Hi, I’m John Hooks – a web developer who took the scenic route to get here.
The Journey So Far
My path to programming wandered through art school, pomology (yes, that’s the science of growing fruit trees), and running a family crane service business. Along the way, I kept bumping into web technology and JavaScript, circling back to it like a function with questionable recursion.
After 20+ years of being “interested” in web development, I finally committed. Quit construction, dove into code full-time, and now I build systems at LiquidWeb that automate and connect WordPress websites. Turns out all those years of thinking spatially about crane operations translate surprisingly well to system architecture. Who knew?
What You’ll Find Here
This blog is where I document what I’m learning – whether that’s:
- Comedy writing about programmers (because if you can’t laugh at WordPress, you’ll cry)
- Technical deep-dives into automation, WordPress, and whatever rabbit hole I’ve fallen down this week
- The intersection of creativity and code (my art background keeps sneaking into my programming)
- Whatever else my brain decides is interesting at 5 AM
I approach writing like I approach code: with curiosity, some self-deprecation, and a commitment to figuring it out through documentation. Sometimes that means analyzing why programmer jokes land (or don’t). Other times it’s breaking down a particularly gnarly automation problem. Occasionally it’s just observations about the beautiful disasters we create while building the web.
The Comedy Connection
My accidental venture into comedy writing started with making silly content about WordPress developers. What began as jokes for my entertainment evolved into a deeper exploration of why technical comedy works, how character archetypes drive humor, and what makes programmer pain points universally funny to those who’ve lived them.
Turns out, writing comedy and writing code share something fundamental: they’re both about patterns, timing, and knowing when to break the rules you just established.
Let’s Connect
If you’re into WordPress, automation, comedy writing, or just enjoy watching someone figure things out in public, stick around. I promise technical accuracy, occasional laughs, and absolutely no motivational speeches about following your dreams.
Though I did quit construction to become a programmer, so maybe one slipped in there.
Find me overthinking code reviews and comedy structure in equal measure.