As seasons shift, so does my path. My time at VMware is ending in the wake of the Broadcom acquisition, and I find myself in a reflective winter — like a full moon over the snow-covered Sierra Nevada, everything quiet and lit up at the same time.
Stepping into VMware was like entering a new world of opportunities, a stark contrast to my previous experiences in startups and mid-cap non-tech businesses. I had the chance to go deep. I embraced my role as a UI engineer, working alongside exceptionally talented people — the original Clarity team and more recently the SPEAR security team. They were not just colleagues but mentors who gave me a chance and taught me many, many things while I rekindled my passion for all things modern web, good UI, UX, and DX. And each of them, in their own way, made me laugh. A lot 🤣. I can’t think of a better group of people to work with.
When I look back on life in general I see moments where I was lucky enough to be part of something unique. Where things seemed almost magical for a while and then life intervened and the world kept turning. My time at VMware — especially with the Clarity team — was one of those moments. At times it seemed too good to be true. Maybe that’s just the imposter syndrome ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Either way, I can’t thank the people responsible for it enough.
Now I’m taking a pause. Diving into personal projects that have been sitting in the “when there’s time” bucket. Getting my hands in the dirt with some landscaping at home. Exploring new web technologies. Letting one season transition into the next the way seasons do — not all at once, but with a feeling that something has already shifted underfoot.
My heart is full of gratitude for the people and experiences during this chapter. Here’s a virtual toast ( 🥃 ) to the future and its uncharted paths. To VMware and everyone who was part of this — thank you. And please, take care of the 🐢‘s, because if I’ve learned nothing else, it’s 🐢‘s all the way down.
