Full-Stack Developer
Senior Web Developer @ Alpha Particle
Ex-Host of In The Loop WordPress podcast
Possibly a robot | he/him
For over a decade, I have studied and inscribed the sacred runes and performed the arcane rituals that breathe life into the realm of the internet.
The web can sometimes be indistinguishable from magic, but I have the knowledge and patience required to make just about anything.
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Resume
Employment
Freelance
2012–
Full-stack web development | App development
Full disclosure: my full-time job takes precedence over freelance work.
Blackbird Digital
2015–2023
Lead Technologist
Web development | App development | Tools & workflow development | Dev mentoring | Podcast host / producer / marketer
Lachina
2010–2015
Interactive Designer
Web development | Software development | User interface design | Tools & workflow development | Digital publishing support | Fill-in media artist (illustration, animation, 3D modeling, video production, etc.)
Skills
Development
I am primarily a custom WordPress theme & plugin developer, with a focus on custom Gutenberg block development—I build fully custom designed & developed WordPress sites for my clients. While I don’t have any public themes or plugins out there (yet), you can find my open-source contributions on GitHub. I also hosted a WordPress podcast at Blackbird called In The Loop.
I build apps with React Native for iOS and Android. You can see some of the apps I’ve built (solo) on the app store, including Positive Peers and MobileMed.
I use HTML & CSS (usually Sass) every day, and I try to keep up with the latest features while maintaining graceful degradation. Accessibility is a priority for me from the outset.
I use JavaScript daily, often with React. I also build and run Node.js-based workflow automation via Webpack and/or Gulp for web projects, and I’ve written other Node scripts to automate mundane tasks.
Speaking of Gulp, check out gulp-wp, a WordPress-focused, single dependency workflow script that I developed for themes to automate the usual stuff while allowing you to add your own gulp tasks that can be hooked in to others (it works for plugins, too).
My main server-side language is PHP, quite often paired with MySQL, but I’ve also worked with Node and MongoDB. I have also used Laravel, though mostly for API-only projects.
I use Git for all of my programming work. Check out my GitHub page for random projects and contributions to other open source projects.
I handle a lot of sysadmin-type tasks for Linux web servers, usually Ubuntu. I maintain my own servers, so I am very comfortable with the command line. I deal with DNS quite often, and I have been forced to learn quite a bit about email validation and deliverability.
I primarily use GitHub’s Atom (RIP) Microsoft’s VS Code editor for coding.
Design
I have professional experience with Adobe Creative Cloud up to the latest versions, especially XD, Illustrator, Audition, AfterEffects, Premiere Pro, Photoshop, InDesign, and the ExtendScript Toolkit.
My web design process usually involves wireframing, a few rough sketches, and then a prototype that, over several iterations, becomes the final design. But frankly, I prefer to work with my incredibly talented wife Jack Watson when possible, who does UX/UI design and illustration.
Education
Cleveland Institute
of Art
2006-2010
BFA in Digital Arts (Technology & Integrated Media Environment)
Game Design emphasis
2010 Student Commencement Speaker