Heya, GitHub!

What a whirlwind day. I have joined GitHub!

Today was my first day as a Hubber. I wanted to mark this new role with a little post of thanks to all those who advocated for me along the way. I won’t be able to mention everyone by name, but there are a few folks who I’d like to mention specially.

First, a shout out to @benbalter for constantly being willing to answer questions I had about Jekyll The Product and how it integrates or could integrate with Pages. He made me excited about GitHub, giving me tours of the fancy HQ and inviting me to a nanosummit in San Francisco to talk about Jekyll and Pages right after I started contracting. And hey! He was my primary mentor and advocate (and PR reviewer) during my time as a contractor, working on Pages. Thanks, Ben!

Second, huge thanks to @gjtorikian for connecting me to the right people (notably @tnm) at the right time in my career. In light of a likely move away from the Bay Area, looking for a remote position made sense. Thanks to him also for his enthusiasm about Pages and Jekyll and spending time in coffee shops commiserating with me about being caremad for Pages and Jekyll.

Next, @jglovier. His gentle-hearted friendship and thoughtful advice has been a huge help for me over the last year or so. He has been an advocate for Jekyll and for me. And, heck, everyone who uses jekyll new can thank him for that swell design!

@imathis giving me access to Octopress partly turned Tom’s hand. Always generous with his time, he is always available to ping for a UX question about Jekyll. Working on Octopress with him taught me so much about developing with the user’s experience in mind. I have also learned so much from his generosity of spirit, both in dealing with contributors in the issues and also in being a more present son, brother, boyfriend, and friend.

The King of Compassion, @balevine, has been an advocate for Pages and, specifically, for improving Pages for a long while. If he hadn’t helped guide the hand of GitHub to think more critically about their approach to Pages, I wouldn’t be here. He, like all Hubbers I have met so far, is kind-hearted and generous with his mind and spirit. I feel lucky to be able to work by his side.

Last, my gratitude to @mojombo. Tom handed my overzealous college self the keys to Jekyll in December of 2013. His hands-off approach allowed me to dive deep and really take ownership over the development of Jekyll since v0.12.1. I wouldn’t have taken an interest in GitHub nor been even remotely qualified if it hadn’t been for the opportunity to work on Jekyll.

This post wouldn’t be complete without thanking all the folks who interviewed me and who made the interview and onboarding processes so wonderful. Thanks, too, to my new team for welcoming me with open arms.

GitHub is already turning out to be an excellent place to work and I am excited to begin my career here. They’re aggressively hiring right now for 2016 — hit me up if you have any questions. I may not know the answers, but I can probably help you find someone who does.

And off I go!