How does a Jr. to Mid-Level programmer find work?
bmalicoat: I was just in a similar boat (got an offer not too long ago!) and I think there are 2 important components:1) Show that you are passionate and driven, which it seems you already have with your experience. Other ways could be get an iPhone or Android app out on their respective marketplaces so you can provide hard numbers (# of downloads, $ made, etc.). Contributing to OSS is always a good way to spend your time as well, but only if you really care about the project.2) Make connections. This can be rough but a few things I've found can make it a lot easier. I've gotten a few really good leads through Twitter actually. Follow  enough people from a company you'd like to work for and eventually one of them will mention something about openings. Another good avenue is going to technical talks (most universities hold a few of these a month, maybe more frequently). Go up and talk intelligently to the speaker and if they are accepting resumes definitely provide your best. The main thing is have someone inside the company turn in your resume for you. This informal referral or recommendation is huge. I read a statistic that only 1 in 20 online applications result in a face to face interview, those aren't great odds and being denied a lot is sure to affect your morale. Getting someone to turn in your resume is a sure-fire way to hear something back from the company.