Getting Started with Linux

Date: 2026-01-01 Tags: linux, tutorial

So you want to try Linux? Good choice. Here’s my no-bullshit guide to getting started.

Choosing a Distro

Don’t overthink it. Here’s my recommendation:

• Complete beginner? → Linux Mint or Ubuntu
• Want to learn? → Fedora or openSUSE
• Already comfortable? → Arch, Debian, or whatever you want

First Steps After Install

# Update everything first
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y  # Debian/Ubuntu
sudo dnf upgrade -y                      # Fedora
sudo pacman -Syu                         # Arch

# Install essential tools
sudo apt install git curl vim htop neofetch

Learn the Terminal

The terminal is your friend. Start with these:

Resources

• ArchWiki — Best documentation, works for any distro
• Linux Journey — Interactive learning
• /r/linux4noobs — Friendly community

“The best way to learn Linux is to break things and fix them.” — Every sysadmin ever

More tutorials coming soon. Happy hacking! 🐧

Home Cannabis Cultivation: A Beginner’s Guide

Date: 2025-12-15 Tags: cannabis, tutorial

Growing your own cannabis at home can be incredibly rewarding — both medicinally and personally. Here’s what I’ve learned from my journey.

⚠️ Legal Notice: Always check your local laws. This guide is for educational purposes in regions where home cultivation is legal.

Why Grow Your Own?

• Quality control — You know exactly what goes into your medicine
• Cost savings — Initial investment pays off quickly
• Strain selection — Grow what works best for your needs
• Therapeutic hobby — Gardening is great for mental health

Basic Requirements

Space

You don’t need much. Options include: - Grow tent (2x2 or 4x4 feet) - Spare closet - Small room

Equipment Checklist

[ ] Grow light (LED recommended)
[ ] Ventilation fan + carbon filter
[ ] Grow tent or enclosed space
[ ] Pots (fabric pots work great)
[ ] Soil or growing medium
[ ] Nutrients
[ ] pH meter
[ ] Timer for lights

Light Schedule

• Vegetative stage: 18 hours on, 6 hours off
• Flowering stage: 12 hours on, 12 hours off

My Setup

I run a simple 4x4 tent with: - 240W LED (Samsung diodes) - 6” inline fan with carbon filter - Living soil in 7-gallon fabric pots

Keeps things simple and organic. The plants are happy, I’m happy.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Overwatering — #1 killer of new growers. Let soil dry between waterings.
2. Poor ventilation — Plants need fresh air. Don’t skip the fan.
3. Wrong pH — Keep it between 6.0-7.0 for soil.
4. Nutrient burn — Less is more. Start at half strength.

Medical Benefits

For me, cannabis helps with: - Chronic pain management - Sleep issues - Anxiety relief

Everyone’s different. Keep a journal of what strains/doses work for you.

More grow guides coming soon. Stay lifted! 🌿

Setting Up a Home Server with Proxmox

Date: 2025-11-20 Tags: homelab, linux, tutorial

Time to talk about one of my favorite topics: homelabbing. Today we’re setting up Proxmox VE as the foundation for all your self-hosted services.

Why Proxmox?

• Free and open source
• Type 1 hypervisor (runs on bare metal)
• Supports VMs and LXC containers
• Web-based management
• Great community

Hardware Requirements

You don’t need fancy hardware. I started with:

- Old Dell Optiplex (i5-4590)
- 32GB RAM (upgraded from 8GB)
- 256GB SSD for OS
- 2TB HDD for storage

Any x86_64 machine with VT-x/AMD-V support works.

Installation

1. Download ISO from proxmox.com
2. Flash to USB with dd or Balena Etcher
3. Boot and follow the installer
4. Access web UI at https://your-ip:8006

# After install, fix the enterprise repo nag
# Edit /etc/apt/sources.list.d/pve-enterprise.list
# Comment out the enterprise repo, add:
deb http://download.proxmox.com/debian/pve bookworm pve-no-subscription

My Current VMs/Containers

Tips

• Backups: Use Proxmox Backup Server or simple vzdump
• Networking: Set up a bridge, consider VLANs
• Storage: ZFS is great if you have the RAM
• Templates: Create LXC templates for quick deployments

Resources

• Proxmox Wiki
• r/homelab
• Techno Tim on YouTube

Happy homelabbing! 🖥️

Life Update: Why I Started This Blog

Date: 2025-10-05 Tags: personal

Alright, time for something personal.

