Hey, I'm Dustin, the IT Director at Village Capital & Investment LLC, where I lead the charge on everything from infrastructure strategy to day-to-day systems management. I've always had a hands-on approach to technology, if something needs to be built, automated, or untangled, I'm in it until it's running smooth. Whether it's mapping shared printers by IP or security group, writing PowerShell scripts to easily deploy solutions, or optimizing Docker deployments, I'm all about solving problems in fun, scalable, and smart ways.

Professionally, I lean deep into enterprise tech things like high-availability server and network setups, and the nuanced design of scalable, secure infrastructure. I love building systems that just work and keep working, whether that's inside a corporate datacenter or in my personal lab. I'm big on automation, virtualization, containerization (especially with Docker Compose), and building stuff that I don't have to babysit.

My journey with technology and gaming began in the late 90s and early 00s. My first console was a NES and original GameBoy, where I spent countless hours playing Super Mario Bros 3, Duck Hunt, and Pokémon Blue. Christmas 2003 was a milestone, as I received a Gameboy Advance SP and dived deep into Pokémon Sapphire, Ruby, Fire Red, and Leaf Green. In 2004, I moved onto the Sega Dreamcast, enjoying classics like Sonic Adventure 2, Crazy Taxi, and Shenmue. It was around this time that my interest in tech started to rapidly build. I vividly remember recording my Shenmue gameplay on our VCR – a marvel to me back then. What I wouldn't give to watch those tapes today! It was also during this period that I met my lifelong best friend, Leno, who shared many of my burgeoning interests.

By 2005, I had transitioned to the original Xbox, discovering a new love for more mature titles. Halo, Halo 2, and MechAssault 2 were definite highlights. Before the Xbox 360's release, I experienced Xbox Live for the first time. I recall learning about the Docsis 2 modem that the Cox ISP technicians set up in our apartment to connect the Xbox. Even back then, I found myself calling them for help when the internet went down, committing 192.168.1.1 to memory before I was even a teenager.

2006 was a pivotal year. I upgraded to the Xbox 360 and, significantly, got my first PC: a Dell Dimension 2400, complete with a printer and a 4:3 1280x768 Dell monitor. With access to the internet, my curiosity exploded. I began learning about PC game emulators, LimeWire, torrenting media, and the incredible power of creative modding. It was around this time that I started to mod Halo CE for the PC and recorded my footage to upload to a new site I had just signed up for – YouTube. It's surreal to think I've been using YouTube for two decades now. Below is that very video I made in 2006 at the age of 13 (listen to my baby voice at the end haha).

The years 2007-2009 saw an expansion of my interests in media. I uploaded many YouTube videos myself and continued to play more and more games on the Xbox 360, including titles like ChromeHounds, The Outfit, and The Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-earth II. Around that time, Leno and I picked up a copy of Command and Conquer: Generals from Walmart. We'd spend entire days immersed in the game during our middle school years. The game came with software called World Builder, which allowed for the creation of custom maps with scripting. I can recall spending an unreal amount of time unleashing my creativity to make maps, learning about the backend systems from YouTube videos, and even conceptualizing map designs in school, diligently writing them down on paper.

Building and tinkering has always been in my DNA. The end of 2009 was another big moment where I had the chance to make my first fully custom computer by myself (seen below), and that project kicked off a lifelong passion for hardware and tech exploration. These days, I still build computers often for work and friends and really enjoy seeing the advancements companies make to the ecosystem.

I've been an anime fan since around 2005, watching shows like Inuyasha on Adult Swim, Zoids, and Pokémon. My interest expanded, and I started watching weekly releases in 2009.

By 2010, I was well-versed in content creation, Windows OS installations, HDD partitions, and computer hardware. I had also started getting interested in old audio equipment, speakers, and receivers, which is something I still love today with home streaming using Plex and a home cinema setup. Below is a snapshot of my life at that time.

In 2011, I was living in Austin, TX, where I got my first job as a Computer Technician Intern. This role truly allowed me to flex my creativity by building custom computers for sale from donated parts, refurbishing Dell towers, and playing with Linux (Ubuntu / Mint) for the first time. Below is a photo of my old job—it was heaven to me.

My first source of income, of course, went right back into buying more things I loved: games, manga, and, naturally, tech. Below is a video showcasing my expanded gear, featuring three monitors, Nvidia Surround, and my dual GPU SLI setup.

By this time, I was getting more into serious tech stuff like Hamachi servers, SSH, flashing the ROM of my MP3 players with custom firmware, and even flashing the firmware on my Xbox 360 DVD drive to play games I would burn to disk with the .ISO files. Below is a photo from that period, showcasing the process.

Towards the end of my internship, I ended up getting my first car, a video of which became one of my most popular YouTube videos.

My love for anime extends beyond just watching; over the last few years, I've acquired dozens of figures, with a special fondness for Nendoroids. My collection is a testament to my passion, and I'm particularly proud of having nearly every Jibril figure released – she's been my top waifu since 2014!

Another big part of my life is cars. My current one being a 2019 Kia K900. I upgraded from a 2007 Lexus LS 460 L, and throughout my life, I've always loved giant sedans for their comfy ride and plentiful space. The K900 is a particularly special vehicle to me due to its rarity; only around 2,000 were sold in the US across its 2019-2020 model years before it was discontinued. This production number makes it rarer than many high-performance and luxury cars, for instance, the Ferrari 458 Italia saw over 15,000 units produced, and even some specific Porsche 911 variants have higher production runs than the K900's entire US availability. It's a unique blend of luxury and exclusivity that I truly appreciate.

More recently, I've developed a total obsession for AI art and Stable Diffusion. While it's a contentious topic for some, I couldn't be more enthusiastic. As a creative person who never dedicated time to mastering traditional drawing, the ability to generate stunning images with AI is incredible. Being an anime lover, crafting beautiful artwork of any character I can imagine, very quickly using tools like Forge with Stable Diffusion rendered on my RTX 4090, is a dream come true. I've become quite proficient with Stable Diffusion over the last few years. You can check out some of my creations on my Civit.ai profile.

Nowadays when I'm not running cables, installing security systems, breaking the network to make it better, or tweaking server configs, I'm usually working on a personal project like this website, my in development board game Factions of Fate or working on my homelab stack (seen below).

Tech isn't just my job, it's the lens I see the world through. Whether I'm optimizing TrueNAS metadata VDEVs, troubleshooting SAS HBAs, experimenting with Ollama and local LLMs, or converting a card-based board game I designed into a browser game with zero game dev experience, I'm always learning, refining, and pushing to make cool things even cooler.

This website serves as a personal platform to share my passions, showcase my projects, and document my ongoing journey in the world of technology.