The rockstar myth is so pervasive because it’s far easier to assume someone succeeded on their own than it is to picture the many people who helped them along the way. I don’t know a single person who can honestly say they don’t have anyone to thank for where they are today.
So much time is spent writing and talking about technology, code, and frameworks. I like to do those things too — I like writing about CSS, Design, and the intersection of art and technology. But today, I want to talk about the people in tech, specific people, who use their spare time to build communities and to build people up.
Why? Because I’m working on something really challenging right now, and I find myself full of gratitude as I reflect on all of the people who have supported me along the way. I did not get here alone.
Before I start, I do want to give special thanks to the people I’m too shy to mention here because we either haven’t met yet or just haven’t talked much, but whose blogs, tweets, and community work I learn from and look forward to. Thank you for putting your time, your thoughts, and yourselves out there. It is so appreciated.
This isn’t a complete list by any means, nor is it in any kind of order. I just have a lot of people to thank for the amazing place I find myself in, and the things I am able to work on.
First and foremost, thank you to my husband and partner Tim Shelburne, who is a badass genius with an unparalleled work-ethic. He’s the smartest and most capable person I have ever met. I would not be where I am today without his support and unwavering belief in me.
Thank you to the ladies of Women Who Code Austin, especially Holly Gibson, Tricia Katz, Tracy Holmes, and Taylor Barnett. You all are the reason I found the guts to switch careers and jump into tech. I remember the first time I came to my first Women Who Code meetup and wondered “am I even allowed to be here? I am an art teacher, and the last time I coded anything was high school” but I was instantly welcomed.
Thank you to Jen Simmons for doing so much hard work to teach people about all things layout and especially CSS Grid. The web is going to look so much better thanks to your work.
Thank you to Malika Butler and Brenda Storer for organizing the CSS Layout Club! That has been my favorite meetup of all time, and each one is something to look forward to even after a long day at work.
Thank you to Jen Kramer for keeping me teaching. Getting to be a guest lecturer for your course meant a lot. I mean, how can I not nerd out about Harvard? It was awesome.
Thank you to Miriam Suzanne for being a kind and thoughtful person with a mind for patterns and building systems. I enjoy every conversation we have, and I hope we keep seeing each other at conferences.
Thank you to Stacy Kvernmo for literally being a CSS cheerleader and inspiration.
Thank you to Amelie Lamont for being an awesome coworker who has made me laugh a million times already. Let’s grab lunch again soon :)
Thank you to Tab Atkins for the encouragement after I gave my color theory talk for the first time at Sass Conf. I was nervous, and I felt completely intimidated by all the amazing people in the room, and your kind words and interest in this topic made me keep working on it — and I still am! :)
Thank you to Brad Westfall for championing CSS in a JS world, and for bringing me to Arizona this year. I had a truly awesome experience.
Thank you to Glen Maddern, whose work on CSS modules blew my mind, but so did your use of emoji classes. You are a cool guy and I hope to visit Australia sometime.
Thank you to Mike Riethmuller for being an awesome dude and having awesome ideas. Your fluid typography talk is still super useful to me, and I can’t wait to meet up again at another conference and have another awesome conversation (I’ll bring Tim this time :)
Thank you to Sarah Drasner for showing the world what it means to be well versed in the arts and in engineering, and constantly fighting the good fight to show that creativity and technology are not at odds. Your work inspires me and makes me feel a whole lot less alone.
Thank you to Sareh Heidari for being so kind and for a truly wonderful conversation and truly supportive Twitter correspondence :)
Thank you to Micah Godbolt for the Sass Bites interview and the work you’ve done to amplify people’s voices. Also for your cool work on design systems — hopefully I can make it to your workshop in NOLA this year!
Thank you to Wes Bos for making awesome resources and teaching in a project-based way. As a former teacher, I really enjoy a well crafted curriculum and well executed projects, and your lesson modules are completely awesome. I know that they must take a monumental amount of effort, but it is so appreciated!
