Planning for the Final Journey (even my plans have plans!)

I've likened my experience throughout my Flatiron School Software Engineering bootcamp to being stranded alone on Mars (like astronaut Mark Watney in The Martian). You solve one problem, and then you are faced with the next.  


While that analogy may seem a little grim to some, there is so much beauty as I look out on the horizon here at the end of my journey. The landscape is rich in color and everywhere I look I see possibility. Just like Mark Watney I have worked hard to solve each problem I have been faced with in my attempt to survive alone on Mars (a.k.a. to finish this program).

As I approached the finish line and created a plan for my Flatiron School Phase 5 project I realized I wanted to share some tools and tips that have helped me bring everything I have learned in this program into one final project. 

My main goals for this project were: 


To continue with my analogies of how coding is a lot like solving problems in The Martian... 

Adding CSS styling onto a finished software application reminds of one of the situations Mark Watney finds himself in as he tries to survive on Mars. He was accidentally stranded on Mars when his astronaut colleagues believe him to be dead. To reconvene with them he needs to retrofit a rover vehicle initially designed to travel about 20 miles (or 35 kilometers). The vehicle was working perfectly fine for the short range drives it was intended for. It was meeting its intended functionality. However, in order to drive the rover over a longer distance he has to completely retrofit the vehicle to carry his life support and energy source (solar panels). In order to outfit the vehicle to carry him more than 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers) across the surface of mars he basically takes a beautifully working vehicle, drills a hole in its roof and adds a trailer and a roof rack to carry all his solar panels and equipment. 
the rover in the film The Martian
Credit...Giles Keyte/20th Century Fox


Trying to add styling onto your site after you have created its functionality is like trying to jam a square peg into a round hole. 

I win baby trying to fit square block into a round hole
I Win Square Peg In A Round Hole GIF

If you too are working to create a project to showcase your software engineering skills 

First question, do you have a design in mind for your website? If not, let's get started there! 

Designing your site: 
- find inspiration 
- get to sketching/drawing/planning - Figma, Canva, Adobe Illustrator, or even pen and paper! whatever works for you. 
- turn your vision into components
- style your components 



First question, do you have a design in mind for your website? If not, let's get started there! 

Designing your site: 
- find inspiration 
- get to sketching/drawing/planning - Figma, Canva, Adobe Illustrator, or even pen and paper! whatever works for you. 
- turn your vision into components
- style your components 







Testing your code: Head to your browser! 


Let's dive into the CSS a bit more. 



Let's say you want to create a button. How would you go about it? 


Let's make a simple About page for a website. 


How to get started thinking about how to incorporate CSS into your next React project. 





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