Against my better judgement, I feel it necessary to reply to this.
I tried very hard to end things on a positive note with Pillar. I called Don repeatedly trying to connect with him, I called Jim repeatedly trying to connect with him, and I tried having a civil and adult conversation with Brandt.
What I got was silence, insults, and a legal demand letter for venting to friends and family on Facebook, and a permanent ban from attending user groups hosted at Pillar. User groups that I brought into Pillar.
Do I fault Pillar for firing me? No, of course not. I was a little upset, but I get it. But what they did wasn't an appropriate response and after I learned that they did this to other people as well, I had to act.
Talk to the other developers on my team, they will tell you that I was in good spirits and wished them both well in the future when I got in touch with them.
I did my part to handle things professionally, I really did. Pillar escalated this well out of proportion than it needed to be. Someone needs to speak up and say something about the way Pillar treats people after they are done with them and how they handle critics (these other people who, in some cases are legally gagged against speaking up).
Agreed. This is absolutely the advice to follow at this time. As others have said, we all make mistakes, and should learn from them. The lesson on this one is take the time necessary to cool down before responding in these situations. If you are still feeling a sense of urgency and a need to set things right, that should be a sign you haven't cooled down yet, so wait some more.
Naming names (and there were a _lot_ of names in that post, wow) is way over the line of acceptable in this case. Showing up at a client's site to confront your coworker(s) is borderline dangerous behavior. All of the actions mentioned in the post (including the post itself) will only escalate the situation and increase the sense of urgency of all parties. No good will come of that. Cut your losses and move forward. The firing was completely justifiable, and (OP) you know this, let it go.
Again, not trying to shame or judge, a lot of us have made similar mistakes when we were young, but you do need to learn the lessons in mistakes or you will never mature.
After reading your blog post, you did come across as a bit immature. Sorry. But the decisions you made, the things you did and the fact you vented in public all scream 'first job surprises'
Hope you get what you're looking for. I think your best bet at this point is to walk away and leave it a couple of years.
Things like "insults, and a legal demand letter" are very concerning because they're threatening you. Those things aren't normal responses. You should consider hammering that nail in civil court because they're damaging your reputation.
Wow. Haha. No. That's not at all related. If people buy drugs online, I thought it was best to advise them to test them first. Harm reduction and all that.
A lot of people die from bad mixed up shit, and if they knew there was a way to be sure what they were taking, is in fact what they think they're taking, then I think it's wise to let them know about that.
Definitely continue discussing harm reduction, even if it means putting yourself out there publicly and that some close-minded people will judge you for that.
As for your blog post and the response here, I only have one comment -- continue to focus on your health with the same drive and passion that you have toward coding! I realize you took a few weeks to get healthy and change your diet, but for me at least, learning how to consistently lead a balanced, healthy lifestyle took many years. I'm not suggesting that you read thousands of nutrition studies or anything, but instead everything from learning where the best farmer's markets in your city are, what sports you enjoy and building relationships with people who play them, figuring out what triggers you to make unhealthy decisions, etc. I encourage you to approach your health in a 'holistic' way. It's a long journey and a highly personal one, but it's worth the effort.
You previously post advice on buying drugs safely. Then you compare a sleep device to snorting coke. Even if they have NO relation and you are a 100% clean and sober individual, what are people going to think about you?
It is just showing a pattern of poor judgement. Which is fine, we all make mistakes. But use them as a learning experience to better yourself. Maybe posting a blog after getting fired from a job is not a good thing to do next time it happens?
I have never done any sort of illegal drugs in my life - but the day after I got my CPAP machine in 2001, I said "this must be what being on crystal meth is like".
So his comparison is not out of line. You feel THAT much better/energetic/etc.
I had no proper REM sleep for 4 years (the sleep study said I never slept for more than 30 seconds at a time), and then with the CPAP machine, I slept a solid 12 hours. Just imagine how much better you would feel after that - and give the guy a break for comparing it to coke.
I tried very hard to end things on a positive note with Pillar. I called Don repeatedly trying to connect with him, I called Jim repeatedly trying to connect with him, and I tried having a civil and adult conversation with Brandt.
What I got was silence, insults, and a legal demand letter for venting to friends and family on Facebook, and a permanent ban from attending user groups hosted at Pillar. User groups that I brought into Pillar.
Do I fault Pillar for firing me? No, of course not. I was a little upset, but I get it. But what they did wasn't an appropriate response and after I learned that they did this to other people as well, I had to act.
Talk to the other developers on my team, they will tell you that I was in good spirits and wished them both well in the future when I got in touch with them.
I did my part to handle things professionally, I really did. Pillar escalated this well out of proportion than it needed to be. Someone needs to speak up and say something about the way Pillar treats people after they are done with them and how they handle critics (these other people who, in some cases are legally gagged against speaking up).