Thank you to Chris Coyier for bringing so many resources and tools to the front end world, and also for writing that article about my emoji toggles. Honestly, I created that Codepen because I was starting to feel burned out, and just a bit of that attention and signal boost helped to remind me that CSS is amazing and to keep pushing to do creative work with code.
Thank you to Rachel Nabors for being an awesome and determined woman showing the world what animation is capable of. I seriously had no idea. I think you still hold the record for most dense and info-packed talk I have ever sketch-noted (and I still reference it, sometimes!)
Thank you to Lara Schenk for hosting New York codepen meetups and being so damn welcoming when I moved to New York! You are awesome and your hiring talk is still one of my favorites.
Thank you to Elyse Holladay for being such a leader in the Austin tech scene and bringing Sass Conf down South. That was my first conference as a speaker, not as an attendee, and it changed the trajectory of my career. I am so grateful for the effort that it took to plan that conference (doubly so, since you were planning your wedding at the same time)
Thank you to James Steinbach for making me see the music in CSS.
Thank you to Katie Fenn for being so damn helpful at Scotland CSS. I don’t often get flustered, but you were there to help me with whatever I needed and saved my day. Your kindness and openness meant a lot.
Thank you to Jem Young for talking me through the options and giving great advice when I moved to New York and was looking for my next career adventure.
Thank you for Lourdes Montano for some awesome conversations and for making me realize I have to get to Argentina asap!
Thank you to Kevin Lozandier for the great conversations at conferences and at Gotham Sass — so cool you’re on the other coast now!
Thank you to Tyler Sticka for awesome illustrations and svg work, and for one great bowl of chowder in Pike place.
Thank you to Eli Fitch for making me realize the power of perceived performance (I reference the sketchnotes I made during your talk quite a bit) and also thank you for making a ton of really fun art on the internet. I really enjoy it.
Thank you to Erin Young for the awesome design work done by Slide UX. I really appreciated your thoughtful design work and well crafted design patterns, but most of all, I had a great time working with you.
Thank you to Michael Mifsud for all the feedback on my color stuff, I know it didn’t work out for your project, but you trying it out gave me so much great info and so much to work on. I really appreciate you taking the time.
Thank you to Aisha Green — from Sassconf to New York, I’ve really enjoyed talking to you and getting your perspective on things, and I really appreciate your work on organizing Gotham Sass.
Thank you to Jina Bolton for being the heart of design systems, and then on top of it all, for organizing an awesome conference. I am still grateful that you thought of me to sketchnote Clarity Conf this year, even though I sadly can’t make it work this time. The invitation meant a lot.
Thank you to Ari Stiles & Christopher Schmitt for organizing an amazing conference! CSS Dev Conf was the first conference that I attended, and I can say without a shadow of a doubt that it changed my life. I met so many amazing people that weekend, ate so much good food, and drank so much delicious chicory coffee. The ideas I was exposed to at that conference have fueled so much discovery and learning. Plus, that’s when I got into sketchnoting!
Thank you to TJ Pitre for being an awesome person and an incredible foodie, thanks to whom I not only had the best meal of my life in New Orleans, but I got a chance meet the speakers at CSS Dev Conf. Talk about impact, Tim and I living in New York now can basically be traced back to that dinner. So glad to have met you! I can’t wait to be back in New Orleans and visit with you and Katie and your little!
Thank you to Chris Reed, who was an ally and a huge help, always taking the time to help me out or talk through a feature. You and Alyx are awesome people and I am so glad to call you friends.
Thank you to Adam Baird, who was a kick ass leader as we did the impossible and wrote the most amount of code ever. The camaraderie of the team you led was pretty amazing and it’s something I’ll always look back on fondly.
The friendly folks of Hoodie who seem to be the iced-coffee drinking welcoming party at every conference, domestic and abroad, and on Twitter.
Thank you to my awesome fellow engineers at The New York Times, Brandon Root, Brandon Hopkins, Michael Renehan, and JC Montemayor. You all are amazing and supportive and I am so happy to work here.
