Brennan Kenneth Brown ♾️
@brennanbrown.ca
29/Métis/Queer
Calgary author. BA English (Hons.)
Founder of BerryHouse.ca & WriteClub.ca
Author of PRAIRIE BOYSPIRIT
I write about poetry, Indigenous lit, craft, tech criticism, & intersectionality
I follow back!
🔆 brennan.day | 📝 blog.brennanbrown.ca
Calgary author. BA English (Hons.)
Founder of BerryHouse.ca & WriteClub.ca
Author of PRAIRIE BOYSPIRIT
I write about poetry, Indigenous lit, craft, tech criticism, & intersectionality
I follow back!
🔆 brennan.day | 📝 blog.brennanbrown.ca
Pinned
Brennan Kenneth Brown ♾️
@brennanbrown.ca
· Nov 26
Hi 👋
I'm Brennan. I've been writing poetry for 15 years and blogging for a decade. 170+ articles and counting!
Here's what I write about:
📖 Poetry craft
🪶 Indigenous literature
♿ Representation in media
💻 Tech criticism
🌿 Analog practices & slow living
✍️ The actual work of building a writing life
I'm Brennan. I've been writing poetry for 15 years and blogging for a decade. 170+ articles and counting!
Here's what I write about:
📖 Poetry craft
🪶 Indigenous literature
♿ Representation in media
💻 Tech criticism
🌿 Analog practices & slow living
✍️ The actual work of building a writing life
Remember when people were told that if they want a job, they just need to "learn to code"?
Lighthouse Labs, Canada''s biggest coding bootcamp, trained 40,000 students. It filed for bankruptcy and terminated every employee overnight.
Read the full story here: medium.com/@brennanbrow...
Lighthouse Labs, Canada''s biggest coding bootcamp, trained 40,000 students. It filed for bankruptcy and terminated every employee overnight.
Read the full story here: medium.com/@brennanbrow...
January 27, 2026 at 5:59 AM
Remember when people were told that if they want a job, they just need to "learn to code"?
Lighthouse Labs, Canada''s biggest coding bootcamp, trained 40,000 students. It filed for bankruptcy and terminated every employee overnight.
Read the full story here: medium.com/@brennanbrow...
Lighthouse Labs, Canada''s biggest coding bootcamp, trained 40,000 students. It filed for bankruptcy and terminated every employee overnight.
Read the full story here: medium.com/@brennanbrow...
I decided to finally update my life-in-weeks project! Inspiration and code taken from the wonderful Buster Benson! @busterbenson.com
weeks.brennan.day
weeks.brennan.day
January 27, 2026 at 1:47 AM
I decided to finally update my life-in-weeks project! Inspiration and code taken from the wonderful Buster Benson! @busterbenson.com
weeks.brennan.day
weeks.brennan.day
There's a universal human insistence that we're more than matter in motion. 95% of the universe is dark matter. Maybe our rituals are ripples on that dark sea.
Different cultures reach toward the transcendent, and they might all be right.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/more-than-on...
Different cultures reach toward the transcendent, and they might all be right.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/more-than-on...
MORE THAN ONE WAY: On Ritual, Morality, and the Darkness Beyond Knowing
What is the meaning of life? Is there more than one correct answer?
blog.brennanbrown.ca
January 24, 2026 at 12:21 AM
There's a universal human insistence that we're more than matter in motion. 95% of the universe is dark matter. Maybe our rituals are ripples on that dark sea.
Different cultures reach toward the transcendent, and they might all be right.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/more-than-on...
Different cultures reach toward the transcendent, and they might all be right.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/more-than-on...
Getting back onto IRC :) I absolutely love Halloy! Easy to install with brew on MacOS
github.com/squidowl/hal...
github.com/squidowl/hal...
January 23, 2026 at 3:17 AM
Getting back onto IRC :) I absolutely love Halloy! Easy to install with brew on MacOS
github.com/squidowl/hal...
github.com/squidowl/hal...
Excellent point!
The words "clean air" and "ASHRAE 241" don't appear in this article. N95s are a stop-gap. Putting engineers (not physicians) in charge of clean indoor public air to ASHRAE 241 standard levels is the solution. Engineers keep our water free from pathogens. They should be keeping our air clean too.
