I’ve been professionally in IT for over 20 years, although my passion for technology extends further back than that. Growing up in the suburbs of Boston, I was the kid in the neighborhood who had a computer at home in an era when a computer was an uncommon luxury item.
The Boston Museum of Science also whetted my appetite for technology by having the earliest models of microcomputers available for visitors. I spent literally hours playing those early computer games and learning BASIC programming.
For the majority of my professional career, I’ve been in public school IT. In my current school district, I work as a data analyst, having left the traditional IT responsibilities. My tools of trade are databases, Excel, BI reporting tools, and figuring out kludges to get various educational systems to talk to each other. Prior to this gig, I was the administrator of my district’s System Center Config Manager and Google Apps for Education.
After returning to college in 2009, I earned my Bachelor of Science degree in MIS from Oakland University in 2015, which was followed by a Master of Science in IT Management in 2017.
My main areas of interest and expertise are:
- Business intelligence
- Data modeling and visualization
- SQL
- SCCM
- IT asset management (as a discipline rather than any specific technology)
- PHP (and of course, the requisite HTML, CSS, and a bit of JavaScript)
- Google Admin
Off the clock, I’ve been a heavy metal guy since the ’80s. My tastes range from symphonic and gothic to thrash and melodic death. From Nightwish and Epica to Testament and Arch Enemy, and most bands and subgenres in between.
I’ve played guitar and bass for over 30 years, but that’s not as impressive as it sounds. Because I’ve never taken formal lessons, I’ve essentially just picked up little things here and there, repeated over the years. I joke that I actually have only 5 years of experience, repeated 5 times. But it was good enough to play in a few bands over the years.
Recently, I’ve gotten heavily involved in building guitars, which are the items in the drop-down menu above. I’m probably building more than playing them now, but it’s been an incredible learning experience, dealing with various species of wood and their characteristics, the chemistry of dyes and finishes, and of course, the electronics. My projects have been spun off into its own area, Taiho Guitars.
My family and I split our time between the metro Detroit area and our cottage in northern Michigan (where my guitar building workshop is).
I run and enjoy craft beer (maybe too much…).
Disclaimer: views, opinions, and statements made in this blog are my own, and not representative of any organization or individual with which I may be professionally affiliated.