Harry,You're A Wizard

(Or why I learned to code and why you should too)

"Harry — yer a wizard." (Hagrid, Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone)

"The computer programmer is a creator of universes for which he alone is responsible. Universes of virtually unlimited complexity can be created in the form of computer programs." (Joseph Weizenbaum)

I've always had a fascination with computers starting at an early age, as I've mentioned in a previous post. While it all started off with a childhood fascination with computer games, it evolved into a fascination with figuring out how computers worked, and how I could make them do whatever I wanted them to do. One fun fact about me is that I've always been an avid reader. I remember staying up many late nights reading fantasy novels (still one of my favorite genres, btw) when I was a kid. I always enjoyed novels with wizards, dragons, and other magic users. The wizard — the powerful magic user that could bend reality with their spells — was never the most physically powerful character, but what they lacked in physical strength they made up for in raw intellect and power. They had an avid curiosity for how the universe worked, and the ability to control powerful and seemingly invisible forces that many people did not understand. To me, programming or coding growing up was like magic, and it kind of still is.

My first experience with computer programming was way back in elementary school using a programming language called LOGO. At the time I didn't realize that I was actually writing a real program on a computer. Basically, LOGO allowed someone to input commands. The program would then process each of those commands and move a small turtle around the screen accordingly, leaving a line in its wake. You could use this "turtle" (I use the quotes because the turtle was basically a small triangle) to make simple art on the screen. This is how an algorithm works at a basic level. An algorithm is essentially a "recipe" that makes up a computer program — it tells the computer what to do using a set of instructions. At the time it was fun and novel, but something that I wrote off. It wasn't a computer game, and games were king to me at that time. Only later would I realize just how powerful and useful being able to move that tiny little turtle around a screen would become.

In my late teens, I decided to take a certification course (sounds fancy, doesn't it?) for a now mostly defunct object-oriented and event-driven programming language called Visual Basic. (I'll talk more about different programming types, such as object-oriented, in a future post.) Visual Basic is just what it sounds like — visual and basic. However, when I took the certification course in the early-to-mid '90s, it was a somewhat popular programming language, especially for GUIs (Graphical User Interfaces) for Windows. I remember only using it for that one course, then just tinkering around with it a bit afterward. I would read a few books on Visual Basic, but in the end I never really found a personal use for it. It was a language I liked to describe as one that made things look pretty. It was like paint on a car — it sure makes the car look good, but it doesn't add anything to the performance, nor is it required to make the car run. Visual Basic does a little bit more than that, but you get the gist of it.

Jump to a few years later. I discovered a programming language that was included with early versions of the Windows operating system — QBasic. It was first introduced in Windows 95 and retired after Windows 2000. This would be when I first started taking coding more seriously. My first project while learning QBasic was for the chess tournaments that we ran at my high school. The goal was to write a program that would display a tournament bracket that could be easily filled out and updated by the tournament coordinator as needed, with the ability to print and save results for later perusal. Seems easy, right? Oh, how wrong I was.

You see, in college, when you take an introduction to programming course, they teach you how to design a program. You first need to break the problem down into smaller pieces, then plan the program — write the "recipe" for what you want it to do — on paper or in a word processor before you even think about opening an editor and writing any code. This is called pseudocode. This is where I went wrong with the chess bracket program. For the longest time I would jump in with both feet and just start writing code on the fly — skip the design phase entirely. This would bite me over and over again until I finally forced myself to design my programs first before typing a single line of code, which paid off greatly in the long run. As for that chess project? It was left unfinished. I did, however, leave it with a much deeper understanding of QBasic.

In college (my first attempt at getting a bachelor's in computer science) I learned a programming language known as C++. Almost anyone who has written a program in C++ will tell you that learning it as one of your first languages is like getting thrown in the deep end of the pool. Looking back, I'm glad I learned C++ early on — it made picking up other languages much easier. With C++ you encounter some pretty difficult concepts, such as pointers, memory allocation, and scope. While not as difficult as assembly language, it still took a lot of time reading, highlighting, and bookmarking pages of thick tomes — not unlike a wizard poring over an arcane magical tome. I have yet to fully master C++, but I know enough to get by. The next language I would invest a substantial amount of time in was Python, during my second stint in college. Python should have been the first language I was introduced to — it is easy to learn, versatile, and these days is the go-to language for most introductory programming courses at the college level. It's probably the first language I would suggest to anyone curious about getting into programming. (I'll explain the difference between a scripting language and a compiled language in a later post.)

