The things I learned about work
Nearly thirteen years at Ulta Beauty gave me room to grow, experiment, and learn from people I loved working with. A few things I’ve carried with me.
Sometimes the research is a field trip
One of my favorite research afternoons involved going to the LEGO Store for work. A very respectable use of company time, as it turned out.
Making a book for Owen
I gathered my essays for Owen into a book for myself and the people who love him. The collection is private; the story of making it belongs here.
Owen’s Plan: Paid Pregnancy Loss Leave
After losing Owen, I proposed paid pregnancy loss leave at work. Owen’s Plan turns that proposal into practical tools others can use to ask for better support.
The UX of Grief: There Is No Happy Path
I wasn’t expecting an app to know how to comfort me. I wanted it to stop sending me updates about the pregnancy and the baby I had lost. Those are very different requests.
I’m on a Career Break. Apparently, My Brain Didn’t Get the Memo.
I’m taking a break from paid work to be home with my two young children. They are wonderful company, although neither has shown much interest in my background in digital optimization.
Opposite Me
I’m writing this from the balcony of the King Kam while Alec naps and Rosie resists napping. Looking out over the bay, I can see the ship-shaped Royal Kona, where we last stayed, and I imagine “past me” on that balcony opposite me, ruminating over what was fresh pain that feels like a familiar friend to me now.