January 21, 2026 at 10:59 PM
Excellent point!
Online, we scroll for free and pay with our data instead. Or, we pay ever-increasing subscription fees to big corporations.
There's a better way.
I wrote about why supporting indie creators matters (and 8 ways to do it that don't cost money):
blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-you-can-...
There's a better way.
I wrote about why supporting indie creators matters (and 8 ways to do it that don't cost money):
blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-you-can-...
How You Can Support Indie Creators — and You Need To
Beyond tipping culture, there are meaningful ways to support independent creators that don’t involve money. Here are eight of the best.
blog.brennanbrown.ca
January 21, 2026 at 2:20 AM
Online, we scroll for free and pay with our data instead. Or, we pay ever-increasing subscription fees to big corporations.
There's a better way.
I wrote about why supporting indie creators matters (and 8 ways to do it that don't cost money):
blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-you-can-...
There's a better way.
I wrote about why supporting indie creators matters (and 8 ways to do it that don't cost money):
blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-you-can-...
Over half a decade in, and we're living in two realities about COVID-19.
In one: the pandemic is over, life is normal, nobody worries anymore.
In the other: 700,000+ daily infections in the US. 400 million people living with long COVID.\
Only one is right.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/the-schizoph...
In one: the pandemic is over, life is normal, nobody worries anymore.
In the other: 700,000+ daily infections in the US. 400 million people living with long COVID.\
Only one is right.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/the-schizoph...
The Schizophrenic Reality of a Pandemic That Never Ended
Five years into COVID-19, the virus continues to disable millions. Yet, the world has decided to move on. Why is that?
blog.brennanbrown.ca
January 20, 2026 at 2:25 AM
Over half a decade in, and we're living in two realities about COVID-19.
In one: the pandemic is over, life is normal, nobody worries anymore.
In the other: 700,000+ daily infections in the US. 400 million people living with long COVID.\
Only one is right.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/the-schizoph...
In one: the pandemic is over, life is normal, nobody worries anymore.
In the other: 700,000+ daily infections in the US. 400 million people living with long COVID.\
Only one is right.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/the-schizoph...
I just published thoughts on digital homesteading and permacomputing: building a self-hosted server on 2GB of RAM.
Why? The world is fragile. Just like growing vegetables or maintaining a sourdough starter, knowing how to run your own tech is resilience.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/computing-fo...
Why? The world is fragile. Just like growing vegetables or maintaining a sourdough starter, knowing how to run your own tech is resilience.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/computing-fo...
Computing for the Apocalypse
What can homesteading teach us about the future of technology?
blog.brennanbrown.ca
January 18, 2026 at 2:19 AM
I just published thoughts on digital homesteading and permacomputing: building a self-hosted server on 2GB of RAM.
Why? The world is fragile. Just like growing vegetables or maintaining a sourdough starter, knowing how to run your own tech is resilience.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/computing-fo...
Why? The world is fragile. Just like growing vegetables or maintaining a sourdough starter, knowing how to run your own tech is resilience.
blog.brennanbrown.ca/computing-fo...
I used to dismiss Elizabeth Gilbert as "that Eat Pray Love author." Turns out I was being embarrassingly shallow.
Her book Big Magic completely changed how I think about her. The core idea? Writing should love us back the way we love it.
LINK: blog.brennanbrown.ca/review-light...
Her book Big Magic completely changed how I think about her. The core idea? Writing should love us back the way we love it.
LINK: blog.brennanbrown.ca/review-light...
REVIEW: Light Joy Writing, On Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic
A book exploring creativity as sacred play, rejecting the tortured artist myth for a lighter, more joyful approach to creative work.
blog.brennanbrown.ca
January 17, 2026 at 4:21 AM
I used to dismiss Elizabeth Gilbert as "that Eat Pray Love author." Turns out I was being embarrassingly shallow.
Her book Big Magic completely changed how I think about her. The core idea? Writing should love us back the way we love it.
LINK: blog.brennanbrown.ca/review-light...
