About the Author

My work represents a long relationship with computers, a deep respect for practical technology, and a growing desire to build systems that are useful, secure, and fully understood from end to end.

I am living inside one of my answered prayers while waiting for the next one. I am in a place of gratitude.

My Path

I have spent decades growing alongside the computer industry, watching it change shape across hardware, software, networks, platforms, and the web. In many ways, my career has mirrored that evolution. I did not follow the most traditional route into technology, but my desire to keep learning never left me.

Although I do not hold a degree in Computer Science, I have always felt close to the discipline itself. There were moments in life when that path could have unfolded differently. Even so, the desire to improve my technical abilities at every level never went unrewarded. That persistence helped shape my career, strengthen my thinking, and prepare me for the work I am doing now.

The Next Logical Step

April 14, 2026 marks the beginning of a 730-day countdown until I can officially retire from my current job of 24 years. At that point, I will be able to live comfortably on a fixed retirement income.

It is not the ideal retirement story, where success comes early, investments grow steadily, and financial freedom arrives ahead of schedule. That was not my path. My path was built through consistency, work, adaptation, and experience earned over time.

I have now spent 35 years in the computer industry. It is fair to say that I grew up around computers and watched them evolve into what they are today. By most standards, that would qualify as a relationship. Now that both the technology and I have matured, it feels like we are finally having adult conversations. That experience is difficult to put into words, but it has shaped the way I think and build.

Career and Industry Perspective

If you were to glance at my resume, you would see a career shaped by movement within the industry itself. I have benefited from the computer field and grown with it as the demand for skills, platforms, and support shifted over time.

In the last 10 years, my work has taken me from SharePoint Web Forms development to serving as an FQDN website administrator hosting several agencies. Those roles represent the larger arc of my career: adapting to changing systems while continuing to build practical technical knowledge.

During those years, I worked extensively with Drupal while privately developing my WordPress environment and sharpening my broader web development skills. Over time, I could see the shift happening in the job market itself, from older computer technologies toward modern web-based systems and application development.

Open Source, PHP, and Custom Framework Thinking

I have long appreciated open source and the communities behind it for making programming technologies available to the public. I have also spent time learning Java, C#, and .NET. Each has value. Still, PHP became the language whose syntax felt the most natural for me to understand and work with.

Larger platforms can be powerful, but they can also reduce independent thinking and hands-on skill building. Those qualities matter to me because they are essential to designing custom frameworks like the one on display here. My goal is not only to use technology, but to understand it deeply enough to shape it intentionally.

With the help of AI, I have built a solid, secure, and scalable MVC application that runs on Windows IIS. Drupal remains a powerful CMS with a large ecosystem, but it also carries platform expectations, operational complexity, and many dependencies. My MVC application is different. It is a custom solution that can be controlled end to end and adapted to specific business needs.

On Windows Server, IIS and PHP can be a very practical fit. For organizations already invested in a Windows environment, that matters. It allows them to keep their existing server foundation largely intact while adopting a custom application built around their own requirements rather than the expectations of a larger platform.

Learn more about A Snapshot of This Framework →

Why This Matters Now

Mainframe systems are aging, and many of the programmers who built and supported them are already at or near retirement age. The industry continues to move, and I believe this is the right time to move with it.

I have more than 15 years of experience working with desktop computers and Windows Server, often learning, adapting to, and communicating system changes and technical advancements. Over time, I developed an instinct for where the industry was heading and what would likely come next.

At this stage of life, the choice feels clear. I can continue in familiar work and receive a steady income, or I can direct my experience toward building and customizing practical applications that solve real problems. For some, a paycheck alone is enough. For me, now is the time to do more with what I have learned.