January: I made a heroic promise to myself.
September: I finally showed up.

That’s the story of my Kubernetes certifications so far. Busy work, generous laziness, short life—put them together and you get me, still sitting on the rocket launch pad, waving at the stars.

Right now, I only have KCNA. Which makes me, let’s say, 20% astronaut. I’ve seen the rocket, maybe even pushed a button or two, but space is still out of reach. Next week KCSA will be mine too, though I won’t really study for it—just practice tests, click-click, done. After that things get serious: CKA and CKAD in November, CKS in December. My astronaut status is on layaway, and for now I’m “sunbathing in the rocket’s shadow.”

KCNA was easy. Cloud and Kubernetes are already part of my daily work. I walked into Udemy practice tests, strolled out with the cert. It was one of those “accidentally passed” moments—like back in school when the one question you knew just happened to show up.

Now comes the heavy lifting. For CKA I started with this course:
Certified Kubernetes Administrator with Practice Tests

Solid enough. On the side, I’m flipping through Kubernetes Up & Running and The Kubernetes Bible. Not reading them cover to cover, just peeking in like a nosy neighbor—so far, good enough.

And the result? Not yet. The adventure just began. I barely put the helmet on when the PA system said, “Prepare for liftoff.” Soon, with CKA, CKAD, and CKS, maybe I’ll actually be peeking out the rocket window at Earth itself.

For now, I’m 20% astronaut. But at least I can say: “I’ve seen the rocket, man, I’ve seen it!”