Her book Big Magic completely changed how I think about her. The core idea? Writing should love us back the way we love it.
LINK: blog.brennanbrown.ca/review-light...
I spent the last month participating in the IndieWeb instead of just spectating. Building my own site from scratch, adding IndieAuth comments, Micropub posting, web rings, badges, CI/CD mirroring, a gratitude log with Beeminder, and more.
The results were surprising.
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
The results were surprising.
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
What I’ve Learned Being on the IndieWeb for a Month
The Internet is full of amazement and goodness. You just need to know where to look for it.
medium.com
January 15, 2026 at 4:59 PM
I spent the last month participating in the IndieWeb instead of just spectating. Building my own site from scratch, adding IndieAuth comments, Micropub posting, web rings, badges, CI/CD mirroring, a gratitude log with Beeminder, and more.
The results were surprising.
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
The results were surprising.
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
I'm super excited to now be a user on on Tilde Town!~ I'm so thankful to be able to find wonderful communities like this.
tilde.town/~brennan/
tilde.town/~brennan/
~brennan
Queer Métis writer & web developer based in Calgary, Alberta (Treaty 7). Building accessible websites, writing lyric essays, fostering community.
tilde.town
January 15, 2026 at 12:16 AM
I'm super excited to now be a user on on Tilde Town!~ I'm so thankful to be able to find wonderful communities like this.
tilde.town/~brennan/
tilde.town/~brennan/
I've been posting quite a few technical deep dives on my personal site recently, this one was pretty neat, I have comments enabled on my site via IndieAuth!
brennan.day/building-an-...
brennan.day/building-an-...
Building an IndieAuth Comment System for Your Static Site
A journey through authentication, CORS issues, and the joy of owning your comments! Learn how to build a comment system for your static site using IndieAuth and Netlify Functions, storing the…
brennan.day
January 14, 2026 at 5:37 AM
I've been posting quite a few technical deep dives on my personal site recently, this one was pretty neat, I have comments enabled on my site via IndieAuth!
brennan.day/building-an-...
brennan.day/building-an-...
The Greenland debate keeps asking whether the U.S. could take it, or whether Denmark should keep it.
But what do the Greenlanders want? They’ve already answered:
“We don’t want to be Americans. We don’t want to be Danes. We want to be Greenlanders.”
blog.brennanbrown.ca/greenland-be...
But what do the Greenlanders want? They’ve already answered:
“We don’t want to be Americans. We don’t want to be Danes. We want to be Greenlanders.”
blog.brennanbrown.ca/greenland-be...
Greenland Belongs to the Inuit
What everyone misses during discussions of Donald Trump and the sovereignty of nations.
blog.brennanbrown.ca
January 12, 2026 at 5:34 PM
The Greenland debate keeps asking whether the U.S. could take it, or whether Denmark should keep it.
But what do the Greenlanders want? They’ve already answered:
“We don’t want to be Americans. We don’t want to be Danes. We want to be Greenlanders.”
blog.brennanbrown.ca/greenland-be...
But what do the Greenlanders want? They’ve already answered:
“We don’t want to be Americans. We don’t want to be Danes. We want to be Greenlanders.”
blog.brennanbrown.ca/greenland-be...
Really excited to see this podcast episode from Search Engine and PJ Vogt! It's a great, accessible intro to the IndieWeb movement.
I joined Mastodon (social.lol/@brennan) and I plan to delete all my corporate social media accounts.
LISTEN: www.searchengine.show/the-fedivers...
I joined Mastodon (social.lol/@brennan) and I plan to delete all my corporate social media accounts.
LISTEN: www.searchengine.show/the-fedivers...
The Fediverse Experiment
Our present version of the internet is arguably the worst it’s ever been. Which means – any shot at changing things, even an unlikely one – is worth trying out. Thr…
www.searchengine.show
January 11, 2026 at 9:37 AM
Really excited to see this podcast episode from Search Engine and PJ Vogt! It's a great, accessible intro to the IndieWeb movement.
I joined Mastodon (social.lol/@brennan) and I plan to delete all my corporate social media accounts.
LISTEN: www.searchengine.show/the-fedivers...
