[[components/metabind-buttons-embed]]Quick Info
quick-info-display
Notes
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Interactions
2026-07-04
- Yazan likes shish barak (Syrian meat-filled dumplings in a garlic-mint yogurt sauce) and will make it next time
2026-05-11
- Yazan called me; he and his wife Yara were flying out to Arizona for a conference, but Yara was denied entry at the US border at the ticket gate
- Yara has a complicated US-border history: she came to Canada as a refugee while her parents were in the USA, and on a prior attempt to visit the US, CBP told her they’d make sure she never saw her parents again
- She is now a Canadian citizen and her parents have since moved to Canada as well, yet she was still denied
- Yazan believes the denial is due to outdated information / visa status in the system
- My take: it could be any number of things. Best bet is to file the right forms to formally request the reason for the denial so they can actually address it
2026-05-09
- Dinner with Yazan at Al Zameens (Syrian; not sure on the exact spelling)
- Tried a lamb intestine dish Yazan said is a Syrian specialty and only done well at this spot; I found it pretty flavourless
- The chicken platter was solid though
- Chatted about a lot of things, eventually landed on Kevin
- Yazan said he was disgusted with Kevin too and felt that having him around brings down our reputation
- I pushed back: Kevin does what he does in his own life, and we get to pick and choose which areas of our own lives we want him involved in
2026-05-08
- Yazan and Yara picked me up from the airport, then group hang at Karachi Pizza in Ridgeway Plaza where Medo, Amir, and Kevin met us
- Kevin walked in looking much skinnier than before, even skinnier than Amir
- Amir put away 10 slices of pizza
- Kevin first told the group about Léa; was heavily sleep-deprived, slightly aggressive and agitated, and clearly uneasy with the gender identity situation while telling us
- On the drive back, Yara told Yazan (Yazan relayed it to me afterwards) that Kevin “isn’t normal” and that she was disgusted when Kevin had said “he saw every part of her body” about Léa
2026-04-22
- Spoke with him; mentioned the contractor came and filled the crack in his foundation
- Contractor gave him a warranty for the next 25 years
- Only cost $565
- Had to drop early to go speak with Tanay
2026-03-29
- Showed the personal website he’s been building
- Showed him some tips for interacting with Claude and using Playwright
2026-03-27
- Came on late to play Fortnite
- Mentioned he spoke with Ian Hanley (blog) - a cyber security expert who recently got an offer over 350k
- Ian has a book and has been helping Yazan find leads for positions
- Yazan said Ian reminded him of me
2026-03-04
- Discord call with Kevin Barta
- Talked about his interview with a recruiter at Armin (sp? - some security company) for a sales engineering role - went well
- Mentioned he gave his salary expectations during the interview; advised him not to do that as it boxes you in
- Had a broader conversation about having more confidence and knowing his worth - when you don’t want to lose a job, desperation can seep out and undercut you
- Yazan was very thankful for the advice and wrote down notes
- At work today with Ned Baker, calmly told Ned to wait on the consultant for a PCI certification item
- Insisted by asking Ned if he knew the item - when Ned didn’t, Yazan said they’d go with his approach
- Ned wasn’t happy but begrudgingly went along
- Yazan was pleased he stood his ground instead of accommodating Ned’s anxiety
2026-03-02
- Spoke on Discord (same call as Kevin Barta)
- Talking about difficulties at work with manager Ned Baker (VP of IT & Cyber Security) at Medcan
- Has been taking my advice to stay calm and drop from calls early before they degrade
- Ned noticed Yazan doing this and has gotten irritated
- Finished 9/~20 checklist items for PCI certification
2026-02-26
- Conversation I sparked - Yazan discussed compensation with Ned
- Showed median compensation for his roles is ~150k TC (getting ISO/IEC 27001:2022 + PCI DSS v4.0.1 certification for Medcan)
- This was right after previous technical lead Kamen left (disliked, pretty bad)
- Kamen had claimed Yazan made his life difficult by not helping - Ned relayed this to Yazan
- When Yazan brought up compensation bump, Ned accused him of leveraging Kamen’s dismissal and potentially forcing him out (typical Ned rambling)
- Ned agreed to bring compensation discussion to HR - that’s where it was left
2026-02-09
- Said a late-stage interview went really well; Kevin asked if it was the final round
- Unclear which process this was — could be the Ottawa government role or the Armin sales-engineering one from 2026-03-04. Worth confirming
2026-01-16 – 2026-01-24
- Dubai and Turkey with Yara — booked 2025-09-15, ~$1.4k each, direct flights both legs. Flew out Jan 16, Turkey leg Jan 23
- Travelled with a family he knows out there for part of it; at one point had paid only $35 for the whole trip
- Medo sent him a teaching job posting Jan 18 (“if you would like to continue teaching”) — implies prior teaching work I didn’t know about
2025-10-03
- Called Kevin to say Medcan wanted to interview him — Yazan got the call at work and passed it along. The referral came from him
2025-06-26 – 2025-08-05
- Ottawa government job — long-running external process. Applied around Dec 2024 (Kevin applied to the same posting), first interview on his wedding day (Jun 26), moved to second stage Jul 31, heavy prep through early August
- Confirmed with them Aug 5 that the role is 100% onsite in Ottawa. Went back and forth on whether he’d actually relocate — at one point said if that’s the case he isn’t moving
- Repeatedly noted how saturated the market is, lots of CS grads competing for the same roles
2025-06-26 – 2025-06-28
- Married Yara (~Jun 26–27). Venue and catering scouted through early June, group haircut run beforehand
- Kevin and Amir both attended — Kevin said it was the most active he’d ever been in wedding dances and that he closed his activity rings
- One of the vendors didn’t charge him for the first job because he was getting married
- Left on the honeymoon right after; Medo reminded him about his passport and booked an Italian restaurant out there
2025-06-20
- Sold a car for Yara’s dad — talked the buyer into it himself. Offered to help any of us find one
Ongoing 2025
- Long-running saga with the house: internet speed (repeatedly threatened to switch providers, ~25 Mbps down) and water pooling against the exterior wall getting inside because the house is old. Foundation crack finally filled by a contractor in Apr 2026 — see 2026-04-22