Feel Good Friday - Community Friendships

[Andy Gladstone]

Happy Friday Atlassian Community!

This past week many Atlassians and Atlassian enthusiasts gathered in Anaheim, California for Team '25. I was not able to attend in person, but I was able to attend the virtual sessions on Wednesday and follow more of the content online via LinkedIn on Thursday. 

While I may have missed some of the announcements in real-time, I am sure over the next few weeks I'll catch up on them via blog posts, community articles, and ACE events - in person and virtual.

But what I missed most by not attending in person was getting to spend some in-person time with friends I have found inside this community over the past five years. I don't think I could have ever anticipated the power of this community and the friendships that it has created. 

I am not sure if I am Han or Chewie, Rey or Finn, R2-D2 or C-3PO or Poe or BB-8, but I know I have one or the other inside the Atlassian Community.

So on this Feel Good Friday, tag someone from the Atlassian community that you consider a friend. You may have never met in person or virtually and just know the friend from reading their content in these forums - it does not matter. All that matters is that they have impacted your life through the Atlassian Community.

And if you feel like it, post a meme or GIF along with your tag!

Have a great weekend!

[Barbara Szczesniak]

I have been here for a couple of years. Although I consider many of you friends, I want to call out @Kristian Klima. I have learned so much from you!

[Andy Gladstone]

@Barbara Szczesniak great tag on @Kristian Klima - he is a Confluence King!

[Kristian Klima]

Oh wow! Thank you so much @Barbara Szczesniak , I'm glad you find my presence here useful and helping!

[Kristian Klima]

@Andy Gladstone wow! Thank you!

[Amanda Barber]

Thank you for this post, @Andy Gladstone - you are at the top of my Community friends list! Hoping to meet IRL someday soon! 🫶 @Kristjan Mathiesen and @Jimmy Seddon feel like long-time friends from our online time and it was great to meet Jimmy in person this week and see Kristjan again! 

I also feel like I have new friends in Erica Larson (can't seem to tag her) and @Trudy Claspill from our Disney adventures on Monday!

[Andy Gladstone]

@Erica Larson is who you mean to tag! You were probably looking for milkshake and couldn't find her!

Are the wide smiles due to Disney, or is it just every Atlassian event brings a smile to our faces? 

[Trudy Claspill]

It was so great to meet you @Amanda Barber and Erika Larson!

[Amanda Barber]

@Andy Gladstone - thank you! I could find other Erica Larsons! Apparently I also spelled her name wrong. I blame my midnight arrival! 😴

[Erica Larson]

Definitely new friends! Had so much fun with everyone this week. Thank you Amanda and Trudy for being great Disney buddies.

[Trudy Claspill]

I didn't take pictures but I was happy to see @John Funk again and meet current and former colleagues Larry Brock, Amanda Cortez, and @Luis Machado 

And so many new friendships were forged!

[Andy Gladstone]

All of the above are community rock stars! I was a fan-boy when I first met @John Funk after reading his JWM book. And eve if you didn't get a picture with Larry, we know where you can find plenty of them!

[John Funk]

Agreed! It was so good to see @Trudy Claspill and many other old friends. Not old like @Jack Brickey but meaning we have been friends for a while. 

Shout out to @Chris Rainey 

[Kristian Klima]

Friends come in all possible spirits, so in no particular order

@Barbara Szczesniak for reassuring me my posts are useful :)

@Darryl Lee for writing speaking my favorite language - sarcasm - and making me laugh while learning

@Tomislav Tobijas for knowledge and answering stamina that can only be admired

And all folks from marketplace partners who come here, listen and make their apps better.

[Jack Brickey]

@John Funk , you are killin me. And here I was thinking just how much I missed seeing you at Team this year. I'm going to cry myself to sleep tonight.

[John Funk]

You were definitely missed @Jack Brickey !! I hope you can make it next year.

[John Funk]

@Jack Brickey  - It was also nice of @Andy Gladstone to include a picture of the two of us from Team 24 above. But you need to shave before you come to Team 26. 

[Tomislav Tobijas]

@Kristian Klima Stamina" – fair enough 😅 but "knowledge" is definitely debatable (especially compared to you, hah!)
Shame you missed this Team, but I hope to see you in Barcelona in October! 🌴✈️ Didn't find that many people speaking Croatian this year so brace yourself if you're coming :D

[Jimmy Seddon]

Sorry @Andy Gladstone I'm late to the party (again).  I was really sorry to miss you last week.

However, two of my closest friends (even though we're miles apart) were able to catch up in person last week.  @Fun Man Andy & @Teodora V _Fun Inc_ have kept me company since mid 2019.  Our reunion always looks a little like:

[Andy Gladstone]

@Jimmy Seddon I saw a ragtag picture in your charity challenge post and was so happy to see the band back together! I missed all of you!

[Teodora V _Fun Inc_]

I absolutely double what @Jimmy Seddon said.

Yes, we had a massive event as part of the Team25 experience, but I was most excited about the big RAGTAG reunion. Really missed you there @Andy Gladstone, but I believe I won't miss Atlassian Team events any time soon.

[Andy Gladstone]

@Teodora V _Fun Inc_ always a poet with the pen!