And even if it is, hello and welcome!
I’ve always had trouble introducing myself to others. I can tell you my name (Cody), what I do for a living (nothing since December), and how that can help add value to your life (all I can promise is something to read every Sunday). But that script doesn’t really fit who I am¹. I don’t think it fits who anyone really is.

So, here goes an attempt to sum up the author behind this blog. I was born and raised in Portland, Oregon² where, aside from a brief stint at Corvallis, I have lived ever since (if you’re a potential employer reading this, I am open to moving. I wouldn’t have applied if I wasn’t!). Like many Oregonians, I have a deep commitment towards environmental justice and support efforts to combat climate change. In 2020, I lived in a hotel for two months during the historic wildfire season and saw first-hand what our excessive emission of carbon dioxide does to society. Unless we take drastic action NOW, things will not get better for the planet.

There are other issues that I care about: LGBTQ+ rights, racial equity, improving literacy, gender equality, strengthening local communities, and promoting religious tolerance are the causes I believe in most strongly. I support a two-state solution in Israel and Palestine and demand that Israel accepts the terms of ceasefire. I’ll probably write about these issues from time to time, but the only promise I will make is that there will be something new to read every Sunday.

I am the biggest Taylor Swift fan you will ever meet. I have been a diehard swiftie since the beginning and have been a fan through every album release, complaint that she “only dates guys to write new songs,” and the Kanye drama. I recognize that she is not perfect³, but her music makes me happy and the Eras Tour was a masterpiece.

I am a proud nerd. I play Magic and D&D (though not as often as I would like). Star Wars is an old favorite, as is Trek and Stargate. I’ve read around half of the Honor Harrington books and can spend hours reading through TV Tropes and Atomic Rockets. Although I enjoy hard Science Fiction, I don’t see an issue with the softer fare and enjoy popular fantasy⁴ just as much. The joy of SFF is that it is not the real world.

As of the start of this blog, I am in the freefall of unemployment, waiting to “land on my feet,” as many tell me I will. In December, I found out on a cold and gray Tuesday that my dream job was eliminated to reduce costs in the organization. For seven years, I served the organization in various capacities and, in April of 2023, I was offered a full-time, year-round position. This fulfilled a childhood dream on mine and was far more challenging than I expected. I learned a lot in my tenure there and am grateful for the opportunities I had. I was able to make an impact on the lives of thousands of youth and watch some grow up from being a camper in my first summer to becoming one of my staff in my last (and other variations thereupon).

This news was devastating to say the least. I am still processing these feelings, but that journey will not be a primary focus of this blog. I will update you on how my life and work changes over time, but we will not wallow in despair or indulge in manufactured positivity. Sometimes, things happen to us because they happen to us. If you have to leave something you love behind, I recommend shaking its hand and focusing on what comes next.

After two months of searching for a new role and experiencing rejections or ghosting from my applications, I decided that the idea I had to start a blog wasn’t a half-bad idea. I have always loved to write and to read. My childhood days were filled with stories: mine and others. A good piece of writing can transcend the medium itself and live long after the reader has forgotten the exact syntax used to describe a point.

In every transition point, I have turned towards the written word. My Google Drive is filled with poetry, my hard-drive with stories, and my heart with four ventricles. In times of stress, the neglection of the written word is a sign of my building levels of cortisol.

And so, what better way to feel like I am contributing to the world again than to rely on the written word. In “Contact,” you can find my Storygraph page⁵ where I track what I am reading and my progress on my reading goals. On this website, you can find a selection of my writing. Every Sunday, I will post a new article. I cannot guarantee any topic or niche. I will not guarantee that you will like it. I shouldn’t even guarantee that there will only be articles on Sunday. But, thank you for coming along with me as I try to find the right words.

1. No, not just because I am unemployed and searching for work. It’s actually more of a Latourian philosophical belief, but I can see why you’d say so. ↩︎
2. Technically, I was born in a city-suburb near Portland and was raised outside of an unincorporated rural city whilst commuting for everything in said city-suburb, but “Portland-native” sounds better. ↩︎
3. Flying for thirteen minutes in a private jet is excessive. I can understand her need to fly private; she has far too many stalkers for commercial flights. But, surely you can take an armored SUV between states on the Eastern seaboard! ↩︎
4. Yes, I am referring to A Court of Thorn and Roses. ↩︎
5. You can also find it by clicking on the word “Storygraph” in the footer, but I heard that intersite connectivity is good for SEO. ↩︎