Packet People is a series where Ty Gibbons explores a different side of life of his fellow Packeteers and records their conversation. In this edition, Ty Gibbons, talks to Brian Wong, Regional Director, San Francisco at Packet.

I grew up in New England where candlepin bowling is a thing (narrow pins and bowling balls the size of grapefruits). I’ve thrown my share of standard, 15 lb. bowling balls as well. Yet, I’ve never been able to roll them like Brian.

He has mastered the wide, spinning arc. The ball looks like it’s going to clunk into the gutter mid-lane, and then as if by magic or Jedi force, it swoops back. The ball catches the one pin at the right angle, obliterating all ten.

Brian is a very good bowler. He once threw sixteen strikes in a row over two games. I joined him on his home turf at the Classic Bowling Center in Daly City, California a few weeks back. On our drive there we talked shop and lamented over the sweet sound the falling pins make.

“… Have fun and live any moment to its absolute fullest.”

Ty Gibbons is the Creative Director of Packet Studios at Packet. When not in the recording studio, he can be tinkering in the woodshop at his home in Marlboro, Vermont.

Want to work with Ty? Because Packet is hiring.

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Turkey Time was originally published in inside-packet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Packet People is a series where Ty Gibbons explores a different side of life of his fellow Packeteers and records their conversation. In this edition, Ty Gibbons, talks to My D. Truong, Senior Director, Labs at Packet.

My had been with Packet for all of two days when I showed up in Palo Alto and sprang the idea of Packet People on him. He jumped right in, leading Brian and me North into San Francisco for some indoor, nighttime bouldering. My is an experienced climber, and though he prefers climbing and bouldering in the wild, he frequents Dog Patch Boulders gym to hone his skills and work through difficult climbing problems.

I interviewed My in the car ride into the city, learning about the joys and challenges and risks of the sport. But the profundity of it didn’t hit me until we were in the gym and I watched My walk up to the wall, composed and serene-like, almost as if he were approaching an altar. We attached a small mic to My’s shirt, and he spoke about the moves he needed to make from ten or twenty or thirty feet in the air. Mostly, I liked hearing the quiet in him, his breathing, and the gentle thump of the mat as he hopped safely down.

“Just being outside is good for the soul — definitely about a balance of solitude and connection.”

Ty Gibbons is the Creative Director of Packet Studios. When not in the recording studio, he can be found tinkering at his woodshop in Marlboro, VT.

Want to work with Ty? Because Packet is hiring.

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Look Mom, No Rope was originally published in inside-packet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Packet People, Part 8: Packet Studios talks with Samantha Licata

Packet People is a series where Ty Gibbons explores a different side of life of his fellow Packeteers and records their conversation. In this edition, Ty Gibbons, talks to Samantha Licta, Manager, Customer Success at Packet.

Rochester sits really far west in Western New York, which I rediscovered during a somewhat harrowing, snowy drive one early winter morning. As such, I was all the more appreciative of Samatha’s warm hospitality upon my arrival. My phone captured the sounds of the squall and Dexter the dog’s greeting before I switched to the good microphones for a tour of Samantha’s beautiful, historic house.

Samantha loves cooking, and we had agreed to meet for a homemade lunch. I knew the sounds of the kitchen — the sizzling, chopping, grating — would work well in an audio piece, but I loved the unexpected foray our conversation took towards family. I felt the presence of her parents and grandparents in the kitchen with us as she detailed traditional family recipes. You can hear the reverence in Samantha’s voice for all things culinary when she says mentions brisket and then adds, more quietly and after a pause, “delicious.”

“We actually have a confessional in my husband’s office.”

Ty Gibbons is the Creative Director of Packet Studios. When not in the recording studio, he can be found tinkering at his woodshop in Marlboro, VT.

Want to work with Ty? Because Packet is hiring.

Packet in your inbox? Sign up for Packet’s newsletter.

In The Kitchen was originally published in inside-packet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Packet People is a series where Ty Gibbons explores a different side of life of his fellow Packeteers and records their conversation. In this edition, Ty Gibbons, talks to Philip Cristiano, Senior Production Engineer at Packet.

I felt pretty good arriving at Philip’s iconic Fishtown neighborhood in Philadelphia. For one, I had left behind three feet of snow and frigid Vermont temperatures for a glorious early spring afternoon in Philly; but moreover, I was going to spend the next few hours learning about (and sampling) home-brew beer.