Here's the thing about computers and software. Most people who use a computer use one that runs one of three operating systems, or OS. If you're working with a PC, it's Windows or Linux. If you own a Mac, it's macOS. Software is the brains of the computer — it tells the computer what to do and turns it into a useful tool. That OS on your computer? That's an elaborate piece of software called system software. Without an OS, a computer is basically an overpriced paperweight with flashing lights.

Everyone knows — or should — that the world is run by computers. Everything from your car to streetlights to your smart washing machine falls under what is known as the Internet of Things, or "IoT," and all of these things have one thing in common: they all run on code.

As you may have noticed from the hobbies I mentioned in my first post, Jiu Jitsu, Chess, and Ethical Hacking — which involves programming — are all complex systems. I seek mastery over complex systems as a way of regaining a sense of control. Programming in this day and age is a very versatile and powerful skill to have.

The world is digitally connected, and programming gives you a lens through which to understand it that not a lot of people have. Knowing that you can alter the world around you and create tools that can greatly impact how things run is empowering. To a non-technical individual, it all seems like magic.

Having the ability to read and write code means you can build your own tools when existing software isn't sufficient for what you need. It also means you can examine a program's source code and sometimes modify it directly, so you don't have to start from scratch. After all — if you want something done right, then you do it yourself.

Programming requires both creativity and scientific thinking. Some call it art; some call it science. In my humble opinion, it's a combination of both — it's where science meets art. As Joseph Weizenbaum once said, the programmer is a creator of universes. It often feels that way. Whether you draw inspiration from Harry Potter or the pages of a fantasy novel, the analogy holds: a skilled programmer, like a powerful wizard, can bend the world around them through knowledge, curiosity, and craft.

THAT'S why I chose to learn to code.

Predator Not Prey

“Live like a predator, not like prey.” — Justin Marinelli, The Bucknellian, 2012

Back in 2016, I felt stuck in life. I had just gotten out of a relationship, and I didn’t know what I wanted to do after yet another unfinished attempt at completing a college degree. I felt like I had fallen into complacency. I started searching for some motivation or a mindset that I could adopt to get myself moving again. That’s when I stumbled upon an interesting blog post entitled “Being a Predator Is Better Than Living Like Prey.” In the post, the author shares that the best advice he’s ever received is: “Live like a predator, not like prey.”

The author then goes on to draw comparisons between the animal kingdom and life in college—more specifically, how natural predators survive and even thrive in the wild, and how, by adopting the same mindset and behaviors, you as a student can do the same in a college environment.

Not only does this mirror life in college, but it also mirrors life in general. Most people have dreams and goals. Dreams and goals fuel an individual’s sense of purpose. That being said, people usually choose one of two mindsets when navigating life, and they form behaviors that align with that mindset. The two mindsets I’m referring to are what I call the predator mindset and the prey mindset. Let’s take a look at both along with their accompanying behaviors.

The first mindset is that of someone with a predator mindset. Now, when I say predator, I’m not talking about an antisocial psychopath or anything of the sort. (Sit back down, Jeffrey Dahmer—I’m not talking about you.) I’m talking about the natural predators you find in the animal kingdom. Lions, sharks, and eagles are prime examples. (You thought I was going to say “Lions, tigers, and bears! Oh my!” didn’t you?)

There’s no getting around the fact that we, as humans, have a finite amount of time on this planet. If we want to fulfill our goals and wishes, we have to adopt a different mindset than the often more comfortable prey mindset. We need to become proactive instead of reactive.

Now imagine that you’re a predator in the wild—let’s say a panther. You have no choice but to be proactive. You have to take risks. Not taking risks means you may miss out on your next meal or miss mating opportunities. Add to that the fact that your next meal may be bigger, faster, or even smarter than you. This means that you, the predator, need to push yourself every single day to become a better version of yourself. You have to become stronger, faster, and smarter. It’s not a matter of vanity—it’s a matter of survival.

In the wild, some predators hunt in packs, such as wolves, while others hunt solo, like tigers. Humans, at their core, are social beings. A person with the predator mindset understands this but is more selective. They choose a smaller, tighter group of loyal friends with a similar mindset over a large group of mediocre friends with questionable loyalties. After all, you are the sum of those you surround yourself with—choose wisely. This small circle pushes each other to be better. Those with the predator mindset also aren’t afraid to go their own direction and forge their own path when the need arises, and the “pack” understands this.

What is the “prey” of someone with the predator mindset, you may ask? Their goals. Their opportunities. They don’t let opportunities pass them by; they hunt it.The predator knows that they are a predator—they don’t need external validation because they trust themselves.

