Building My Digital Garden with Eleventy

Welcome to my digital corner of the internet! After years of working in security engineering and incident response, I decided it was time to create a proper home for my thoughts, projects, and learnings.

The Journey to Eleventy

Like many engineers, I've had my share of personal websites over the years – from hand-coded HTML in the early days to various CMS platforms. But I wanted something different this time:

Complete control over my content and how it's presented
Lightning-fast performance without sacrificing functionality
Privacy-respecting with no tracking scripts or third-party dependencies
Developer-friendly workflow that gets out of my way

After evaluating options ranging from Next.js to Hugo, I landed on Eleventy. Here's why:

Why Eleventy Won Me Over

1. Simplicity Without Sacrificing Power

Eleventy generates static HTML with zero client-side JavaScript by default. This means my site loads instantly, works on slow connections, and respects users' bandwidth. When I do need interactivity (like the dark mode toggle or search), I can add just what's necessary.

2. Data Cascade

One of Eleventy's killer features is its data cascade. I can define global data, directory data, and page-specific data that all merge intelligently. This made building features like automatic navigation and tag pages surprisingly straightforward.

3. Incredible Build Speed

My entire site builds in under 100ms. Coming from webpack-based tools, this feels like magic. Fast builds mean I can iterate quickly and deploy confidently.

What I've Built

This site is more than just a blog. It's:

A knowledge repository – My Resources page catalogs tools and references I've found invaluable
A professional portfolio – The About section showcases my experience and projects
A learning platform – Each blog post represents hours of research and hands-on experience
An experiment in web craft – From the glass morphism effects to the responsive design, every detail is intentional

Technical Highlights

Some features I'm particularly proud of:

Client-side search that works offline and respects privacy
Automatic dark mode that remembers your preference
Git-based timestamps showing when content was last updated
Accessible navigation with keyboard support and ARIA labels
Lightning performance with perfect Lighthouse scores

What's Coming Next

This site will evolve as I do. Expect content on:

Security engineering – Real-world IR playbooks, security automation, and defensive strategies
AI and automation – Practical applications of LLMs, local AI deployment, and ethical considerations
Open source projects – Tools I'm building and contributing to
Career insights – Lessons learned from working in federal contracting and security operations

The Open Source Advantage

This entire site is open source on GitHub. Feel free to explore the code, learn from it, or even fork it for your own use. I believe in learning in public and sharing knowledge freely.

Let's Connect

I'm always interested in connecting with fellow engineers, security professionals, and anyone passionate about technology. You can find me on GitHub and LinkedIn, or reach out directly through my contact page.

Here's to building a better, faster, more accessible web – one static site at a time!

P.S. If you're curious about the technical details of how this site is built, check out the README on GitHub. I've documented everything from the build process to the deployment pipeline.