Laura Gaetano was born in Italy, and by my count has lived in at least four different countries. Her multicultural upbringing has had a huge impact on her life. In fact, she currently works at the Travis Foundation with a focus on diversity and inclusion.

We talk about her upbringing, her troubles with art school, the work she’s doing now, and changes that may be on the horizon.

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Featuring:

• Laura Gaetano – Website, X
• Tim Smith – GitHub, X
• Abi Prado –

Show Notes:

• A big thank you to Abi Prado, who did the narration for this episode since my voice is gone (and who knows if it will ever return).
• Travis Foundation
• If you or someone you know would make a great guest for this show, send us an email at: [email protected].

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

Adam Clark and I met back in 2013. We started a podcasting company together (which we both left), he shut down his consulting business to move to California and work for Apple, and now he’s back in Tennessee. Last year he launched a new business, Podcast Royale, a company he says will afford him more freedom to do whatever he wants to do.

He talks to me about growing up in a cult, losing his father, marriage, and how being a parent gives him a purpose in life.

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• Algolia – Our search partner. Algolia’s full suite search APIs enable teams to develop unique search and discovery experiences across all platforms and devices. We’re using Algolia to power our site search here at Changelog.com. Get started for free and learn more at algolia.com.

Featuring:

• Adam Clark – Website, GitHub, X
• Tim Smith – GitHub, X

Show Notes:

• Adam’s company, Podcast Royale
• I can’t remember the particular episode of Today Explained that I referenced in the show, but it’s a fantastic podcast you should subscribe to.

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

In our last episode of the year, I talk with Maria Boland Ploessl. Maria’s path to technology has been interesting to say the least. A Saint Paul native, she studied Spanish and Latin American studies in college. In 2016, after living in a few different cities (even a year-long stint in Brazil), she moved back to Minnesota. Now, she’s the Executive Director of Minnestar, a non-profit organization with the aim of supporting and growing Minnesota’s tech community.

Maria talks to me about what Minnestar does, the work they’re doing to bring more people of underrepresented groups into tech, married life and how she’s grown from it, and parenthood.

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Sponsors:

• Fastly – Our bandwidth partner. Fastly powers fast, secure, and scalable digital experiences. Move beyond your content delivery network to their powerful edge cloud platform. Learn more at fastly.com.
• Rollbar – We catch our errors before our users do because of Rollbar. Resolve errors in minutes, and deploy your code with confidence. Learn more at rollbar.com/changelog.
• Linode – Our cloud server of choice. Deploy a fast, efficient, native SSD cloud server for only $5/month. Get 4 months free using the code changelog2018. Start your server - head to linode.com/changelog
• Algolia – Our search partner. Algolia’s full suite search APIs enable teams to develop unique search and discovery experiences across all platforms and devices. We’re using Algolia to power our site search here at Changelog.com. Get started for free and learn more at algolia.com.

Featuring:

• Maria Boland Ploessl – Website, X
• Tim Smith – GitHub, X

Show Notes:

• Maria and her husband welcomed baby William Otis in early December
• She’s the Executive Director for Minnestar
• Minnestar puts on quite a few events, two of them being Minnebar and Minnedemo
• I actually did a talk on CSS Grid at Minnebar 2017
• Twin Cities Startup Week
• The 5 Love Languages

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

Jeremy Fuksa has had a rough few years. After deciding to go out on his own, his third year in business was filled with anxiety. Going back to working a full-time job may sound like a failure to some, but Jeremy doesn’t look at it that way.

He talks to me about his unique skill set, dealing with anxiety and depression, and how his recent experience has taught him some great lessons.

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Sponsors:

• Linode – Our cloud server of choice. Deploy a fast, efficient, native SSD cloud server for only $5/month. Get 4 months free using the code changelog2018. Start your server - head to linode.com/changelog
• Rollbar – We catch our errors before our users do because of Rollbar. Resolve errors in minutes, and deploy your code with confidence. Learn more at rollbar.com/changelog.
• Fastly – Our bandwidth partner. Fastly powers fast, secure, and scalable digital experiences. Move beyond your content delivery network to their powerful edge cloud platform. Learn more at fastly.com.
• Algolia – Our search partner. Algolia’s full suite search APIs enable teams to develop unique search and discovery experiences across all platforms and devices. We’re using Algolia to power our site search here at Changelog.com. Get started for free and learn more at algolia.com.

