tim myers (@denvercoder) on Piclur: I think it’s time for me to tell my full story. It might lose me some followers but so be it. / Piclur

tim myers

Dec 30, 2018

I think it’s time for me to tell my full story. It might lose me some followers but so be it.

16 years ago I started doing .NET development before anyone knew what it was. I got a job with Accenture and was sent to work on the Unemployment System for the state of Colorado. I was completely self-taught. My step-dad gifted me an MSDN subscription in 2001.

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

I started playing with this huge file, (I think it was on 4 CD-ROMs), called “.NET Framework”. I started playing around with the first version of Visual Studio building windows forms apps.

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

Gosh, you are all making me cry. 😭😭😭 🤗

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

I hope you all realize how uncomfortable this makes me feel. I expected a few likes and a retweet or two. I am not...special. My goal was to inspire ONE person going through what I went through. I feel I deserved exactly what I got for the crime I committed. I am not a victim.

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

I don’t even claim to be a good person. That being said, I honestly appreciate all of YOUR words of encouragement. It’s all of you that inspire me. Maybe there is hope that the stigma of feloness can be overcome.

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

But I wonder how different it would be if I was not a white male. There are so many more people that are deserving of praise. Single mothers working two jobs and raising their kids, coding at night when the kids are asleep.

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

Minorities that aren’t being given a fair shake when it comes to employment. That’s who I think should be given a platform.

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

I’m super tired and it’s super late so I hope this last bit doesn’t make me sound like a jackass.

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

I want to thank all of you. You have all made this night something I will never forget and you were all right. I don’t think I lost many followers. 😜

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

I’d like to clarify a few things. 1. What I did was bad, really bad. I deserved the time I got. It’s really hard for me to provide a blow by blow of what happened. Just please take my word, I got what I deserved.

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

2. I appreciate all of the kind words more than you can know. But I’m not a “hero”, or “courageous”...I’m an idiot. I should be a counter point...and example of what NOT to do.

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

3. My ONLY motivation for this post was to maybe help someone in a similar situation. If I knew it would grow this big I probably wouldn’t have posted it.

tim myers

@denvercoder

Dec 30, 2018

4. I realize and I have eluded several times to the fact that part of this is because I am a white male. I have tried to help mostly minorites and women to learn to code because I recognize my privilege. And I’ve been helping people since I got out.

mayuko

@hellomayuko

Dec 31, 2018

Thank you for opening up and sharing your story, and congratulations on all that you’ve accomplished!! You are an incredible human to be able to turn it around like that, of course with the help of the incredible people you had by your side. You’re an inspiration 👏👏👏

tim myers

@denvercoder

Apr 6, 2020

OMG I know this was posted a long time ago but I was going through and re-reading some comments, (I need inspiration too), and I realized that I have watched nearly ALL of your YT videos. 😂 You’re amazing. 👍🏻

AreYouEvenReal

@AreYouEReel

Dec 18, 2020

I think I have read this every year since you posted it and always thought - no, you will never lose followers for speaking and living your truth, and showing people that we can rise from some poo on fire situations