01software engineercreative technologistb.s. computer science

I build the parts you see and the parts you don't.

Backend engineer by trade, website builder by choice. I spend my days inside monitoring systems and my spare energy helping people turn a business idea into something you can actually visit. The goal is the same either way: technology that feels a little more human.

Let's talk about your project See the work

input · a complex system

output · something people
enjoy using

fig. 01 — the part I find fun

no jargon required · engineers welcome too

02 · hello

Two sides.
Same brain.

I'm a software engineer with a computer science degree and a professional background in backend engineering, monitoring systems, and observability. I like understanding how things actually work, then explaining them in a way that makes someone else go "oh, that's it?"

As friends started their own businesses, I discovered how much I enjoy building websites that help people bring an idea to life. It turns out the two sides feed each other: the engineer keeps the creative honest, and the creative keeps the engineer curious.

pick a side (there is no wrong answer)

  • aAnalytical and organized, with a soft spot for a clean dashboard.
  • bDetail-oriented: the kind of person who reads the logs before guessing.
  • cComfortable in backend code, monitoring data, and hosting setups.
  • dTechnically curious and always learning the next thing.

03 · selected work

Real businesses. Real websites. Both live right now.

Two sites built for people I know, each with its own identity. Neither is a concept piece. Click through and poke around.

alscurlsandcoils.com Open alscurlsandcoils.com in a new tab
The Al's Curls & Coils homepage: the headline “Learn to love the curls you were born with” beside a photo of Allie, on a warm cream background.

design + build · small business

Al's Curls & Coils

A curly-hair salon in Reno, Nevada built around curl education: a custom dry cut plus the know-how to style it at home.

Visit the site (opens in a new tab)
challenge
Explain an unusual first-visit model, pricing tiers, and product recommendations without overwhelming a first-time guest, and get them to the booking page.
approach
A warm cream, rust and espresso palette with Cormorant display type and italic emphasis, a long-scroll story from the work to the services to the booking link, and a dedicated "for my guests" area for referrals and quick links.
built with
  • HTML
  • CSS
  • JavaScript
  • Cormorant + Figtree, self-hosted
  • Schema.org data
  • Vagaro booking
  • Cloudflare hosting
vasquezpfc.com Open vasquezpfc.com in a new tab
The Vasquez Pipeline and Fuel Construction homepage: a navy header with a gold “Get a quote” button, the headline “Built on integrity. Driven by excellence.”, and the company emblem.

design + build · industrial contractor

Vasquez Pipeline & Fuel Construction

A fueling and civil contractor working across pipeline construction, fueling systems, civil site work, and concrete.

Visit the site (opens in a new tab)
challenge
Give a serious, safety-first contractor a credible online presence that turns commercial visitors into quote requests, with four distinct service lines that all lead somewhere.
approach
Deep navy with a safety-gold accent, all-caps Archivo Black headlines over Barlow body copy, value badges under the hero, a four-card "What we do" section, a project gallery, and a "Get a quote" action repeated through the page.
built with
  • HTML
  • CSS
  • JavaScript
  • Archivo Black + Barlow
  • Google Fonts
  • Schema.org data
  • Render hosting

project 03 · reserved

The next one goes here. Same structure: a title, a preview, a short description and a link are enough to look finished.

Could be yours

04 · now building

My own app, start to finish. Beta opens soon.

The two sites above were built around other people's ideas. Tally is mine: the product, the design, the iPhone app, and the server behind it.

Tally

beta · coming soon

The social TV & movie tracker. Log what you watch, rate what you love, and see which subscriptions are actually worth it.

Ask to join the beta

I'll send the TestFlight link when it opens

  • The ledgerWhat each streaming service cost you per watch over the last 30 days, and whether it's earning its keep.
  • TrackShows in progress, the next episode one tap away, your watchlist, and a diary by month.
  • DiscoverToday's Top 10, filtered to the services you actually pay for.
  • CommunityFollow friends, see what they rated, and review what you watched.
platform
iPhone, iOS 17 or later. Free on TestFlight during the beta.
built with
A native SwiftUI app that shares one backend, database and account with the Tally website (Next.js, Prisma, Postgres) · Sign in with Apple or Google, no passwords

05 · what I can help with

Four things I'm good at. Pick the one that sounds like your problem.

  • 01

    Website design & development

    For small businesses and individuals who need a thoughtful, professional online presence that actually represents them.

    • Business and informational sites
    • Portfolio and service sites
    • Redesigns and UX improvements
    • Responsive layouts and visual polish
    • Platform and hosting guidance
    • Domain setup and deployment planning
    creative
  • 02

    AI & technology guidance

    For people who keep hearing about new tools and want someone to explain them without the hype or the homework.

    • Beginner-friendly AI lessons
    • Technical concepts in plain language
    • Exploring AI tools and real use cases
    • Spotting where tech saves you time
    • Getting comfortable with new tools
    • Honest takes on what's worth it
    approachable
  • 03

    Backend engineering

    For teams and clients whose needs line up with my day job: an established part of my professional background, not a side quest.

    • Backend development and problem-solving
    • Code improvements and troubleshooting
    • API and integration work, where it fits
    • Backend logic and data processing
    • Collaboration with existing dev teams
    • System-level debugging
    engineering
  • 04

    Monitoring & observability

    My professional specialty. Helping teams understand what their systems are doing, why, and what the data is trying to tell them.

    • Monitoring systems and strategy
    • Making sense of monitoring data
    • Operational visibility for teams
    • Understanding system behavior
    • Alerting that people don't ignore
    • Observability practices, grounded in real work
    engineering

Not sure what you need?

Tell me what you're trying to accomplish, and we can figure out the technical details together. You don't need to know the vocabulary. That's my job.

Start with the problem

06 · how I approach problems

The same loop, whether it's a website or a pager going off.

while (true) { understand → explore → build → refine }

  1. step 01

    Understand

    Start with the problem, the goals, the audience, and the constraints. Ask the questions nobody thought to ask yet.

  2. step 02

    Explore

    Identify the right tools, ideas and approaches. Sometimes the answer is a new framework. Sometimes it's a phone call.

  3. step 03

    Build

    Turn the plan into a thoughtful, practical solution. Organized enough that future-me (or your team) can read it.

  4. step 04

    Refine

    Test, improve, and pay attention to the details that matter. Then watch it in production, because that's where the truth is.

07 · the person behind the commits

Happiest when something finally works. Second happiest explaining why.

I get genuinely excited about new technology, I enjoy the quiet satisfaction of something finally working, and I'll happily talk about either over coffee. I'm also the friend who color-codes the spreadsheet. Nobody asked. It's better now.

"Most bugs aren't the computer being wrong. They're the computer doing exactly what someone told it to. Learning is mostly figuring out what you actually said."
Skyla Urman smiling, in sunglasses and a striped blouse.
fig. 02 — curious, driven, creative

status

200 ok · all systems curious
role
Software engineer, backend & monitoring
degree
B.S. Computer Science
mode
Building, learning, occasionally both at once
uptime
Pretty good, honestly

currently exploring

updated Oct 2026

  • Shipping Tally's TestFlight betain progress
  • Production launches for client-facing websitesin progress
  • Observability practices, beyond the dashboardsongoing
  • AI tools for everyday work, and how to teach themongoing

08 · let's talk

Have an idea, a technical question, or a problem you've been trying to solve?

Tell me about it in your own words. Websites, AI questions, backend help, or "I don't know what this is but it's broken" are all valid starting points.

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message received

Got it. Thanks for reaching out.

I read every message myself and usually reply within a couple of days. If it's urgent, say so and I'll move faster.