Rest

As a mother, I knew I would worry for my son. Nothing in our adoption process prepared me for my current fears. As my son sheds his little boy looks, I worry more. This has been running through my mind:

When your son goes to get skittles,
    You worry he will get cavities.
    I worry he will get shot.

When your son plays loud music
   You worry he will annoy the neighbors
   I worry he will get shot 

When your son plays with a toy guns in a store
   You worry he will make a mess
   I worry he will get shot.

When your son plays with a toy gun in a park
   You worry he will get a welt
   I worry he will get shot 

When your son knocks on a door to get help
   You worry he will be ignored
   I worry he will get shot  

When your son has a blown taillight
  You worry he will get a ticket
  I worry he will get shot or shot

When your son goes to his bachelor party
   You worry he will get drunk
   I worry he will get shot 

When your son comes home
   You worry he will track mud in the house
   I worry he will get shot 

When your son comes home
   You give him a big hug
   I give him a big hug and pray for all the mothers who don't get to hug their sons

Be kind to the mother and father. They carry a heavy burden.

To close, a better poet then me, Bobby McFerrin  : "I am leaning on your joy, without your joy I can't make it, I won't make it oh Lord" ("Rest / Yes Indeed")

My Twisted Mind

TL;DR: Eat your veggies and let Ginny know how you stay focused.

I am currently over committed and under delivering in every aspect of my life: family, job, career, health, community. In every place I have grand visions and starts of projects littered around, while ignoring the important progress to completion or the even more important work of maintenance.

This morning I saw how this happens:

1. Reading the WHHNA newsletter 
2. Notice that my neighbor, Neil Shepard, is selling organic vegetables to raise money for the Triangle Free Press. 
3. Wonder if I can do a small service project for the Triangle Free Press and notice they have no web presence. 
4. Decide that I should create a triangle of giving: find a kid who wants to get tech experience, find a teacher who wants to mentor her, 'pay' the kid in organic vegetables and experience. 

Sounds simple no? Sounds lovely, no? Sounds like a win-win-win, no? It is, except now it will haunt me as unfinished business. I don't know any kids who want vegetables and I don't really know how hard this would be. Get in line great idea behind the dozen of other ghost ideas rattling my brain.

Cheers!
Ginny

Not the best Phineas and Ferb song but ....

Found My Letters

TL;DR: Follow Marlena Compton on twitter or Blog for a great perspective on the tech industry.

With the innocuous title "Transitioning from Tester to Developer", I did not expect the "oh crap she is on to me" moment I experienced reading the blog. Go read it and then check this out

1. "Why am I doing this?" - Coding & Development is for the curious and interested. 
2.  "Keep asking Questions" - A mentor is just someone you can ask questions and encourages you to ask more. Ask lots. 
3. Mock Interviews - What is this scary witchcraft?!? (Great idea, too scary) 
4. Build Something - Then build it again, and again. (I love this!)
5. "You would be a great ... " - This was personal. I struggle with how people see me versus what I value. They don't intersect, it erodes my confidence and ultimately keeps me in the status quo. (Side note: My status quo is one of great privilege and ease. Maybe that is what keeps me there.) 
6. "You would be a great ..." - The advice I give to all my female 'mentees' is "They will try to get you into management. Don't forget there is a technical track. You will be great at that and can always manage later" 
7. "Pick an Editor" - Yes! 
8. "Pick a Stack" - Yes! But the corollary is you are not married to it. If picking one causes gridlock, don't worry, you can always change. 
9. Show up - Meet up - Analogy Up - No really, this analogy is over. The point is there are a lot of educational and inspirational opportunities. 

Cheers!
Ginny

Oh and of course the music that inspired the title and how I felt reading Marlena's Blog :
Killing me Softly by the Fugees