For those who know me, no explanation is necessary. For those who don’t, no explanation is possible.

Aloha, I’m Dennis Gonzalez, the guy behind NY2Honolulu.

I spent my career as a journeyman electrician, wiring the buildings that networks run through. In retirement, I decided to stop watching cybersecurity from the sidelines and learn how those networks get defended and broken. No CS degree, no bootcamp. Just steady, hands-on learning, done in public. This blog is the paper trail.

I’m working through Black Hat Python (2nd Edition) and the O’Reilly Python course side by side, and practicing in my own homelab cyber range: a Proxmox setup running Kali Linux and Metasploitable2. The lessons aren’t all in the lab. When WordPress’s auto-updater quietly failed to patch an actively exploited SQL injection flaw on this very site, I patched it by hand. That’s the kind of real, sometimes messy work you’ll find here, wins and stumbles both.

I live where deep tech meets intentional living. By day, and often late into the night, I’m experimenting with local AI agents, Linux environments, security tools, and automation, with privacy-focused workflows built on Python, Grok, and Hermes.

Currently in progress (updated September 2026):

• Black Hat Python labs + AWS DVA-C02 exam study
• Proxmox cyber range: next up, first nmap scan of Metasploitable2
• SANS ISC/DShield integration

This blog is where the two worlds meet: technical depth meets real-life transitions. No claimed expertise — just verifiable, dated proof of the climb.

Follow the Lab Journal for the hands-on stuff, or the News menu above for my curated cybersecurity sources. Welcome to the journey — from Honolulu, with an eye on the horizon.