How did we get here?
I’ve always liked a good puzzle. A good problem. Something to figure out. I love riddles and word puzzles. And escape rooms. I guess I like fidgety things that take research or thinking outside the box to solve. Which makes my enjoyment of essays and research papers make sense. I don’t know why I never thought this way about coding.
When I was a kid, I was naturally really good with animals. I saved my first bird at 4, rescued my first stray cat at 6 (there have been several since). And so, of course, I wanted to be a veterinarian. And once parents realize you have a passion for something that could earn you decent money, they often push you towards that thing.
So imagine their disappointment when, after being a registered veterinary technician for 6 years and 3 years of a biology degree, not only did I not get into vet school, but I realized that wasn’t what I wanted my life to be. I was relieved to get my rejection letter. I realized that my job was burning me out in a big way.
Two years later I walked away from vet clinic work all together. I started dog walking for a company a friend of mine also worked for that was hiring. And three years after that, I started my own company: Treat Train Walk. At first, just taking side pet-sitting jobs while still working for my employer, and then fully launching into my own full time business. Dog walking saved my soul — it let me breathe again, it healed me over time. But it didn’t really challenge my brain, and I honestly found myself getting bored and searching for things to learn in my free time.
And then COVID-19 happened. And everyone started working from home. I lost all of my clients. After being allowed to reopen again in July, only 4 of them came back. All part-time. Not nearly enough to live on. And I realized that maybe it was time to change again. To grow and adapt. So I started looking for other things I could do. And I ended up on Code Academy.
I started off with their web development career path, playing with HTML, CSS and a little Javascript. I also had fun playing with some Python and Ruby. And I realized that coding was fun. Like actually fun. I didn’t expect it to be.
So I talked to my friend Sidra, who is a UX designer and Front-end developer and all over amazing human. I asked her what the industry was like, especially for those of us who are LGBTQ. What was the job market like? What was the day-to-day like? And I liked her answers. And when I started talking about what programs were available, she told me about Juno.
I did a coding 101 workshop a couple of weeks later and I honestly haven’t looked back. I took their Web Development and Javascript Accelerated classes and then immediately applied and got into their next Web Development Immersive Bootcamp.
So far? I’m loving it. Right now, my favourite aspect of coding is probably CSS. I love how easy it is to change the entire look of a website with just a few lines of code. I love that you can actually make art with it (check out www.asinglediv.com ) and I really, really want to learn more about how to do so.
I honestly wasn’t expecting to enjoy coding nearly as much as I am. I think it’s the puzzle I’ve been craving. The problem you never stop solving. the puzzle that grows, changes, and adapts with you. The learning that never stops.
And I’m excited to continue the journey.
