A Genuine Article

A Web Designer in Ukiah

By Marc Carson · Friday June 11, 2010

I live and work in Ukiah, Mendocino County, California. It’s a fascinating place. Ukiah is an intersection of old and new, of organic and inorganic, a “gateway to the Redwoods” with a mandatory check at the gate. Here’s what you’re checked for when you pass through the Ukiah gateway:

Will you learn?

Living in Ukiah is a learning experience. Ukiah is a gateway to the natural side of things, a refuge for many who want to make a change in our busy, impersonal world.

As a local web designer I’ve sat in many design consultations and planning meetings, impressed by the way people here appreciate their surroundings and stay conscious of larger issues.

Take Paul Dolan, for example. Ukiah is his hangout. If you learn about Paul, you’ll find that he walks a difficult path. His job is to teach an ideal, to be idealistic about treating the Earth well and learning from it.

What recharges someone like Paul? I’m not 100% sure, but I’m guessing this area itself is sort of his recharging point.

Myself, I’m still learning. I’m inspired by the diversity of opinions and deeply held beliefs here. Every day I wake up and prepare to challenge my assumptions.

Will you give?

One thing the Internet’s good at is showing us things from around the world that we didn’t know about before: Pictures of amazing geography, videos of astounding architecture, words upon words about travel and adventure.

Ukiah, on the other hand, is a deeply transactional community. It cannot offer you much if all you bring to the table is a thirst for the takeaway, the journal entry, the amazing travel photos.

People in Ukiah talk a lot about sustainability. Sustainable agriculture, sustainable business. Perhaps one of the reasons we do so is that we’re aware of the fact that Ukiah isn’t all-caps AMAZING in that sort of way, so we’d better be sustainable. Let someone else be the hare. We’ll be the tortoise. We like it here.

Sustainable technology is a cornerstone of my business. I am a contributor to open-source software projects, and I make sure my customers have the opportunity to take advantage of my experience with the open source aesthetic. For someone like Paul Dolan, the concept was intriguing enough that he wanted to display the Open Source logo on his website.

Will you remember?

Like any gateway, people pass through here. Those on their way out are faced with a proposition: Will you take what you’ve learned from this place with you to other places? Or will you hide it, stuff it in a closet and try to forget your Ukiah days?

When out-of-state clients bring it up, I try to make it clear that I’m not hiding out as an “internet-based” web designer. I’m based in Ukiah. If that doesn’t sound metropolitan enough, fine.

The pride I take in my work is heavily inspired by where I live. Ukiah is that place. I build sustainable, high-end websites, and I do it from a location that is like no other. Every day I learn new things — about the web, about myself, and about where I live.

By the way, I give a discount to local businesses. Ask me about it!