Age of Empires 2 Tweets. I was looking for my next adventure, and I was filling out a job application to take my old job back at the hospital after almost 5 months without work when my phone rang. It was Jeremiah with a job offer. The…
Over the last year or so, I've seen a lot of new devs learning bleeding edge tech, which is awesome. But I have some concerns. Learning to patch 3-5 services to make a to-do list app is a great way to test out new tech and understand the fundamentals of the tech. However, my concern is that companies that have been around for 5+ years. Already have all that stuff built out. They have their…
Had a realization earlier this week that we are the people that so many others rely on to get them out of situations. This leads to the question of, who is coming for me? Answer: I don't know. Sometimes, it feels like nobody is coming. Which sort of bums me out. Being forced to be self-reliant and the person that bails others out. It's a lot. I'm unsure if it's just the chapter of life and dealing…
I've played a handful of shows for nobody in the room. Sometimes, that was my fault as a booking guy. Sometimes, it was because a cooler band was playing down the street. Playing music you poured yourself into and practiced for hours for nobody to see it, sucks. However, it gives you time to tweak and hone the craft. It also permits you to say "I DID THE THING". Doing the thing means it can go on…
Remember to restart your terminal if things aren't updating properly! This has bitten me in the past, but most recently, it got me when I was trying to check out the cool new Laravel Starter Kits Thanks, Josh Cirre for the reminder to restart my terminal. NOW WE ARE COOKING!
We made it. 30 posts in 30 days on my blog! It's been a great reminder that "I can do things when you make time for it." Remembering to post and share is the muscle I have built, NOW it's more about engaging with a community. This had been really fun, thank you for following along!
Thank you, You showed up. You did the hard things and spent time learning a craft that changed your families life. You worked so hard in the ER during the pandemic, trying to provide some sort of comfort in the absolute darkest time for people. A lot of people won't understand the things you had to go through. Taking interviews and calls on lunch breaks and commutes home. Working odd shifts to…
The hardest lesson I've learned with my blog is that sometimes the piece you spend the most time on and are very proud of will not get the views or engagement. The lesson is to reshare it later and see what happens. Sometimes the time of day of your posts matters more than also note: A lot of people will hit repost/share without reading the content.