Another WordCamp. But this one’s different – I’m not going as a volunteer but as a speaker, to deliver my first ever talk. All the way up in Edinburgh, it’s also going to be the smallest of the WordCamps I’ve attended too. How will the talk go and what is a smaller WordCamp like?
Category Archives: Life
R.I.P. Penny
On Monday, one of our (two) cats, Penny, had to be put down. Here’s what I posted to Facebook at the time… Sad news. This morning our elder cat, Penny, had to be put to sleep. It looks as if the prolific mouser ate some rat poison, which kicked in overnight.As with all our cats, […]
Age and mental nihilism – rejecting change in older age
When I was 12 I got my first computer – a Commodore 64. I remember talking to my Gran about it and saying how it was easy enough to use, even she could. She shook her said and said, “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”. In her 80s, she never did, but neither […]
My first micro-sabbatical
I recently discussed the idea of a micro-sabbatical – a short time off work where, rather than lay in bed, I use my time for family and self-improvement. Left to my own devices on a day off, I’d probably have a lie-in before watching far too much daytime TV and then even indulging in a […]
It’s official – I’ll be speaking at WordCamp Edinburgh next month
I may have developing on the WordPress platform for 11 years but, as yet, I haven’t been a speaker at a WordCamp. In fact, other than at work, internally, I’ve never given a talk on WordPress at all. So, it’s with some relief that I can announce that I will “pop my cherry” next month, […]
Why Apple’s Giveback scheme isn’t as convenient as you’d think
The brand-new Apple Watch 4 came out yesterday, so users of older models may be considering using Apple’s Giveback scheme to get some money towards the new one. But, certainly in the UK, this doesn’t work quite as well as you’d hope.
Tee-total and vegetarian?
As the world’s (very unofficial) most carnivorous person, it would be a cold day in hell that I’d become vegetarian, right? Well, get the blankets and fire extinguisher out as I’m nearly (but not totally) there. A couple of weeks ago I became tee-total and, starting next week, I’ll be nearly vegetarian. Let me explain…
A Wicked trip to London
It was my wife’s 40th birthday back in June (which I’m sure she won’t appreciate me announcing here) and, as her present, she wanted to see a West End show. We booked tickets to see Wicked in August, which we now just back from. When booking, I decided that a made rush down to London, […]
VIP GM in Montréal, Canada
Automattic has split. Kind of. The VIP team are now working as a separate, autonomous entity, albeit still part of Automattic, and as a result we have the inaugural VIP Grand Meetup. It’s back to Canada again, although the East coast this time.
Talking Support: Following the work of others
Working for the WordPress.com VIP team, I deal with a lot of enterprise-level clients and, although I’ve been working there for over a year and a half now, my experience of technical support goes back over 25 years before this. So, I thought it was time to share some of my knowledge. And, you know, […]