It’s often said (and I wish that I could remember the exact quote) that in order to climb a mountain, you have to take 1000 individual steps. Over the past few years, I’ve been trying to climb over a mountain of my own; my attempted transition from working as a sysadmin to working with code as a web developer.

It’s been a long, arduous path with many days and nights sitting in front of my Mac trying to learn the ins and outs of a very fast moving target. There were times that I didn’t think that I would ever achieve my goals but there is a light at the end of every tunnel.

6 weeks ago, my hard work and determination finally paid off when I accepted a full time developer position at Planet Argon in the heart of Portland, Oregon.

I still can’t believe that I get to work on a Mac with my preferred web framework and programming language. Of course, these are just tools and even in the wrong environment the best tools won’t help you or make you happy. Luckily for me, the environment couldn’t be better. I work alongside a group of talented and funny individuals that make work seem…well not so much like work. I know, it’s cliche, but it’s true.