The journal / essays

Articles

Essays, guides, and field notes on technology, self-reliance, infrastructure, and the art of keeping options open.

An engraved compass rose, engraved on ivory paper. — Find your bearings.

Digital5 min read

Password Management: Self-Hosted, Layered Security

A self-managed password architecture using pass, GnuPG, YubiKey, Git, and an offline LUKS vault, with protection matched to credential sensitivity.

Intermediate

Digital9 min read

[OpenPGP - offline primary] Keep the Secret Off the Machine

Keep the OpenPGP primary private key offline, use subkeys for daily operations, and test recovery before removing any key.

Expert

Digital8 min read

[YubiKey - OpenPGP] A Token Is Not the Secret

Use a hardware token for daily OpenPGP operations, preserve a tested key backup, and plan account recovery before losing the device.

Expert

Economics4 min read

[Bitcoin - self-custody] Custody Without a Custodian

A balance on an exchange is a promise to repay you—not assets held in your own wallet. A seed phrase is a secret. Confusing the two is how “not your keys” stops being a slogan and becomes a lesson.

Expert

Digital6 min read

[Data - classification] The Keep Is the Data

Private, confidential, and public are walls, not moods. Whatever you give a third party becomes a tool that can be turned on you.

Discovery

Society4 min read

[Sovereignty - definition] What Practical Sovereignty Means

Not a life without dependencies. A life where you understand them, can recover when one fails, and can leave when the terms change.

Discovery

Digital3 min read

[Lock-in - exit] Dependency Is Not the Enemy. Having No Exit Is.

Identify the cost of replacing an important service, test an alternative, and keep the recovery instructions current.

Discovery

Articles

Password Management: Self-Hosted, Layered Security↗

[OpenPGP - offline primary] Keep the Secret Off the Machine↗

[YubiKey - OpenPGP] A Token Is Not the Secret↗

[Bitcoin - self-custody] Custody Without a Custodian↗

[Data - classification] The Keep Is the Data↗

[Sovereignty - definition] What Practical Sovereignty Means↗

[Lock-in - exit] Dependency Is Not the Enemy. Having No Exit Is.↗

Password Management: Self-Hosted, Layered Security

[OpenPGP - offline primary] Keep the Secret Off the Machine

[YubiKey - OpenPGP] A Token Is Not the Secret

[Bitcoin - self-custody] Custody Without a Custodian

[Data - classification] The Keep Is the Data

[Sovereignty - definition] What Practical Sovereignty Means

[Lock-in - exit] Dependency Is Not the Enemy. Having No Exit Is.