Along This Trail
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Power Query Fundamentals for Accountants, Auditors, and Analysts
Many accounting, auditing, and reporting tasks begin with a familiar challenge: data arrives in different formats, from different sources, and rarely in a form that is immediately ready for analysis. Whether the information comes from an ERP system, a CSV export, a spreadsheet received by email, or a database report, significant time is often spent…
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Useful Macro and VBA Resources
What is Macro and VBA? Macros and VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) are closely related tools used to automate tasks in Microsoft Excel. A macro is a recorded sequence of actions that Excel can replay automatically, while VBA is the programming language behind those automations. Together, they allow users to eliminate repetitive work, improve consistency,…
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One Song That Took Me to The Lone Star State ⭐
Many years ago, I watched a Mongolian singer perform Amarillo By Morning on YouTube. That performance introduced me to George Strait and, in many ways, to Texas itself. I have always enjoyed folk music regardless of language or culture, but one thing I came to appreciate about American folk traditions is how they evolved into…
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Romanticized Oyaji Gyagu (Dad Jokes)
In Japanese, there is a term called oyaji gyagu (おやじギャグ), literally “dad jokes”—the kind of puns that are so corny they make everyone around you groan. They are often built on wordplay, loose associations, or accidental similarities in sound. Last night, while scrolling through YouTube Shorts before bed, I came across a clip of a…
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AI and I Built This Website in 5 Days (Part II): Debugging My Way Through the Full Stack
In a previous post, I wrote about how AI helped me launch Great Lakes Data Forest in just a few days. Looking back, getting the website online was only the beginning. What happened afterward turned out to be equally educational. Once the basic structure was in place, I began refining the site’s appearance and user…
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From Correlation to Causation: How a Simple Question Led Me into the World of Complex Systems
One of the most persistent ideas I encountered while studying statistics, machine learning, and data science was a phrase repeated almost everywhere: Correlation is not causation. At first, it seemed straightforward enough. We can measure correlations. We can build predictive models. We can identify patterns hidden within large datasets. But a question lingered in the…
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A Haven for Cats with Nowhere Else to Go
While wandering through YouTube one evening, I came across the live stream hosted by Furball Farm Cat Sanctuary. What began as a relaxing background video soon became something more meaningful. The sanctuary provides a home for feral and behaviorally challenged cats that have often been labeled “unadoptable” by shelters and rescues. Many arrive with nowhere…
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Triple-Entry Accounting: A Glimpse into the Future of Financial Recordkeeping
While exploring recent developments in the application of data science and emerging technologies in accounting, I repeatedly encountered the concept of Triple-Entry Accounting (TEA). Although the idea has existed for some time, advances in blockchain technology have renewed interest in its potential to reshape financial recordkeeping and auditing. One article that provides a concise introduction…
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Current Reading Journey
Current Reading Journey I have always been the type of person who starts new books before finishing the previous ones. In some sense, I am probably a typical “bookworm” — constantly wandering between different subjects, ideas, and perspectives. There is something deeply enjoyable about meandering through different disciplines and ideas without forcing myself into a…
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AI-Generated Music — Soul in Spanish, Not “Latin Sound”
When it comes to AI-generated artwork, many of my friends tend to have somewhat negative views toward it. The concerns are understandable. Issues such as copyright, authenticity, and artistic originality are becoming increasingly complicated in the age of AI. One of my friends once pointed out that true art requires a kind of “spark” —…