ignorantforager

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."

~ Robert A. Heinlein

Intro

I'm Cadence James, a network engineer based in the Pacific Northwest with a focus on automation and streamlining network operations. I specialize in Python, Powershell and automation in general. If there's a way to do something manually, there's almost certainly a way to automate it.

How I See Things

  • I believe in openness. Information wants to be free.
  • I also believe in real privacy and security, not just the idea of it.
  • Tech should just work. I like tinkering, but that should be a choice, not a requirement. It should also stay open and repairable. I back right to repair with my wallet. I own a Framework Laptop 13 and have a Slate EV Truck on pre-order.

What I'm Doing

My homelab is the clearest example. It's unnecessary, but it works, and it's taught me a lot. I'm always improving it.

There's no grand plan behind my projects. They're just whatever I can DIY, whatever I enjoy, and whatever I'm in the mood for. My interests shift often, so I bounce between projects instead of sticking to one until it's finished.

What's next is open. After achieving my CCNP and earning my B.S., I'm in a bit of limbo. A Master's in Computer Science is on the table.

My views on AI

My thoughts on AI are mixed and complicated. You can read those here.

Background

Navy submariner turned network engineer:

  • U.S. Navy — submarine service (Radioman, Information Systems Technician, Leading Petty Officer)
  • Over 13 years in the IT field, 4 of those as a Network Engineer
  • CCNP, CCNA (Automation, Cybersecurity, general), CompTIA A+/Security+/Cloud+/Project+, ITIL Foundation, LPI Linux Essentials
  • B.S. in Network Engineering and Security

Known Projects

  • Caliper - a physical book inventory tool I built for my book collection.

What I Enjoy

I read a lot, mostly sci-fi and fantasy, and mostly physical books. I keep a running list of what I've read by year.

Recommendations (in absolutely no particular order):

  • The Power of One, by Bryce Courtenay (overdue for a re-read)
  • Adrian Tchaikovsky (particularly his Children of Time series)
  • John Scalzi
  • Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan

Reading more BIPOC and women authors lately:

  • R.F. Kuang (an auto-buy author now)
  • Becky Chambers
  • Erin Morgenstern

Other 5 star reads:

I'm also starting to get into gardening and cooking. I'm a hobby hopper by nature, chasing whatever I feel like learning next. And the network engineer in me likes to track data on almost everything I'm into. (My own data, no one else's).

Site / Colophon

This site runs on Flask and Frozen-Flask, and is hosted on GitHub Pages. The library catalog runs separately, in a Docker container in my homelab.