The Intermission

The Intermission: The Homestead

Period: February 2025 – August 2025 Location: The Florida Homestead

I was laid off from Hypergiant in February 2025 during industry-wide budget cuts. I spent the next several months on my homestead in Florida working on permaculture and beekeeping, before relocating to New Mexico.

What I actually did

• Managed active honeybee colonies, which meant learning to read a decentralized system under stress: catching what was off before it became a real problem.
• Designed and maintained a food forest, which is its own kind of systems work: how one plant supports another, how water moves, how nothing is really waste.
• Spent real time with my family instead of just being around them.

I don't think a layoff needs to be spun into something it wasn't. I needed the time, and I used it. The habits are the same ones I use in design work: pay attention to the constraints, understand what the system actually needs, and don't mistake short-term output for long-term health.