Philip is a home-brew aficionado. He led me down a narrow set of stairs and walked me through his basement, which was neatly stockpiled with vats, pumps, kettle burners and other accoutrements. After the tour he poured us a couple pints (my favorite sound from the session was the fizzing and sipping of the foamy head), and we stepped out onto his sunny back patio for drinking and more conversation. We used a white bucket (another beer-brewing tool) as an improvised patio table; I liked the way our pint glasses looked on it and snapped a picture during a break in the recording.

“I enjoy the part of sharing a beer and talking with them.”

Ty Gibbons is the Creative Director of Packet Studios. When not in the recording studio, he can be found tinkering at his woodshop in Marlboro, VT.

Want to work with Ty? Because Packet is hiring.

Packet in your inbox? Sign up for Packet’s newsletter.

Home Brews was originally published in inside-packet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Packet People is a series where Ty Gibbons explores a different side of life of his fellow Packeteers and records their conversation. In this edition, Ty Gibbons, talks to James Malachowski, Senior Director, Solution Architecture at Packet.

I knew I was going to enjoy recording James from the moment he uttered the words “National resonator guitar.” James is a talented, lifelong musician, and offered to meet me in Palo Alto to talk music and do a little picking on the six string. I was thrilled when he arrived not only with his guitar, but with his bandmate, the singer Sarah Stickel, as well.

James and Sarah began by playing a few stripped-down versions of songs from their band, Lost Leaves. I clutched the boom mic and rolled my chair back a few feet to accommodate for levels — the two could really rock it, even without amplification. After a great performance, James spoke about music down to its very core of wave-lengths and patterns, and played some more on his National so I could record its timbre and character up close.

“That thing that you do when you do not think about anything else — that is the definition of being present.”

To learn more about Jame’s band, Lost Leaves: www.lostleavesmusic.com

Ty Gibbons is the Creative Director of Packet Studios. When not in the recording studio, he can be found tinkering at his woodshop in Marlboro, VT.

Want to work with Ty? Because Packet is hiring.

Packet in your inbox? Sign up for Packet’s newsletter.

Making it Up as You Go was originally published in inside-packet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Packet People is a series where Ty Gibbons explores a different side of life of his fellow Packeteers and records their conversation. In this edition, Ty Gibbons, talks to Chris Wright, Director, Revenue Marketing at Packet.

As a kid, I owned a skateboard for a mere five days before it was run over by a car (driver: my mother; skateboard replacement policy: none), so I was excited to have a go at the Boosted Board. Chris runs all things electric: from the Palo Alto Packet office, we hopped in his electric car to find a quiet street where I could record the sounds of his electric skateboard.

I let those sounds play out in the piece; I love how you can hear the click of the wheels over each sidewalk crack, and the whine of the electric motor as Chris accelerates. The field audio bookends our conversation, which wound effortlessly through chess, climate change, soccer, parallel parking, torque, and surfing. You can hear the pride Chris takes in his work, whether it be developing the Boosted Board or playing in an official match on the pitch with David Beckham.

“Feel almost like a form of flying.”

Ty Gibbons is the Creative Director of Studios at Packet. When not in the recording studio, he can be found tinkering at his woodshop in Marlboro, VT.

Want to work with Ty? Because Packet is hiring.

Packet in your inbox? Sign up for Packet’s newsletter.

Get a Boost was originally published in inside-packet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Packet People is a series where Ty Gibbons explores a different side of life of his fellow Packeteers and records their conversation. In this edition, Ty Gibbons, talks to Scott Anderson, VP, Outreach at Packet.

I met up with Scott on a beautiful, late-winter day in Wassaic, New York; the ice still crunched beneath our feet but you could feel a shift toward spring in the air. I had come based on just a few words — the site, utopian dreams — but could never have guessed the astonishing scale of the project.

We drove up a still-frozen field and onto the enormous, abandoned campus of a former state-run mental hospital. The buildings were cavernous; derelict and beautiful in their crumbling state, with blown-out windows, overgrown walls, and icicles hanging from leaky ceilings. I hit record as we walked down the old pathways, and Scott filled in the empty spaces with his words, rendering an audacious vision of a renovated campus and a new, intentional community some 3000 people strong.

