{"id":3322,"date":"2025-03-22T19:26:33","date_gmt":"2025-03-22T19:26:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/?p=3322"},"modified":"2025-03-22T19:26:33","modified_gmt":"2025-03-22T19:26:33","slug":"welcome-to-reynet255-my-ongoing-it-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/?p=3322","title":{"rendered":"Welcome to Reynet255: My Ongoing IT Journey"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<ul class=\"wp-block-social-links is-layout-flex wp-block-social-links-is-layout-flex\"><li class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-gravatar  wp-block-social-link\"><a rel=\"me\" href=\"https:\/\/gravatar.com\/unabashedlybananaf5a8553fb9\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M10.8001 4.69937V10.6494C10.8001 11.1001 10.9791 11.5323 11.2978 11.851C11.6165 12.1697 12.0487 12.3487 12.4994 12.3487C12.9501 12.3487 13.3824 12.1697 13.7011 11.851C14.0198 11.5323 14.1988 11.1001 14.1988 10.6494V6.69089C15.2418 7.05861 16.1371 7.75537 16.7496 8.67617C17.3622 9.59698 17.6589 10.6919 17.595 11.796C17.5311 12.9001 17.1101 13.9535 16.3954 14.7975C15.6807 15.6415 14.711 16.2303 13.6325 16.4753C12.5541 16.7202 11.4252 16.608 10.4161 16.1555C9.40691 15.703 8.57217 14.9348 8.03763 13.9667C7.50308 12.9985 7.29769 11.8828 7.45242 10.7877C7.60714 9.69266 8.11359 8.67755 8.89545 7.89537C9.20904 7.57521 9.38364 7.14426 9.38132 6.69611C9.37899 6.24797 9.19994 5.81884 8.88305 5.50195C8.56616 5.18506 8.13704 5.00601 7.68889 5.00369C7.24075 5.00137 6.80979 5.17597 6.48964 5.48956C5.09907 6.8801 4.23369 8.7098 4.04094 10.6669C3.84819 12.624 4.34 14.5873 5.43257 16.2224C6.52515 17.8575 8.15088 19.0632 10.0328 19.634C11.9146 20.2049 13.9362 20.1055 15.753 19.3529C17.5699 18.6003 19.0695 17.241 19.9965 15.5066C20.9234 13.7722 21.2203 11.7701 20.8366 9.84133C20.4528 7.91259 19.4122 6.17658 17.892 4.92911C16.3717 3.68163 14.466 2.99987 12.4994 3C12.0487 3 11.6165 3.17904 11.2978 3.49773C10.9791 3.81643 10.8001 4.24867 10.8001 4.69937Z\" \/><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text\">Gravatar<\/span><\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/a-server-room_QDQ9JI2fTxGwAVVitskAGw_G0tRUkiFTKqsSgaV9pW4Ig-1024x683.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3324\" srcset=\"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/a-server-room_QDQ9JI2fTxGwAVVitskAGw_G0tRUkiFTKqsSgaV9pW4Ig-1024x683.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/reynet255.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/a-server-room_QDQ9JI2fTxGwAVVitskAGw_G0tRUkiFTKqsSgaV9pW4Ig-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/reynet255.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/a-server-room_QDQ9JI2fTxGwAVVitskAGw_G0tRUkiFTKqsSgaV9pW4Ig-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/reynet255.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/a-server-room_QDQ9JI2fTxGwAVVitskAGw_G0tRUkiFTKqsSgaV9pW4Ig.jpeg 1248w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Okay, the title might be a little misleading.&nbsp; I&#8217;m not just now starting my path into IT in March 2025.  Here, let me explain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Landfill Days<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If we&#8217;re being official, my journey probably started around November 2020.&nbsp; I was working for Waste Management, sitting in my D8 bulldozer pushing trash.&nbsp; Literally.&nbsp; I kept hearing this radio commercial about a school called MyComputerCareer:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-style-default is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>&#8220;You could start your new career as an IT pro in months!&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>I didn&#8217;t think much about it at first\u2026 until they mentioned something about the GI Bill.&nbsp; As a veteran, my ears perked up.&nbsp; A few days later, I looked into the program and eventually took a tour of the campus that I couldn&#8217;t even attend because of Covid-19 restrictions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">MyComputerCareer: The Launchpad<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>I enrolled and officially started in February 2021, graduating in April 2022.&nbsp; The school focused on certs like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>CompTIA (A+, Network+, Security+, and Server<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Linux<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Microsoft MTA<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>CCNA<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>They also provided career support, resume building, and job placement assistance.&nbsp; Which reminds me, huge shout-out to Ms. Pierce (boy, she worked her tail off trying to get me a job).&nbsp; Anyways, It was a solid launchpad, especially for someone like me who was switching fields\u2026 again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">But, Where Did It Really Start?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Honestly, it&#8217;s hard to pin down the real beginning of my Journey.  Was it:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>February 2020, watching our sysadmin Ken set up my workstation and running around working on our network?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>2013, when I was grinding through Treehouse learning front-end dev?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Or maybe even as a kid, when my mom bought my sister and I a computer?&nbsp; I didn&#8217;t know what it could really do, but I was already mastering Minesweeper.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why This Blog?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;m not here to split hairs about when it all began, because frankly, it doesn&#8217;t matter.&nbsp; What does matter, at least to me, is documenting the journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;ve been capturing pieces of it through YouTube, and I&#8217;ll keep posting there.&nbsp; But now, I&#8217;m adding a new layer with this blog.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is Reynet255- where I&#8217;ll share my experiences, labs, wins, struggles, and lessons learned along the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What&#8217;s Next?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;ll be posting:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>IT labs<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Real-world configs with my Cisco gear<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Certs that I&#8217;m studying for<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Tools and techniques I&#8217;m learning<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Thoughts on tech, leadership, and growth<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re into IT, switching careers, or just curious about the process, follow along.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let&#8217;s route this journey together.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Okay, the title might be a little misleading.&nbsp; I&#8217;m not just now starting my path into IT in March 2025. Here, let me explain. The Landfill Days If we&#8217;re being official, my journey probably started around November 2020.&nbsp; I was working for Waste Management, sitting in my D8 bulldozer pushing trash.&nbsp; Literally.&nbsp; I kept hearing [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3329,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"blocksy_meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3322"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3322\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3330,"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3322\/revisions\/3330"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3329"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3322"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3322"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reynet255.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}