Featuring:

• Jeremy Fuksa – Website, X
• Tim Smith – GitHub, X

Show Notes:

• Listen to Jeremy and Paul’s podcast, Uncle Weepy’s Depression Dungeon
• If you or someone you know would be a great guest for this show, send an email to [email protected]

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

There hasn’t been a new episode in a few weeks so I wanted to give you a small update. We’ll be back with new episodes on December 4th.

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Featuring:

• Tim Smith – GitHub, X

Show Notes:

If you or someone you know would be a good fit for this show, send an email to [email protected].

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

Eryn O’Neil grew up in the southwestern suburbs of Chicago. When it came time for college, it was easy for her to move a few states over and go to college in a small town in Iowa. She now lives in Minneapolis, and after years of being self-employed, she just finished a months-long journey to find her next job.

Eryn talks to me about being the first female engineering manager at her new company, what excites her about technology, the hurdles of married life, and staying healthy in a demanding industry.

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• Fastly – Our bandwidth partner. Fastly powers fast, secure, and scalable digital experiences. Move beyond your content delivery network to their powerful edge cloud platform. Learn more at fastly.com.
• Rollbar – We catch our errors before our users do because of Rollbar. Resolve errors in minutes, and deploy your code with confidence. Learn more at rollbar.com/changelog.

Featuring:

• Eryn O'Neil – GitHub, X
• Tim Smith – GitHub, X

Show Notes:

• Grinnell College - Wikipedia
• Modern Tribe
• Inadvertent Algorithmic Cruelty by Eric Meyer

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

Almost eight years ago, Suz Hinton made one of the biggest decisions of her life: move away from her home in Melbourne, Australia and move to the United States. After amicably breaking up with her boyfriend, another decision lied ahead: would she stay?

Suz talks to me about culture shock, the hoops she had to jump through to get her visa, her parents, and dealing with burnout.

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Sponsors:

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Featuring:

• Suz Hinton – GitHub, Mastodon, X
• Tim Smith – GitHub, X

Show Notes:

• The world’s most liveable cities in 2018 | CNN Travel
• TAFE NSW - Wikipedia
• noopkat - Twitch
• John Resig

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

Mahdi Yusuf worked a startup in his twenties and wasn’t worried too much about his health. When he quit that job, he decided to take better care of himself and lost fifty pounds. Now, he’s the CTO of Gyroscope, a startup that aims to be the operating system for the human body, but ever since joining, has gained weight back.

Mahdi talks to me about how Gyroscope is trying to help people understand their bodies better, growing up with a love for computers, and trying to be healthy with a busy life.

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• Linode – Our cloud server of choice. Deploy a fast, efficient, native SSD cloud server for only $5/month. Get 4 months free using the code changelog2018. Start your server - head to linode.com/changelog
• Hired – Salary and benefits upfront? Yes please. Our listeners get a double hiring bonus of $600! Or, refer a friend and get a check for $1,337 when they accept a job. On Hired companies send you offers with salary, benefits, and even equity upfront. You are in full control of the process. Learn more at hired.com/afk.
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• Rollbar – We catch our errors before our users do because of Rollbar. Resolve errors in minutes, and deploy your code with confidence. Learn more at rollbar.com/changelog.

Featuring:

• Mahdi Yusuf – GitHub, X
• Tim Smith – GitHub, X

Show Notes:

• Gyroscope
• Mahdi Yusuf on Gyroscope

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

After a very difficult 2014 that put Justin Dorfman in the hospital, he vowed to never go back. Justin has Bipolar I disorder, so coming to terms with his limitations and the sacrifices he needs to make to stay healthy hasn’t been easy. He talks to me about his early BMX dreams, his transition from engineering to marketing, and the stigma around mental health.

