2025 has been a long road

Finally, I'm on substack, and I'll tell you a story

I’ve had a difficult year. At the start of 2025, I was leading a small, talented, and relentlessly cool team of designers, researchers, and strategists for a government contract, which I’d been doing since 2021. Working for the US government was a career pivot for me from User Experience Design (mostly tech) to Customer Experience Design (with a broader focus). Work was pretty rad! And every day, we had opportunities to make people’s lives easier and more fun.

When Trump got elected, I knew it would be bad, but not, like, immediately. And not this bad. I was so wrong. Work turned bizarro on Day One of the Trump presidency. Within months, my job disappeared like a vestige of of a happier timeline, Back to the Future-in-a-polaroid-picture-style.

Comic I published February 18th, 2025

And I was in good company. Lots of people I know here in Arlington, VA got kicked to the curb. I was pretty sure getting a new job would be rough, and it totally is. I’ve talked to many cool people and had promising prospects, but nothing has panned out yet. I’m still out there looking enough to get friendly rejections on the regular. (Hit me up with ideas & opps if you have them btw!)

But I’m not just a fancy designer type, I’m also a cartoonist and maker! So instead of being unemployed, I’m funemployed. And instead of being a cartoonist with a day-job, I’m now automatically a full-time artist. It’s an occupation in search of an income.

Comic I published Jan 22, 2021

The stress of that bullshit, plus other pressing matters (I’ll spare you for now), had me drop out of the weekly comics game again — something I did before when I was killing myself to balance cartooning for Cosmopolitan with a stressful full-time tech job and caring for an adorable screaming newborn. Feels like I tend to ghost out without warning. I’m fucking hard on myself about it too. I’m sorry.

emo drawing from my journal

But now I’m gonna be good again, post every week and maybe more! I also miss blogging so I’m bringing it back.

So welcome to my substack! Get on the wagon to read my weekly comics and then some. If I disappear again, grab my shoulders and shake me and remind me how much more fun life is when you’re making shit & sharing it.

Thanks friends 💖