Big Changes, Bold Plans, and a Wild Journey

It’s been a while since my last members-only update, and I wanted to take a moment to share what’s been happening in my world. These updates are meant to be informal, like we’re just sitting down and having a conversation. There’s been a lot going on — both personally and professionally — so let’s dive in.

A Journey Around the World

I just got back from an incredible vacation in the Maldives. If you ever get the chance to go, I highly recommend it. We stayed at the Barcelo Whale Lagoon, which is on its own private island, and the overwater bungalows were absolutely breathtaking. Getting there was quite the journey — New York to Dubai, then a seaplane to the island. On the way back, we routed through Singapore and San Francisco before finally arriving home.

Leading up to the trip, work was a whirlwind. When you have a big deadline approaching, you want to make sure your team isn’t left hanging while you’re away. February was nuts trying to get everything lined up so I could fully disconnect. Surprisingly, even in the middle of the Indian Ocean, I was able to get LTE service during our boat excursions. So, while I was technically “off the grid,” I wasn’t completely cut off.

Diving Into a New Project at Microsoft

Back at Microsoft, I’ve been busy working on a new internal product that leverages AI. As a Principal Architect, I’m collaborating with other architects to design the infrastructure, APIs, and automation processes. We’re navigating some challenges due to Microsoft’s Security First Initiative (SFI), which has changed how we do things internally. It’s an exciting, sometimes chaotic transition, but we’re making progress.

Our project is built on a microservices-based architecture using Azure Functions. The team is diverse, with developers working in Java, Python, and C#. While my primary language is C#, I’ve been reviewing a lot of both C# and Python code lately. We’ve already onboarded more than ten internal customers, and leadership is taking notice, which is always a good sign.

Building Content: Udemy, Blog, and Medium

Since HashiConf back in October, things have been a blur. Between the holidays and family time, I took some much-needed downtime. You may have noticed a slower pace on my YouTube channel, but I’ve still been publishing code reviews, reaction videos…