Speed & Performance

One of the core goals for this site was simple: make it fast. Not just “loads eventually” fast—snappy, responsive, and efficient on any device, even on flaky mobile networks. I’ve spent a lot of time tuning the stack to make sure this site performs better than many alternatives, especially those running out-of-the-box CMS installs or bloated page builders.

It’s lightning fast and secure.

How is this site faster than alternatives?

• Nginx in front of everything
  Nginx handles static content, images, stylesheets, and, cached HTML, quickly and efficiently. It’s also configured to compress assets, manage cache headers, and terminate SSL, which cuts down on browser-server handshake time.
• Cloudflare CDN and edge caching
  Cloudflare serves content from locations closer to visitors, reducing latency.
• Minimal plugins, minimal bloat
  Many WordPress installs get weighed down by plugins and poorly optimized themes. This one doesn’t. Every component running here is intentional.
• No unnecessary JavaScript
  The frontend avoids bloated libraries and unnecessary third-party scripts. That means faster load times, fewer requests, and less CPU usage on your device.

Real-World Impact

Pages on this site routinely load in under a second. Time to First Byte (TTFB) is low, image delivery is lazy-loaded, and scripts are defer-loaded to keep initial rendering smooth.

Don’t believe me?

This is WITH google analytics loaded and a custom CSP endpoint. It’s running on a 10 year old laptop I shoved in a closet.