Location: Bloomington, Indiana (United States)

Remote: Yes

Willing to Relocate: No

Résumé/CV: http://forestgafford.com

Email: (firstname).(lastname)@gmail.com (name is on resume)

Summary: Senior developer for small company. I have had my hands in most every aspect of delivering for software for a dev shop. I am the lead developer and technical lead for a number of teams. I task, oversee and preform code review for jr developers and well as interface directly with clients. I oversee and maintain multiple production deployments in secure environments.

Credentials:

- Secret Security Clarence

- SEC+ Certified

Systems/Programming Languages:

- Kotlin

- React & TypeScript

- Python

- Headless Linux & Bash

- Docker

- Kubernetes

- EC2

Personality:

I am very outgoing and often function as an internal liaison for for teams looking for guidance on what clients desire from wares. Ideally I would like to move into a more consultant type role but am very comfortable leading a team and interfacing directly with clients.

This is inspiring!

I am 37(male) going though one and its certainly has its up and downs. Maybe a few here can let me know what field I should break into.

I am Sr developer in the industry for a decade. Regular dev shop and manage 3-4 direct reports and play the senior tech role for a couple of projects at any given time. I enjoy working with code but much less so then years ago.

I have a LOT of personality (meeting new people, selling myself, etc.) that I sadly don't get to us at all in my current position. I went to a work conference in DC back in February and talked to strangers non-stop for three days. I loved every minute of it. I am getting bored being at a desk all day and would rather use my personality in my work. I have my past in the technical and want to use my personality to make money now. I know there has to be a place where that's an advantageous combo. I am not afraid to take a pay-cut in transition. My company will hopefully be acquired soon so I should be able to do some hunting.

Any advice on what I should pursue? Welcome to suggestions and any private message etc with suggestions. Thanks!

I am all for doing things together and that is usually how we men bond. However, we do need each other emotionally as well, when stuff gets real.

I have been going through mid-life issues lately. Its been hard to talk to friends about it. I have talked to older men as well as peers. I have made it a point to overcome the fear of opening up personally (make no mistake, its a fear that kept me from opening up to others before). I am a strong believer in letting it out there in the hopes that others are able to help. To many of the men I know do not want to show weakness. They try and look tough/strong/having it together, but really they are lonely because they have no one to help them through their struggle. The hardest part is that they choose this by deciding its more important to look strong them to have encouragement from friends.

I have seen a discouraging trend. Those that are not able to open up about their own issues are the ones that are not able to help me when I am going through issues. They don't know how to relate and its almost that some of them are afraid to enter into a deeper need. They have nothing to say, even if they can relate their words are empty because there is not a deeper bond there. The friends that have helped me are the ones that have actually reminded who I am and what I have already come through.

I am not saying we have to be a touchy feeling but when my friend is in a dead end/low paying job (in his mid 40s), had a side project partner back out on him, has to move out of his apartment because of new renters, and has a wife that is in increasingly dissatisfied with apartment living and tells say "I'm doing ok" on the phone... He is dying inside and won't let others in.

I am not afraid to go there with my buds. I will also so say that the men I go deep with always walk away from the conversation thanking me and grateful for the friendship.

Exactly, the reason that people feel so alone is because of void "interactions" on social media.

Disagree. Its these reminders like this that make it so that we don't take the years we have for granted. We need these reminders all the time.

I'm always thankful for the reminders. Especially this one as its actually about children. I will be sure to spend extra time with them today.

Disagree. People holding to the lab leak theory were seen as racist/Xenophobic until the new leadership (president of U.S. arrived) and all the sudden its not a racist theory.

Lest we forget, China's reaction to Australia’s call for an international probe into the origins of the corona-virus pandemic was by no means working together for the global good.

I wish I could agree with the thought but that's not what I remember happening.

As for history: Communication in the 21st century has made it so that there is constant talk between countries but this cannot be confused with collaboration.

The Spanish flu of 1918 was clearly different then this due to it being in the late stages of WWI.

Amen!

Thank you. Cannot agree more. Let's live out lives. Do what we love, grow in it and stop dividing.

Our office director is scared and has closed down again (were doing 3 days a week in person) due to Omicron. I don't personally think it was necessary and I liked working there in the quite (away from kids).

But, whatever. I am done with the fighting and with the political division over it.

I remember, and I am sure that many others do if they are honest with themselves. America needs to stand united. We have let politics drive a deep wedge between neighbors and families.

We live at the peak of the information age but our natures have not changed. Both left and right need to focus on being unified, not strong-arming the other side.

And people on "the left and right" need to remember that plenty of people don't believe in "sides" and just want to live their lives without being bullied around by whoever happens be in power or whatever ideas are popular at the moment.

I don't want unity. People obsessed with politics think they just need consensus to solve any problem, despite the atrocious track record of political solutions. Just leave the rest of us alone.

> I don't want unity

And this sentiment is problematic, because other countries have unity and are not afraid to use it.

Thank you for this read. Very observant and insightful in only a few words. Communism is the outcome if this mindset continues. Like you said, we must teach others not to believe the lies of victimhood. Thank you so much for sharing. Teach it to all you encounter.