“In some ways it’s a grand experiment.”

Ty Gibbons is the Creative Director of Packet Studios. When not in the recording studio, he can be found tinkering at his woodshop in Marlboro, VT.

Want to work with Ty? Because Packet is hiring.

Packet in your inbox? Sign up for Packet’s newsletter.

Building Large Scale Utopian Dreams was originally published in inside-packet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Packet People is a series where Ty Gibbons explores a different side of life of his fellow Packeteers and records their conversation. In this edition, Ty Gibbons, talks to Zoe Allen, Marketing Coordinator at Packet.

I met Zoe in Manayunk, a Philadelphia neighborhood that feels almost European with its narrow, cobblestoned roads and close-knit community. Zoe is passionate about animal rescue, and we had agreed to go out for a walk around town with Auggie, her beloved rescue dog. Auggie seemed excited about the recording session, and was drawn to the boom mic’s wind cover, which is (artificially) furry and called the Dead Wombat.

Auggie knew the route well; cafe, dog bakery, dog park, steep stairs set into the hillside. I hit record as we walked and tried to capture the feeling of Manayunk through its sounds: the train clacking by overhead, impromptu conversations with fellow dog owners and cafe regulars, friendly barking. I love how you can hear the tenderness in Zoe’s voice as she describes her relationship with her dog. I snapped a few photos of Auggie, Zoe’s street, a giant pretzel statue (alas, the latter did not make the cut), and Zoe provided a few favorites as well.

“They are not perfect…they just need a little more love and a little more patience.”

Ty Gibbons is the Creative Director of Packet Studios. When not in the recording studio, he can be found tinkering at his woodshop in Marlboro, VT.

Want to work with Ty? Because Packet is hiring.

Packet in your inbox? Sign up for Packet’s newsletter.

Bow Wow was originally published in inside-packet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Packet People is a series where Ty Gibbons explores a different side of life of his fellow Packeteers and records their conversation. In this edition, Ty Gibbons, talks to Kia Germino, Manager of Technology Programs at Packet.

“Slow and Low … that is the tempo.”

I’d only swung a golf club a handful of times in my life when Kia invited me to the Burlingame Country Club, just South of San Francisco, to try a few holes. I was excited to learn more about Kia’s connection to the sport — technique, mindset, sand traps — and to meet her husband and daughters, who would join us on the course.

The afternoon turned blustery, but we hopped in a cart and forged out to get some audio none-the-less. I kept the mic low to the ground to record the thwack of the ball being launched into the air. We soon came upon her family, who were braving a round despite the wind; I loved capturing the interaction between all of them amidst the swings and bumpy cart rides.

Ty Gibbons is the Creative Director of Packet Studios. When not in the recording studio, he can be found tinkering at his woodshop in Marlboro, VT.

Want to work with Ty? Because Packet is hiring.

Packet in your inbox? Sign up for Packet’s newsletter.

Out on the Green was originally published in inside-packet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Packet People, Part 1: Packet Studios talks with Naji Pride

Packet People is a series where Ty Gibbons explores a different side of life of his fellow Packeteers and records their conversation. In this edition, Ty Gibbons, talks to Naji Pride, Customer Success specialist at Packet.

“As long as I have shelter and food, my only requirement is that I keep gaining knowledge.”

I was thrilled when Naji suggested I could follow him around on a photo shoot of Brattleboro, Vermont. Brattleboro is the town I grew up in, and I was eager to see it through someone else’s eyes (or lens). In-between clicks from his camera’s shutter, Naji told me about his love of utilitarian structures, how he tries to frame an image, the connection between tech and art, and the importance of continuing the pursuit of knowledge.

Two photos here are examples of Naji’s work: the stunning infrared piece Building Over Water, and the moody, low-light photo Transportation Center. The third picture I took during our shoot. I paused the recording so that Naji could walk down the train tracks that run alongside the Connecticut River and point his camera up towards the backs of Brattleboro’s buildings — a view one never sees unless fleetingly from the train window while passing through.

Ty Gibbons is the Creative Director of Packet Studios. When not in the recording studio, he can be found tinkering at his woodshop in Marlboro, VT.

Want to work with Ty? Because Packet is hiring.

Packet in your inbox? Sign up for Packet’s newsletter.

Walking Though Brattleboro was originally published in inside-packet on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.