Personally Speaking
Published on Oct 30, 2015 (updated Feb 5, 2024), filed under misc. (Share this post, e.g., on Mastodon or on Bluesky.)
After my eternal travels I’ve had entered a new stage of my life. Now that I and the dust have settled a little, the position that I assume in the world is a bit more clear, at least for the next couple of years.
A few notes about that position.
My main priority is writing. By now one can well say that I’m an author, by profession. I don’t even know how it happened that I’ve ended up writing books. (Coincidence? That’s why I love philosophy.) A new book is in production as we speak [there we go], and as I edit this post I have three manuscripts open in other tabs.
My other priority is studying. Studying academically. I’ve decided to close the holes that I discovered in my own philosophy, psychology, sociology studies. I’m studying philosophy and economics at the Universität Hamburg.
I’m still in tech. The book in production is about coding standards (with my home publisher, O’Reilly), and one of the other manuscripts I’m working on at the moment is also related to web development. I’m following important web dev lists and sites. I’m still, albeit not overly active, on the editorial panel of Smashing Magazine, and I’m also a member of the website jury of Design Made in Germany. I’m planning to attend and speak at some upcoming conferences. I’m tinkering on some of my own projects. And I’m open for ambitious ideas.
I may tweak my writing here. I shy away from such statements not to alienate you, the people who’ve been following my work over the years, but I suppose with my range of topics and ramblings I have already done so a few times. My academic studies don’t only ask for adjustments in time management, but they also, already, mend my views. And so I’ve become more critical of the more spontaneous philosophical and political musings—critical enough that I’ve even discarded a couple of them. Still! I’ll keep on writing posts and articles in this place.
Putting a bit of “personal” in: Returning to Europe has brought the rest (in motion) that I needed, but not the kind of connection I was hoping for. Both family-related and political idealism have been choked, though the latter is not dead—it has simply taken the backseat again until the time is right. I’m happy to be around friends again (my best friends are all scattered around, yet a handful are in northern Germany), and yet I feel the need to meet and interact with more like-minded people, to build new and additional friendships. One cannot have too many good friends! If you are like-minded and drawn to dressy OCD-type lost souls, please say hello when you’re near Hamburg.
That’s it.
About Me
I’m Jens (long: Jens Oliver Meiert), and I’m an engineering lead, guerrilla philosopher, and indie publisher. I’ve worked as a technical lead and engineering manager at various companies, including Google; I’m an open-source developer and a contributor to web standards (like HTML, CSS, WCAG); and I write and review books for O’Reilly and Frontend Dogma.
I love trying things, not only in web development and engineering management, but also with respect to politics and philosophy. Here on meiert.com I talk about some of my experiences and perspectives. (Please share feedback—interpret charitably, keep it friendly, but do be critical.)