Geek Mama

Photo by Sebastian Delmont

I’ve been to a few conferences in my day, and I have to say that I am a true fan of the single track, short 30 minute presentation thing.  RubyConf was an intimate gathering of super friendly folks.  

Usually, I just hang out in the back and watch.  At rubyconf2008, I was engaged and talking with everyone and at the end I felt like I was a part of something special.  I learned a lot and made a few friends and it was the best conference evah!

Monday, I was scheduled to attend the Fluent In Ruby: Getting Beyond The Basics workshop taught by Russ Olsen.  Unfortunately, my babysitter (a.k.a. MIL) went to the hospital (she’s fine now, thanks) a few hours before.  Not wanting to miss a class I was really looking forward to, I thought I’d try bringing Lilli and see what happened.  She’s a very easy going baby and I figured I could always step out and go home if she was fussy or otherwise bothering people. It was worth a shot since I live only 25 minutes away.

I felt very “cosmo-mom” bringing my baby to a conference.  Of course, these events tend to be male dominated and I wasn’t sure how the guys would feel to have a pregnant lady with a baby in class. Some of the 20-somethings didn’t know where to look, but many of the attendees were fathers themselves. They made it a point to smile, ask my baby’s name and tell me about their own kids.

Our speaker, Russ Olsen was a little taken aback when he heard “moaning” in the back of the room during his talk but then was pleasantly tickled to discover that it was just the coos of my little girl.  He should be flattered.  Lilli was engaged in his talk for over 3 hours.  All in all, everyone was very kind.  And while I did feel a little awkward, Lilli enjoyed herself immensely.  That’s my girl!  

Most notably, I had lunch on Wednesday with Jon “Lark” Larkowski, Tammer Saleh, Pat Maddox, Sandi Metz, Sophie and Carlisia.  Sandi, Sophia, Carlisia and I had sat down at a table to chat girl geek talk since we were the only four female coders at the conference.  We were engaged in a very lively discussion about gender and technology when Jon, Tammer and Pat sat down with us and joined in.  I was really pleasantly surprised that these guys weren’t intimidated by our conversation but rather were willing to hear us rant and answer our pointed questions.  

In particular, we asked what kind of developer does your company prefer to hire and would adding a female coder significantly change your company culture.  Not surprisingly, ruby folk tend to prefer well rounded people who have lives away from their laptops.  And yes.  Women in the workplace does change the atmosphere but for the better in many ways.

For me, the theme of this conference was community, an inclusive community of geeky hipsters where all are welcomed to contribute with their own unique viewpoints and talents.  Nice job, Obie.  And thanks for linking to me on your blog.  Can’t wait for next year.