About Me

The site's author in front of a flat-topped mesa covered in snow

Hello! I'm Dan and I'm glad you've found your way here.

Who am I?

During the day, I manage IT Infrastructure and Security for a small Software as a Service (SaaS) company. With over a decade of experience building, maintaining, and safeguarding digital environments, I've developed expertise in a number of areas including cybersecurity, Linux systems administration, DevOps, and cloud architecture (mostly AWS and GCP). I hold several current certifications including CompTIA A+, Network+, and Security+, and am currently working toward my CISSP certification.

Aside from the professional stuff, music remains a huge part of my life, whether I'm listening to it, going to live shows, or creating it in my spare time. I'm also a writer, working on personal projects that let me flex my creative muscles whenever I can.

How did I get here?

The site's author holding a bass guitar in front of a wall covered in graffiti

My path to IT wasn't exactly traditional. I started out with a BA in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University and spent years working in restaurants and retail while playing in local bands around the Bay Area. I was always interested in technology, having grown up building, fixing, and upgrading computers, and eventually ended up behind the counter at my local Best Buy's Geek Squad. I caught my first big professional break when I landed a job as a Technical Support Engineer at a Silicon Valley software company, which opened the door to a transition into corporate IT. From there, I've continued learning and taking on new challenges in order to grow my skill set and solve bigger and more complex technical problems.

I later moved to Portland, Oregon, a city I fell in love with many years ago. My maternal ancestors have deep roots in the Pacific Northwest, having traveled westward across the Oregon Trail in the mid-nineteenth century to the Willamette Valley, so it feels natural to me to be back amongst the mist and the evergreens. One branch of the family, the Tigards, even founded a city that bears their name and still survives to this day as part of the Portland metro.

My interests

The site's author in front of the Snake River Gorge in Idaho

I would describe myself first and foremost as a curious person. I love learning new things and figuring out how the world works, whether that's tinkering with the latest in open source tech, poring over Wikipedia late into the night, or having a philosophical chat over a beer. I also love hitting the road for trips around the Pacific Northwest and beyond; I have a particular affection for the stark beauty of the American Southwest. The Portland area's jaw-dropping natural scenery also keeps me outdoors regularly, whether that's for a long walk by the Willamette on a warm summer evening, or a hike through the snow up Mount Hood in early spring.

This site

This site is a place for me to bring together all of my different interests and passions, both professional and personal. You'll find posts about technology and IT industry insights, but also personal reflections, creative projects, and thoughts on whatever happens to capture my curiosity at the moment.

Connect with me

I'm not on social media much these days, but feel free to reach out via email if you'd like to connect! In order to keep my (admittedly, extremely easy to guess) address from ending up in the hands of some dastardly bot, I've "encrypted" it here via ROT13: qna[ng]qnaylba[qbg]arg. You can decode it by using a simple web tool like cryptii.