Family first
Work and projects fill plenty of pages here, but being a husband and dad is the real story. Everything else gets arranged around that.
About Andrew
My little place on the internet to shamelessly write about myself.
I’m Andrew Hartnett: engineer, builder, writer, husband, and dad.
For now, this is a record of where I’ve been and what matters to me. Someday, it will be part of what I leave behind.
Last updated August 2026
The short version
Timeline
A few turns in the road. Not a résumé—just some context.
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Born in Santa Ana, California
Moved to Salt Lake City, Utah before I turned two.
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Got my first guitar
I dreamed of being a Country Music star
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Graduated from West High School
Played on West High’s state championship basketball team.
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West High, Utah State Champions, 2009 -
Moved to Missoula for college
I started in psychology, switched to business, and eventually found my way to English and computer science. Along the way, I landed my first “real” job at Spectral Fusion Designs, building websites for the university.
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Formed a band
The band lasted one summer, had two names, and played a handful of gigs. I loved every minute. (
Shallow TideHappenstance)View photo Hide photo
Happenstance Band, 2012 -
Graduated college
I student-taught seventh-grade English at Hellgate Middle School and graduated in English and computer science.
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Backpacked Southeast Asia
Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. Living out of a backpack, sleeping in hostels, and eating street food. I caught the travel bug.
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Software became my career
Joined Clearlink as a developer and started treating coding seriously.
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Motorbiked across Vietnam
Bought a motorbike and spent a month riding around the country with my brother and friends.
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Motorbiking, Vietnam, 2016 -
Met my future wife
We met in Aruba, on a blind date. It’s a long story.
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My wife and I, Sun Tunnels, 2016 -
Got married
A beautiful ceremony followed by the most expensive party we’ve ever thrown. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
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First Dance, Wedding, 2021 -
Crypto mania
Probably nothing. WAGMI. Diamond hands. To the moon! I went deep—building, trading, and minting. Swag Panda came out of it.
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Rafting
We already loved camping, and the river made it better.
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Green River, 2022 -
Became a dad
I always knew I wanted to be a dad, and it feels like my purpose.
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My Daughter and I, 2024
The longer version
A few things about me
A collection of beliefs, preferences, and other bits that seem worth remembering.
I enjoy making things
Software, small internet projects, writing, children’s books, poems, and half-finished songs. I have an innate desire to make things, share them, and occasionally perform them.
I get outside
Skiing, golf, rivers, and long stretches away from a screen keep me useful when I come back to one. Outside is where I reset, get perspective, and remember that most things are not urgent.
I have a reading habit
I read widely and rate what I finish. A score is imperfect, but it makes me decide what stayed with me—and gives future me a map back.
Travel shaped who I am
The advice I most often give to people who ask is to get on a plane with just a backpack and go experience the other side of the world. Travel far and wide, and see how different the world is, and also how much it is the same.
I like poetry
I started memorizing poems in sixth grade. Some of my favorites include "Face Upon the Bar-room Floor" - Hugh Antoine D'Arcy , "Cremation of Sam McGee" - Robert Service, "Casey at the Bat" - Ernest Lawrence Thayer, "Man in the Glass" - Peter Dale Wimbrow Sr., "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" - T.S. Eliot, and pretty much anything by Robert Frost. I still have those poems memorized btw.
Don’t overestimate the world and underestimate yourself
Most things are built by ordinary people figuring them out as they go. You can do far more than you imagine.