Yes, I wrote Nashville, Indiana.

We visit family once a year in Indianapolis. While there we like to explore the areas surrounding the city. One such place about 45 minutes from Indy is Nashville, Indiana. We like this town for its shops, art, and music.

Another place we like to visit, although we didn't make it this last visit, is Eagle Creek State Park. There are many trails to hike around the lake, and the visitor's center has some neat views. If you're a birder, then this park is a must.

My wife and I are not really "city" people, but we do like walking Fountain Square neighborhood of Indianapolis. There are lots of good food and interesting cultural attractions. Best of all, it is all walk-able.

On our way home we stopped in Knightstown, IN to do some antiquing. Little did we know there was a car show going on, too. I got to see my dream muscle car -- a 1972 Mustang Mach I fastback. Denise doesn't normally pay too much attention to cars, but even she had to admit that these cars were pristine enough to be considered art in their own right.

Overall, it was a good trip. If we didn't have family in Indiana I am not sure that I would go out of my way to visit, but I am glad we have the opportunity to go back.

So the technology giants would have you believe, anyway. Yes, ChatGPT (and others) has put a spotlight on Large Language Model technology, and the tech giants have begun to scrimp and save resources (layoff staff, mostly) needed for future research, but they'd also have you believe that the future is here, now. It is not. And it likely never will be.

All students of data know GIGO -- garbage in, garbage out. Basically, your end product can only be as good as the data it is based upon. How does this effect LLMs? To this point, they have trained on a significant amount of data (the Large part of LLM). They have in fact trained on most of the data available. What's next to train on, then? If people are generating content with LLMs, the next round of large training will include LLM generated content. It will be feeding on itself. That is not sustainable, but big tech is being awfully quiet about that point.

AI is not here. In fact, the novel breakthrough of LLMs, what I call next-word predictors (or next-token predictors), is about to look pretty stupid. Not through the technology itself, but by the marketing efforts of big tech. Anything to "disrupt" the industry and drive investment, no matter how misguided or dishonest.

I am starting to get spring fever. Not looking forward to cutting grass but I am looking forward to more sunshine. We have had daffodils bloom, and our maple tree is thinking of doing the same. We will also be doing some landscaping this year. Pro tip for homeowners -- do not place mulch up against your house. It attracts moisture and (potentially) bugs. Our home inspector told us that, and yet I see mulch everywhere up against the foundation of homes.

As a consultant I only came across one ransomware incident. A local (to me) pharmacy, owned and operated by a husband and wife team, had a message on their pharmacy terminals instructing them to pay a fee or their data would be released to the public. They were dumbstruck. I advised them to contact the authorities and to be prepared that they (or their insurance) might have to pay.

Now that I work in the public sector I have once again encountered ransomware. This time I am not taking point, thankfully, but it has left our organization in a mess.

I am a web developer so naturally I see technology through that lens. When I think of security, I think of "north-south" as my boss puts it. I harden my web servers and databases from unauthorized access from the north (internet) and south (intranet). Once there is a breach from north-south, though, then what? I guess that is called lateral (east-west) vulnerability.

Every org is vulnerable to this kind of attack, and perhaps we shouldn't think in terms of "if" but "when." Is your org prepared for an event such as this? If you lose remote access to your machines, how will you get to them to remediate any threats? One at a time is the answer, and it will take a lot of time and energy.

I am omitting a lot here because this event is still ongoing, though there is a light at the end of tunnel. Let's just hope that it isn't a train...

I can only speak for myself with any authority, but I do know this: my life needs to be in balance. I am made up of many roles (husband, dad, employee, etc.) and if any one role becomes more dominant than the other then, surely, there is bound to be stress. For example, in the past year, I put too much emphasis on my career. The result was not enough attention paid to my physical, spiritual, or familial life. I suffered for it, too.

For 2024 I am not making any outrageous resolutions. Instead, I want to make sure that I keep my life in balance. That may mean setting aside 20 minutes a day to practice mindfulness; visiting my mother on my lunch break; ordering flowers for my wife; and so on.

My goal isn't perfect harmony; my goal is less dissonance. And, just like in jazz, if I encounter dissonance may I have the wisdom and experience to resolve it to the tonic in a skillful way.

I am not a heavy reader. Most of my reading is limited to technical documentation. However, I do always seem to have a book I am reading just for fun. Right now I am reading The Shining by Stephen King. I have long been a fan of the film adaptation by Stanley Kubrick, but managed to have never read the original story. I am really enjoying myself with this one.

The protagonist, Jack, gets more back story in the book. He is almost relatable. Little Danny is, I feel, far more mature than portrayed on the screen. And Wendy, well, I guess she's pretty much the same. I was afraid that having seen the movie would have ruined the book for me. Instead, it's almost like watching/reading a director's cut with commentary.

Anyway, I have made a resolution to read 10 books this year just for entertainment. Wish me luck!

Welcome to my new blog! As always, my site is a work in progress. I mostly develop in NEXT.js at work, so this site keeps my dev chops sharp. I enjoyed the past year working with the new app router feature. I am glad to see the NEXT.js team moving forward with the same technology in 14.

They say the reward for hard work is more hard work, so, let's start 2024 off on a high note!

Keep busy, folks.