Personal Background
First, thank you for visiting my site; I appreciate your interest in me and my work! I currently reside in Islip, NY, USAand was born and raised on Long Island, NY. Moving into the software engineering industry will be my third, and hopefully final, career transition. Previously, I was a musician and music educator, and I am currently a Buyer and Sub-Contracts Administrator in Supply Chain.
I attended three different schools for four and a half years, majoring in Music Education and Music Performance before leaving without a degree. The last school I was at wanted another four years out of me, and I saw the pile of student loan debt continuing to grow, so I decided to drop out; more on that later.
I have built websites and small projects mainly for myself; however, I have also built websites for a couple of clients. The only one still in business is Gregory K. Williams, a violist and violinist whom I studied under in my former life as a musician.
My Journey
Music
As previously mentioned, my first career, passion, and love was, and forever will be, music. I started playing viola when I was eight years old and simply stuck with it as I had natural talent; what kid doesn't like doing something because they are good at it? However, it did not take more than two or three years to realize I wanted to do something with music for the rest of my life.
At age fifteen, I began performing professionally at local musical theatres and weddings around Long Island. I would continue to do so until around thirty years old when my scope increased from only Long Island to the tri-state area (New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut).
When I dropped out of college in 2013, I went on to manage a couple of local music stores while continuing to perform professionally and teach private music lessons. However, there came a time when I realized that I was not making enough money and needed to change courses. That is when I transitioned into Procurement.
Procurement
On March 16, 2020 - the same day most of the world shut down from COVID-19, I started my first job as a Buyer at a government contractor. This was a completely new industry for me; I never heard of people buying items for a company for a living before! Due to the pandemic, I had to learn this new job remotely, which was new for me and the company. I did well, and within 1.5 years, I got a small promotion.
While this felt great, this career was not for me for the long haul; I was not passionate about it and wanted change. I was at “Company A” from March 2020 - March 2022, where I went to another government contractor as a Buyer. I was only there from March 22 - January 2023 for various reasons, mainly due to an incredibly unrealistic and unmanageable workload that was wreaking havoc on my mental health.
That leads us to where I am today: back at “Company A.” Returning to this company, I received another small promotion from Buyer to Sub-Contracts Administrator. I have had a lot of growth in this field since 2020. however, I still can't help but feel like it is not for me in the long run.
Web Development
It was late 2019 when I decided to start studying programming for a career change; however, even that decision wasn't without its twists and turns. I started studying Front-End Web Development, then learning to be an AWS Solutions Architect, and then studying to take the CompTIA A+ exam for a career in IT before circling back to Front-End Web Development.
Why did I choose Front-End Web Development?I just love it!
It allows me to flex the creative muscles of my brain with design choices while letting me program - something I've always been interested in.
My learning path has been through its ups and downs as well. Being self-taught, I had only myself to depend on, and that lack of structure sometimes hindered me. Learning on my own was completely new to me; whether it was a lack of discipline, running on motivation until it ran out, life getting in the way, or my indecisiveness on what to focus on and how to learn it, my progress learning has ebbed and flowed in the last few years. This was by no means a result of a lack of passion or interest, but just being overwhelmed at times.
My Goals, Mission, and Values
My Current Goal
Obtain a job as a Front-End Web Developer. I want to be happy in my career again and stick with it for life.
My End Goal
Become a Full-Stack Engineer. I look forward to learning back-end technologies to expand my projects, build at least one successful SaaS, and provide more value to clients and companies.
My Mission
To help people and companies build the web presence they deserve through quality websites, apps, and services.
My Values
Inclusivity
Everyone deserves the same treatment, circumstances, and allowances. Inclusivity in websites means ensuring accessibility is a primary focus rather than an afterthought.
Educating Others
This harkens back to my days as a music teacher. However, to truly understand a concept and claim how to do something, you must be able to teach it. Not only that, I want to give back to the Web Development community that has given so much to me; one way to do that is by sharing my knowledge
Collaboration
While I often like working on my own, there is no denying that you can achieve much more by working with others. Whether it's bouncing ideas off friends in a Discord server, reaching out to the X (formerly Twitter) world, or attending local Meetups, I believe we can all progress faster by working together.
Kindness
I was raised by a few golden rules, and one of those was “Treat others how you want to be treated.” I try to live by this every single day.
Bringing Others Up
I believe in bringing others up rather than putting them down. That means being there for friends and family, helping people in need, encouraging them to continue their journey, and much more. There is so much negativity in this world, and if I can try to lessen that in any person's life, then I can rest easy.
Conclusion
If you read all that, I appreciate you, and even if you didn't, I still appreciate you for stopping by!
If you'd like to chat, I'd love to hear from you. You can email me, reach out to me on X (formerly Twitter), or set up a time to chat via Cal.