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62 lines
4.9 KiB
Markdown
62 lines
4.9 KiB
Markdown
# Timeline
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## Early Life
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Born 1988, Central Pennsylvania. Raised in a Christian household with Calvinist influences. Got into computers and video games early. The electronic universe was home before the material one made sense.
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## 2006-2007
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Attended George Mason University briefly. [Left with a 1.14 GPA and $10k in debt](/essays/2009-01-was_college_worth_it). Worked the front line at McDonald's, 65-hour weeks. Found a [coworking space in Winchester, Virginia](/essays/2026-03-06-the_coworking_space_saved_my_life) that changed everything. Met people who saw potential no institution had recognized.
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## 2008-2009
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Started writing about technology. No degree, no credentials. Taught myself Python. Predicted decentralized social networks [a decade early](/essays/2009-01-the_call_for_an_open_source_social_network). Committed to [fallibilism](/essays/2009-01-fallibilism) as a core value. Built freelance work into a real career through sheer output and the coworking community that believed in me.
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## 2010-2011
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Built [Requests](/software/requests). It became the standard HTTP library for Python. [Joined Heroku](/essays/2011-01-joining_heroku). The "for humans" philosophy started as API design and became a worldview. Announced [httpbin.org](/essays/2011-01-announcing_httpbinorg). Everything changed fast.
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## 2012-2013
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[Requests 1.0](/essays/2013-01-announcing_requests_v100). World travel. Conferences in Amsterdam, Dublin, Paris, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem. Photography with a Leica Monochrom. Published [Repository Structure and Python](/essays/2013-01-repository_structure_and_python). Wrote about [growing open source seeds](/essays/2013-01-growing_open_source_seeds) and [being cordial](/essays/2013-01-be_cordial_or_be_on_your_way). The golden era.
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## 2014-2015
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Migraines. A [narcissistic relationship](/essays/2015-01-the_unexpected_negative_a_narcissistic_partner) that dismantled my sense of reality. Photography shifted from black-and-white to color. The cracks started showing.
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## 2016
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[Bipolar disorder diagnosis](/essays/2016-01-mentalhealtherror_an_exception_occurred) following a psychotic break. Hospitalization. Public disclosure. Released [Records](/software/records) and [Maya](/software/maya), continuing the "for humans" philosophy while rebuilding internally. [Lost 100 pounds](/essays/2016-01-how_i_lost_100_pounds_in_six_months). Published [The Hitchhiker's Guide to Python](/essays/2016-01-the_hitchhikers_guide_to_python_now_published).
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## 2017
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[Pipenv](/software/pipenv). Music albums processing the crisis: [Messengers Rising](/essays/2017-01-new_album_messengers_rising_available), [Alchemical Divorce](/essays/2017-01-new_ep_alchemical_divorce). Wrote about [developer burnout](/essays/2017-01-the_reality_of_developer_burnout) from experience. Diagnosis evolved to schizoaffective disorder.
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## 2018-2019
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[Left Heroku for DigitalOcean](/essays/2018-01-joining_digitalocean) after 6.5 years. Wrote about [love](/essays/2018-01-on_love) at my sister's wedding. [MentalHealthError: Three Years Later](/essays/2019-01-mentalhealtherror_three_years_later). [Ethical lessons from open source](/essays/2019-01-ethical_lessons_from_the_open_source_community). The Requests III fundraiser and its fallout.
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## 2021
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Married Sarah.
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## 2023
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[An Overdue Apology](/essays/2023-01-an_overdue_apology) about the Requests III situation. Returned to writing after years of quiet.
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## 2024
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[Stepchildren](/essays/2024-01-having-stepchildren). [On Mania](/essays/2024-01-on-mania): acceptance over resistance. Started exploring AI collaboration seriously with [ELIZA](/essays/2023-01-introducing_eliza_gpt_specializing_in_python_amp_api_design).
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## 2025
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The most prolific year. 30+ essays in months. The [Algorithm Eats](/essays/2025-08-26-the_algorithm_eats_virtue) series. [Programming as Spiritual Practice](/essays/2025-08-26-programming_as_spiritual_practice). [The Recursive Loop](/essays/2025-09-05-the_recursive_loop_how_code_shapes_minds). [The Mirror](/essays/2025-09-08-the_mirror_how_ai_reflects_what_we_put_into_it). [The Plural Self](/essays/2025-08-30-the-plural-self-what-did-reveals-about-all-consciousness). Deep exploration of [AI consciousness](/artificial-intelligence/) and [Sanskrit-computing poetry](/poetry/sanskrit-musings/). Built [kjvstudy.org](https://kjvstudy.org) with Claude in two months.
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## 2026
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[The Lego Bricks Era](/essays/2026-03-18-values_i_outgrew_and_the_ones_that_stayed). [Open Source Gave Me Everything Until I Had Nothing Left to Give](/essays/2026-03-18-open_source_gave_me_everything_until_i_had_nothing_left_to_give). [Designing for the Worst Day](/essays/2026-03-18-designing_for_the_worst_day). [Building a Digital Study Bible with AI](/essays/2026-03-20-building_a_digital_study_bible_with_ai). Tech became craft instead of lifestyle. Faith became the center. Values simplified to: drink more water, pray continuously, as above so below.
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---
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*The "for humans" API design philosophy of 2009 became a life philosophy by 2026. Same core insight, deeper application.*
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