What is something a predator doesn’t have? A victim mentality. A predator doesn’t waste time asking, “Why me?” They keep their emotions in check. This doesn’t mean someone with a predator mindset doesn’t have emotions; it means they’ve learned to control them—because if you don’t, your emotions will control you. Predators also learn from their mistakes. If they fail? They learn and move forward. They don’t blame others. If a predator doesn’t learn from its mistakes, it dies…

Speaking of victim mentality, let’s talk about the prey mindset. Someone with a prey mindset has developed a mentality they’ve grown accustomed to—the victim mentality. They constantly ask themselves, “Why me?” This is in direct contrast to someone with a predator mindset, who asks, “Why not me?” People with a prey mindset rarely take ownership of their mistakes; it’s always someone else’s fault. They are reactive, not proactive.

Remember how I mentioned earlier that individuals with a predator mindset keep their emotions in check? Those with the prey mindset let their emotions take the steering wheel.

They also tend to believe in the illusion that there is strength in numbers—much like herd animals in the wild. Unfortunately, that often means little to no loyalty among the herd and shallow relationships. (Really… it’s like they’re playing Pokémon: Friends Edition—gotta catch them all!) When pressure hits though, the herd scatters, and the prey gets left behind.

Sticking with the herd is the more comfortable option, but it also means never forging your own path. If you try to break away, the herd will attempt to drag you back into mediocrity. Remember, just like with the predator mindset, you are the sum of those you surround yourself with.

So now you have a choice to make.

Do you want to start living your best life by being proactive—going after your goals and dreams and becoming a better version of yourself every day? Or do you want to remain reactive, comfortable in mediocrity, while life passes you by?

Decide what you want in life and pursue it every day like the predator you are. Maybe that goal is a relationship—ask your crush out. What’s the worst they can do, say no? If that happens, move on. There is someone else out there for you.

Once you start living like a predator, your life will begin to fall into alignment—not because of luck, but because you’re creating opportunities instead of merely reacting to what life throws at you.

Remember you have a choice:  Predator or Prey.  I, for one, choose to: “Live like a predator, not like prey.”

("Hello World")

"To know, read; to learn, write; and to master, teach."  An old Hindi proverb. 

And so the journey begins….. My life hasn’t always taken a traditional circuitous route. The one thing I can tell you about myself is that I’ve learned to live by the U.S. Marine motto “Adapt, Improvise, and Overcome”. 

You see, I’ve been put in the unique situation of being born with a common birth defect known as Spina Bifida (I, for instance, have Myelomeningocele). Although it has come with more than a few frustrations and challenges, it has also forced me to hone my ability to adapt, improvise, and overcome. Let’s add to that fact that I have this “little thing” called “Executive Functioning Disorder” and it’s not all sunshine, rainbows, and unicorns. 

The reason I decided to build this website was for a few reasons:  An insatiable want and need to learn and teach, a way to hold myself accountable, and the ability to help others learn through my pitfalls and successes.

Everyone should have hobbies in their life. It can give a person a sense of purpose and something to focus on. Not only should you have a hobby or two, but one should strive to achieve mastery in said hobbies to the best of their abilities. I, myself, have a few hobbies that I will be using as mediums in this blog: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, ethical hacking, and chess. 

Growing up, I always remember being involved in one sport or another. I was a very active child, especially for someone with Spina Bifida. I have early memories of T-Ball followed by “Wheelchair Sport’s Camp”. Wheelchair Sport’s Camp was a yearly event held at the beginning of June. It introduced young individuals with various disabilities to modified versions of various sports and activities. These sports included: wheelchair basketball, wheelchair tennis, wheelchair archery, swimming, wheelchair rugby,wheelchair table tennis, and wheelchair track & field. I spent a lot of my focus on wheelchair basketball (they called me “Chair Jordan” which conveniently matched my initials CJ). I also spent a good amount of my focus on another yearly event known as the Junior Wheelchair Nationals. The Junior Wheelchair Nationals took place in a different city each year in the United States. There I competed in various sports events such as: track (wheelchair racing in which I used a special racing chair for racing) & field (shotput, discus, and javelin), swimming, table tennis (Some uncouth barbarians might recognize it under its other name, “ping pong”), and the obstacle course (a true unholy nightmare for individuals with executive functioning disorder). Yes, I won more than a few medals at the nationals and some participation awards, but we don’t talk about those. I also had a love/hate relationship with wheelchair tennis. I might have had better luck at tennis if I had better spatial awareness and didn’t hit the ball every single time like it had personally affronted me and my family. Said ball mostly went into the net. 