I joined Mastodon (social.lol/@brennan) and I plan to delete all my corporate social media accounts.
LISTEN: www.searchengine.show/the-fedivers...
A few weeks ago I wrote about omg.lol and the response surprised me: thousands of reads a wave of people joining the IndieWeb.
But the most common question afterwards was: “What else is out there?”
blog.brennanbrown.ca/resources-fo...
But the most common question afterwards was: “What else is out there?”
blog.brennanbrown.ca/resources-fo...
Resources for the Personal Web: A Follow-Up Guide
Rabbit Holes, Sillyblogging, and How to Create Joy Online
blog.brennanbrown.ca
January 9, 2026 at 7:10 PM
A few weeks ago I wrote about omg.lol and the response surprised me: thousands of reads a wave of people joining the IndieWeb.
But the most common question afterwards was: “What else is out there?”
blog.brennanbrown.ca/resources-fo...
But the most common question afterwards was: “What else is out there?”
blog.brennanbrown.ca/resources-fo...
Life is 99% mundane. But no corporation wants you to create freely. They want you scrolling, consuming, producing.
Daywriting is the practice of archiving your ordinary existence. For survival.
100 words about today.
I wrote a framework for 2026.
Start here: blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-can-we-u...
Daywriting is the practice of archiving your ordinary existence. For survival.
100 words about today.
I wrote a framework for 2026.
Start here: blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-can-we-u...
How Can We Use the Internet for Good?
A manifesto on what do we do when the world is on fire: Daywriting.
blog.brennanbrown.ca
January 4, 2026 at 6:39 PM
Life is 99% mundane. But no corporation wants you to create freely. They want you scrolling, consuming, producing.
Daywriting is the practice of archiving your ordinary existence. For survival.
100 words about today.
I wrote a framework for 2026.
Start here: blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-can-we-u...
Daywriting is the practice of archiving your ordinary existence. For survival.
100 words about today.
I wrote a framework for 2026.
Start here: blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-can-we-u...
A Taylor Swift lyric gave me an existential crisis about all the art that never gets made.
How many would-be artists never picked up the brush because someone told them no too many times?
This is about you, yes, you. 2026 needs your weird, unmade thing.
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-a-taylor...
How many would-be artists never picked up the brush because someone told them no too many times?
This is about you, yes, you. 2026 needs your weird, unmade thing.
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-a-taylor...
How a Taylor Swift Lyric Gave Me an Existential Crisis
You must go all-in on the gamble of the harvest.
blog.brennanbrown.ca
January 3, 2026 at 4:34 AM
A Taylor Swift lyric gave me an existential crisis about all the art that never gets made.
How many would-be artists never picked up the brush because someone told them no too many times?
This is about you, yes, you. 2026 needs your weird, unmade thing.
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-a-taylor...
How many would-be artists never picked up the brush because someone told them no too many times?
This is about you, yes, you. 2026 needs your weird, unmade thing.
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/how-a-taylor...
Top 16% of devs this year! Let's go! 🥳
January 2, 2026 at 6:10 AM
Top 16% of devs this year! Let's go! 🥳
Yesterday I posted about why I'm not a full-stack dev.
Today, I'm sharing I've stopped using AI in my coding entirely.
I've lost convenience. I've gained the feeling that I'm actually learning. I'm creating something genuinely mine.
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/why-im-no-lo...
Today, I'm sharing I've stopped using AI in my coding entirely.
I've lost convenience. I've gained the feeling that I'm actually learning. I'm creating something genuinely mine.
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/why-im-no-lo...
Why I’m No Longer Using AI in Coding
On Consistent Ethics, Veganism, and the Love of Friction
blog.brennanbrown.ca
January 1, 2026 at 1:14 PM
Yesterday I posted about why I'm not a full-stack dev.
Today, I'm sharing I've stopped using AI in my coding entirely.
I've lost convenience. I've gained the feeling that I'm actually learning. I'm creating something genuinely mine.
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/why-im-no-lo...
Today, I'm sharing I've stopped using AI in my coding entirely.
I've lost convenience. I've gained the feeling that I'm actually learning. I'm creating something genuinely mine.
