Hey everyone! Happy Sunday! Or, should I say, “happy ‘big game’ Sunday”?

OMG, why can no one say “S**** B***” anymore without being bombarded by a battery of lawyers…

Will I be watching? Most likely. I don’t really follow sports at all, and that game is pretty much the only one I watch. I don’t particularly care about the teams that are playing. I used to watch it only for the commercials, but even those haven’t been all that great in recent years. We shall see what this year brings…

How was your week? It was pretty busy for me, as I had been chasing down computers that are sporting older versions of Notepad++ that have been exploited by nation-state criminals (I don’t like to use the word ‘actors’, because it makes me think of the movies or TV). If you’re not familiar with it, you can read all about it right here. If you happen to be someone who uses Notepad++, now is a very good time to make sure you’re using the most up-to-date version. While I have tracked down just about everyone in our environment that is using the application and sent off emails to them, getting them to actually read and heed the message is a whole other thing. I liken it to herding cats. Fuuuuuuuuun. 😂

I’ve got a few training courses coming up in the near future that I’m getting excited/nervous about. This Wednesday begins my four-week “Building CMMC Readiness in Higher Ed” course. While I’m looking forward to learning more about CMMC, I’m also a bit nervous about it—as I’m reading through the syllabus, I can’t help but feel like I’ll be a bit in over my head, with identifying areas of improvement, to even developing an action plan. I’m not sure I know enough about CMMC, or our environment for that matter. I’m only just over a year in my role, and still learning to look at things from a higher level—I’m not sure if I’ll be able to do what the course is going to be asking of me. Guess I’ll find out! 😅

Next month, I’ll also be attending a week-long course to try and re-obtain my CompTIA Security+ certification, as I start on my journey towards the CISM (Certified Information Security Manager) certification. It’s all a very exciting—and very scary—endeavor for me. I’m glad that my boss sees more potential in me than I do! 😂

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This Got Me Thinking

Just yesterday, someone I follow on social media mentioned their upcoming birthday—specifically about how it’s happy and sad all at once. How birthdays feel different as you get older. How it seems like fewer people remember, fewer people care, and sometimes it just feels a little lonely.

I felt that deeply. My own birthday is coming up at the end of this month, and those same complicated feelings have been in me, though I hadn’t realized it until their post.

There’s something about birthdays that becomes more complicated with age. When you’re younger, they’re pure celebration: cake, candles, people making a fuss. But somewhere along the way, they shift. They become quieter. More reflective. Sometimes triggering an ache you didn’t expect.

It’s not always that people care less. Life just gets busy. People drift. Priorities change. But that doesn’t make it hurt any less when the day arrives and it feels… smaller. Quieter. Like you matter a little less than you used to.

I think we don’t talk about this enough – how aging can be both a gift and a grief. How you can be grateful for another year and still feel sad about how it’s being marked. How loneliness shows up in unexpected places, even on days that are supposed to be celebrations.

Perhaps there’s a reminder in that. If birthdays feel lonely, holidays feel hollow, or milestones feel quiet, you’re not alone in that feeling. And maybe knowing that is enough to soften it, even just a little.

Maybe it’s also an invitation to reach out to someone whose birthday you remember. To send the text, make the call, and let someone know they’re thought of, even when the world feels too busy to notice.

Because sometimes, the smallest gestures are the ones that matter most.

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Lastly, here’s a look back at what I wore to work this past week. It’s actually my first full work week since the winter storm—whose snow and ice still haven’t left yet. 😔

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

-Terry

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