In Ottawa This Week

Return to the Capital City

I don’t know if the Rideau Canal looks like this right now, but Ottawa is damned cold this time of year. However, it’s the home base of Shopify, where I hold the title of Platform Evangelist, and I make it a point to try and regroup with my team face-to-face every six weeks or so.

I’m due for another visit, so I’m going to be in Ottawa from late morning on Monday, January 30th to late morning on Saturday, February 4th. If you’re based in Ottawa and want to catch up while I’m there, leave a note in the comments, drop me a line via email or send me a tweet at @AccordionGuy!

Home Security

A number of people have asked me if it’s such a good idea to post on the blog when I’ll be away from home. For many people, doing so is a bad idea, but in my particular case, it’s not so bad because:

• My line of work – tech evangelism, or basically being the company’s schmoozer and spokesmodel – is one where it’s better that people know where I’m going to be, so they can catch up with me. If I’m not communicating, I’m not earning my keep.
• My building has the best possible type of security team. Yes, there are security guards, but that’s not the team I’m talking about. The team to which I refer is so good that they catch all sorts of wrongdoing: they’re grumpy retired people who like to watch the lobby cam channel on their TVs. Not only are they good at catching suspicious-looking characters loitering about the building, they’re also good at catching residents breaking the rules. I once got nailed by them for trying to bring in a big piece of furniture without first booking an elevator (and thus getting the padding put up on its walls) – and I was doing so after midnight. Hell hath no passive-aggressive fury like the members of a condo owners’ board.