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Sponsors:

• Linode – Our cloud server of choice. Deploy a fast, efficient, native SSD cloud server for only $5/month. Get 4 months free using the code changelog2018. Start your server - head to linode.com/changelog
• Hired – Salary and benefits upfront? Yes please. Our listeners get a double hiring bonus of $600! Or, refer a friend and get a check for $1,337 when they accept a job. On Hired companies send you offers with salary, benefits, and even equity upfront. You are in full control of the process. Learn more at hired.com/afk.
• Fastly – Our bandwidth partner. Fastly powers fast, secure, and scalable digital experiences. Move beyond your content delivery network to their powerful edge cloud platform. Learn more at fastly.com.
• Rollbar – We catch our errors before our users do because of Rollbar. Resolve errors in minutes, and deploy your code with confidence. Learn more at rollbar.com/changelog.

Featuring:

• Justin Dorfman – Website, GitHub, LinkedIn, X
• Tim Smith – GitHub, X

Show Notes:

• Sticker Mule: Custom stickers

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

While some dream of having a successful career, Jeff Robbins has already had several. Once the lead singer and guitarist for Orbit, Jeff has worked on some of the most famous Drupal websites. He talks to me about his early interest in computers, starting Lullabot, and adjusting to life after leaving the company he built and ran.

Join the discussion

Changelog++ members support our work, get closer to the metal, and make the ads disappear. Join today!

Sponsors:

• Hired – Salary and benefits upfront? Yes please. Our listeners get a double hiring bonus of $600! Or, refer a friend and get a check for $1,337 when they accept a job. On Hired companies send you offers with salary, benefits, and even equity upfront. You are in full control of the process. Learn more at hired.com/afk.
• Fastly – Our bandwidth partner. Fastly powers fast, secure, and scalable digital experiences. Move beyond your content delivery network to their powerful edge cloud platform. Learn more at fastly.com.
• Rollbar – We catch our errors before our users do because of Rollbar. Resolve errors in minutes, and deploy your code with confidence. Learn more at rollbar.com/changelog.
• Linode – Our cloud server of choice. Deploy a fast, efficient, native SSD cloud server for only $5/month. Get 4 months free using the code changelog2018. Start your server - head to linode.com/changelog

Featuring:

• Jeff Robbins – Website, X
• Tim Smith – GitHub, X

Show Notes:

• Yonder
• Lullabot
• 123 Astronaut
• Tim O’Reilly Book
• Drupal Project

We’ll be taking a break, and will be back on August 29th. If you or someone you know would make a great guest on the show, send an email to [email protected].

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

Thirteen years ago, Ashley Baxter inherited the family insurance business when her Dad passed away. Even though she’s a talented photographer, and built a successful photography business, the insurance industry kept calling her name. Ashley talks about what excites her about insurance, the challenges of running a business, and how burnout forced her to focus.

Join the discussion

Changelog++ members support our work, get closer to the metal, and make the ads disappear. Join today!

Sponsors:

• Hired – Salary and benefits upfront? Yes please. Our listeners get a double hiring bonus of $600! Or, refer a friend and get a check for $1,337 when they accept a job. On Hired companies send you offers with salary, benefits, and even equity upfront. You are in full control of the process. Learn more at hired.com/afk.
• Fastly – Our bandwidth partner. Fastly powers fast, secure, and scalable digital experiences. Move beyond your content delivery network to their powerful edge cloud platform. Learn more at fastly.com.
• Rollbar – We catch our errors before our users do because of Rollbar. Resolve errors in minutes, and deploy your code with confidence. Learn more at rollbar.com/changelog.
• Linode – Our cloud server of choice. Deploy a fast, efficient, native SSD cloud server for only $5/month. Get 4 months free using the code changelog2018. Start your server - head to linode.com/changelog

Featuring:

• Ashley Baxter – Website, X
• Tim Smith – GitHub, X

Show Notes:

• Be a confident freelancer | With Jack
• Girl With A Camera | Pictographs of Ashley Baxter’s life.
• Ashley Baxter - YouTube

Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!