Hello, my name is Wes Garrison.

I've been fortunate to be able to learn some amazing things. If we get to meet, here are topics we might have in common.

Family

My wife & kids are near and dear to me and we spend a lot of time together. Growing small humans into larger responsible humans takes a lot of care.

Software Development / Ruby & Rails

I started using Ruby & Rails in 2005, pre-1.0 and have never left. I helped produce conferences like Ruby Midwest, ran the local Kansas City Ruby group for several years, and continue to mentor new programmers into their professional programmer careers.

Elections

I started working as an election judge when I graduated college. If it's possible, you should do it, too! I am working to improve voting methods by education and trying to change policy.

Barbeque

I am from Kansas City, so it's basically a requirement to own a smoker and cook something low and slow.

Volleyball

My daughter wanted to play volleyball. The team needed a coach, so I learned an awful lot about volleyball and life along the way.

Physics & Economics

I taught physics to help pay my way through college and enjoyed being around particle accelerators and the academic environment. I had the opportunity to rewrite the lab curriculum and even got to teach a summer section of the lecture, recitation, and lab due to an emergency with a professor.

Economics has been a later enjoyment, both through reading and through podcasts like Planet Money. Some of my favorite books are from the behavioral economics area of the library.

Making things

I love to make things. Home improvement projects: I've built two kitchens from scratch & am slowly finishing my basement. 3D printing fascinates me. Gardening makes things from sun and water that you can eat! Software lets you interact with things in the real world. 

Leadership

While in college, I was elected the President of the Association of Residence Halls and coordinated & ran meetings with 50+ people that all had widely varying opinions. Learning how Rules of Order work and when to use the gavel (and when not to) were valuable lessons to practice and gain experience with at that stage of life. 

Ultimate & Disc Golf

I played and ran the Kansas State club ultimate team while in college and several friends loved disc golf. During the 2020 pandemic, I played a lot more and made an application (discgolfbagbuilder.com) to track discs and visualize where they will fly. Acquired by uDisc.