The Background

Life’s been… interesting. Without going into too much detail, the past few years have been rough. Health issues, job changes, the usual chaos that comes with existing in this world.

But here’s the thing — through it all, a few things kept me sane:

1. Tinkering with tech — Nothing clears my head like debugging a server at 2 AM
2. Growing plants — There’s something meditative about watching things grow
3. Writing — Even if nobody reads it, getting thoughts out helps

Why This Blog?

I’ve consumed so much free knowledge from random blogs and forums over the years. Time to give back.

Plus, I needed a project. Something to focus on that isn’t doom-scrolling or worrying about things I can’t control.

What to Expect

• Tutorials when I figure something out
• Rants when things don’t work
• Personal updates occasionally
• No schedule, no pressure

A Note on “Shitty Life”

Yeah, I mentioned that in the blog description. Life can be hard. Mental health is a real thing. If you’re struggling, you’re not alone.

I’m not here to give advice I’m not qualified to give. But I will say: find your thing. Whether it’s tech, gardening, gaming, whatever — having something to focus on helps.

Anyway, that’s enough feelings for one post. Back to technical stuff next time.

Stay safe out there. 🤙

Self-Hosting a WireGuard VPN

Date: 2025-09-15 Tags: networking, homelab, tutorial

Want secure remote access to your home network? WireGuard is fast, simple, and modern. Here’s how to set it up.

Why WireGuard?

• Fast — Much better performance than OpenVPN
• Simple — Minimal codebase, easy to audit
• Modern crypto — ChaCha20, Curve25519, etc.
• Cross-platform — Linux, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android

Server Setup (Debian/Ubuntu)

# Install WireGuard
sudo apt install wireguard

# Generate keys
wg genkey | tee /etc/wireguard/privatekey | wg pubkey > /etc/wireguard/publickey
chmod 600 /etc/wireguard/privatekey

# Create config
sudo nano /etc/wireguard/wg0.conf

Server Config (/etc/wireguard/wg0.conf)

[Interface]
PrivateKey = <server-private-key>
Address = 10.0.0.1/24
ListenPort = 51820
PostUp = iptables -A FORWARD -i wg0 -j ACCEPT; iptables -t nat -A POSTROUTING -o eth0 -j MASQUERADE
PostDown = iptables -D FORWARD -i wg0 -j ACCEPT; iptables -t nat -D POSTROUTING -o eth0 -j MASQUERADE

[Peer]
# Client 1
PublicKey = <client-public-key>
AllowedIPs = 10.0.0.2/32

Enable IP Forwarding

echo "net.ipv4.ip_forward=1" | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
sudo sysctl -p

Start WireGuard

sudo systemctl enable wg-quick@wg0
sudo systemctl start wg-quick@wg0

Client Config

[Interface]
PrivateKey = <client-private-key>
Address = 10.0.0.2/24
DNS = 10.0.0.1  # Use your Pi-hole!

[Peer]
PublicKey = <server-public-key>
Endpoint = your-domain.com:51820
AllowedIPs = 0.0.0.0/0  # Route all traffic through VPN
PersistentKeepalive = 25

Tips

• Port forwarding: Open UDP 51820 on your router
• Dynamic DNS: Use DuckDNS or similar if you don’t have a static IP
• Multiple devices: Just add more [Peer] sections

My Setup

I run WireGuard in an LXC container on Proxmox. Works perfectly. I can access my home network from anywhere, securely.

The service dock on this site? That’s where you’ll find registration for my VPN (friends/family only, sorry!).

Questions? Hit me up. Stay secure! 🔐