#blackgirlcoding

[pandasandeggs]

Hey, I'm Panda!

A dear friend who believes in me inspired me to try to learn all the things I want to. Programming is one of those things. I dipped my toes in Python and now I'm working on learning Javascript. I have an interview for a coding bootcamp next week (go big or go home, right?) so we'll see how that goes. Anyway, I'm gonna try to talk about mostly programming stuff here.

Wanna help me learn? Message me.

Wanna share tech/coding stuff? Send it.

Wanna share what its like being black or a woman (or both) in the tech industry? I'm all ears boo.

I'm pretty friendly.

What does this have to do with pandas and eggs? Nothing. I just like pandas and love eating eggs. Let's go get breakfast one day.

Panda

[pandasandeggs]

I got accepted!

My technical interview was yesterday and I got accepted to Flatiron School! I'm super excited for this chapter in my life! I get to learn programming and hopefully become a web developer! And thanks to a full scholarship from Facebook and The Houston Urban League, I get to go for free!

So... next steps:

1. Finish the prep work - Luckily, they don't just throw you in with no idea what you're doing. Everyone starts on the same page with the Javascript and Ruby prep work they give you. So I'm going to finish that.

2. Start my own project - I hear the best way to learn to code is to just do it. So I'm going to program a Calorie Counter as a side project. Like MyFitnessPal but, simplified (until I learn more).

3. Write a letter to myself - I know my own brain hacks pretty well and if something gets too hard, I will at some point want to quit. But if I love something enough, I'll hop on the struggle bus and keep on truckin. So while I am full of hopefulness and positive energy, I write words of encouragement to myself to help me get through! It works. Everytime.

4. Build my support team - I'm sure my instructors and classsmates will be part of this, but I have a lot of programmers in my life. And most of them have offered to help me through this learning process (thanks y'all). There is a Girls Coding group in my city. I'm going to start going to their meetups. I think that's enough to get me going in the right direction.

Panda