Fast forward to 2018…. I started on a new journey in my life, and in doing so, I discovered I had an insatiable want and need to learn. I decided to start training in the martial art known as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at the age of 40 even realizing that I had limited mobility in my legs and lower back issues. From the start, I could tell that this was something I would be passionate about. As you can imagine, it had a steep learning curve with my disability, but it also encompassed that motto of “Improvise, Adapt, and Overcome”. Everything I was learning was like a puzzle to be solved with my disability. Shortly after that, I discovered something else about myself. I not only enjoyed the physical,social and mental benefits it had on me, but I also really enjoyed teaching others. Now Jiu-Jitsu isn’t my only interest or hobby. Before BJJ and chess, my passion was computers. 

In 1985 my mom and dad bought me my first computer. I can remember it like it was yesterday. The computer in question was a brand spanking new Apple IIe. At the time as a child of only 7 or 8, one of the only things I was interested in was what games could I play on this wondrous machine? Forget the fact that my parents bought this machine for me to help me in school with my fine motor issues. For the next few years of my life games like Karateka, Choplifter, World Games, Hardball, and Oregon Trail took over my life. (Oregon Trail was brutal BTW) Today’s generation of gamers would curl up in the fetal position rocking back and forth while crying if they took a run at that game.) The next few years would lead me into exploring various BBS’s (Bulletin Board Services) and various chat rooms that I probably had no business even being in at that age.

It wasn’t until my mid to late teens that I would discover one of my passions in life, computer hacking & computer security. I’d be lying if I didn’t partially attribute this to the movies running in theaters in 1995. These included movies like The Net, and the cult classic Hackers. 

Through the following years I delved a bit in and I devoured any material I could get my hands on the subject of hacking computers and computer systems. I started to learn how to write programs on the computer and make it do things that seemed magical to those who weren’t knowledgeable with how computers worked. Basically, a computer is an overpriced paperweight without some sort of a program loaded onto it. I’ll go more into detail on that later, but an example would be the Windows operating system.  

In 2006, I discovered computer hacking/security meetups. A place where like minded individuals like myself could teach,learn, and discuss anything and everything about computer hacking and computer security. This was also my introduction to the phenomenon known as “Imposter Syndrome ”. For those of you that aren’t familiar with imposter syndrome, imposter syndrome is a psychological phenomenon characterized by persistent feelings of inadequacy, self-doubt, and a fear of being exposed as a fraud, despite evidence of one's achievements.. 

I learned not all hackers were criminals or bad guys (known as black hats) out to cause chaos,mischief, and mayhem. There were hackers out there that would help companies by testing their company’s security looking for vulnerabilities then responsibly disclosing their findings to the company so that they could fix the vulnerabilities before they were found by the bad guys and exploited. These hackers were known as “white Hats” or “ethical hackers”. That’s when I decided to start building a home security lab for study and practice. I’ve also started to learn about different scams and frauds so I can inform the public on how they work and what they can do to protect themselves.  

I’ve been playing chess since I was in my early teens. It started out as a way to bond with my dad. This bonding ended up turning into an ass kicking usually as I failed to grasp the deep strategical and tactical elements of the game. Basically as a beginner, my strategy was to capture as many pieces of his that I could. Lack of resources for your opponent should make for an easy win,right? Not always. 

It wasn’t until high school that I started to get more serious about chess. After school was done for the day, a relatively large group of fellow students and I would play chess (one of the teachers ran this little unorganized get together). It wasn’t officially a club, just a group of students who would play chess. The teacher mentioned above would run tournaments ever so often. There was one guy who was  better than the rest of us that seemed like a prodigy at chess. The thing is…. that I ended up being the only one that could beat the guy in random games, but as soon as it became a game in the tournament format, I couldn’t beat the guy. It usually came down to the two of us in the finals, but sometimes the tournament pressure got to me early in the tournament. I’d find myself all up in my head against an opponent that I knew I was better than. Then I’d make one blunder and it would turn into a downward spiral from there.  It wasn’t until I started Jiu Jitsu, that I picked the game back up. I started to see a correlation between Jiu Jitsu and chess. 

So join me on this journey. My hope is that you’ll learn not only from my successes but also from my failures. In trying to educate you, the reader, I will be forced to be held accountable for studying and researching in order to present content to you in an accurate,consistent, and expedient manner. I will be adding a monthly newsletter that you can sign up for with updates and tips. I will also be answering any of your questions. I plan to add a “book club” section where I will be including all books I’ve read. From that list, I will  recommend books for the readers. I’ll eventually be adding a YouTube channel so I can post tutorials, footage, and additional content from the three mediums that I have chosen: BJJ, Ethical Hacking, and Chess. 

Not only do I hope to make content that will help those readers who have the same interests as me, but also tips and shortcuts that can be easily transferable to other skills you, the reader, may want to excel in. 

Welcome to Chasing Perfection