From n00b to Engineer in 1 year

It is my great pleasure (and squee!) to share with my friends, family, PyLadies, twitter nerds, Women Who Code’rs, DevChixen, Systers, and everyone else that I can now say: 

I am an Engineer.

Yes, the same person that once did not know the difference between a compiler and an interpreter, couldn’t explain wtf __init__.py files do, or conceive of generators versus iterators. The same person that took her way too long to admit that you can return more than one item in a function.  This is the same n00b that was once told by Leah Culver that one

”…can’t just learn how to code without a CS degree.”

(I’d like to point out that it’s this exact industry that promotes and cultivates a culture not of ivory tower pedigrees but of free, easy access, and open source education.) Well my friends: by no means am I an expert, nor am I graduating from n00b status.  I am, however, taking my next step.  Drum roll… I am joining Red Hat as a  black hat hacker Associate Software Engineer working with OSS projects integrating RH’s identity and authorization down in Mountain View. Coding, community-building, applied cryptography, what could be better?  I’m just so honored and excited that my new manager and those I will be working with are willing to take a chance on me, and to give me the opportunity to grow into a field that I naively fell in love with (you can’t help who or what you fall in love with).

Oh wait! there’s MOAR!

I’m being given the awesome opportunity of a 2-month, unofficial ‘boot camp’ at Red Hat’s Czech Republic location in Brno.  HUZZAH! *Personal* history insert: I lived in Prague, CZ for a semester in 2006. Loved it. Wrote my senior thesis on its transitional economy. Lived like a queen with beer being cheaper than water.  Utterly ecstatic to visit again. OK I’LL BE HONEST the real reason I’m joining RH is get my own red fedora. #justkiddingnotreally

I’ll still lead PyLadies SF, live in SF, and be heavily involved in the Python community.  Just now employed, with health care, and a hard-earn title.