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/why-im-no-lo...
While software devs are scrambling to master AI tools to stay relevant, I'm doing the opposite.
25% of Y Combinator startups now have codebases that are 95% AI-generated. Employment for junior devs dropped 20% between 2022 and 2025.
But there's an answer.
🔗 medium.com/@brennanbrow...
25% of Y Combinator startups now have codebases that are 95% AI-generated. Employment for junior devs dropped 20% between 2022 and 2025.
But there's an answer.
🔗 medium.com/@brennanbrow...
Why I’m NOT a Full-Stack Dev
Software developers are at a turning point. There’s one way out.
medium.com
December 31, 2025 at 1:25 PM
While software devs are scrambling to master AI tools to stay relevant, I'm doing the opposite.
25% of Y Combinator startups now have codebases that are 95% AI-generated. Employment for junior devs dropped 20% between 2022 and 2025.
But there's an answer.
🔗 medium.com/@brennanbrow...
25% of Y Combinator startups now have codebases that are 95% AI-generated. Employment for junior devs dropped 20% between 2022 and 2025.
But there's an answer.
🔗 medium.com/@brennanbrow...
Reposted by Brennan Kenneth Brown ♾️
December 27, 2025 at 8:11 PM
Could you live entirely on public domain & open source culture? No Spotify. No Netflix. Just Project Gutenberg, Internet Archive, etc.
Is there a rich cultural life entirely on the commons? Or is modern culture locked too tight behind copyright?
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/living-off-o...
Is there a rich cultural life entirely on the commons? Or is modern culture locked too tight behind copyright?
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/living-off-o...
Living Off of ONLY Public Domain Work for 2026
Existing in a Copyright-free World
blog.brennanbrown.ca
December 29, 2025 at 7:05 PM
Could you live entirely on public domain & open source culture? No Spotify. No Netflix. Just Project Gutenberg, Internet Archive, etc.
Is there a rich cultural life entirely on the commons? Or is modern culture locked too tight behind copyright?
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/living-off-o...
Is there a rich cultural life entirely on the commons? Or is modern culture locked too tight behind copyright?
🔗 blog.brennanbrown.ca/living-off-o...
The internet promised connection.
Instead, it gave us surveillance.
We need to look at:
• why most platforms fail
• why “just use Discord” isn’t the answer
• and what building something better might actually look like
What can we do with what we have?
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
Instead, it gave us surveillance.
We need to look at:
• why most platforms fail
• why “just use Discord” isn’t the answer
• and what building something better might actually look like
What can we do with what we have?
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
A Digital Third Space?
Notes on figuring out how we create community online.
medium.com
December 28, 2025 at 3:09 PM
The internet promised connection.
Instead, it gave us surveillance.
We need to look at:
• why most platforms fail
• why “just use Discord” isn’t the answer
• and what building something better might actually look like
What can we do with what we have?
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
Instead, it gave us surveillance.
We need to look at:
• why most platforms fail
• why “just use Discord” isn’t the answer
• and what building something better might actually look like
What can we do with what we have?
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
Happy Boxing Day! We at Berry House have been working hard on our latest project: Introducing Calgary Groups, a new way to find your community! 🌱 Yvonne Berger (www.linkedin.com/in/yvonne-be...) my co-founder, has been working tirelessly curating and researching these groups.
calgarygroups.ca
calgarygroups.ca
Directory | Calgary Groups
A centralized, searchable directory to help Calgarians find grassroots organizations, clubs, activist groups, and community initiatives.
calgarygroups.ca
December 26, 2025 at 11:41 PM
Happy Boxing Day! We at Berry House have been working hard on our latest project: Introducing Calgary Groups, a new way to find your community! 🌱 Yvonne Berger (www.linkedin.com/in/yvonne-be...) my co-founder, has been working tirelessly curating and researching these groups.
calgarygroups.ca
calgarygroups.ca
Creation does not need to be productive. Art does not need to be good. Your ugly website and your clashing colours are not a moral failing.
The lie is that you have to be “good” before you’re allowed to begin.
And the practice is the resistance.
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
The lie is that you have to be “good” before you’re allowed to begin.
And the practice is the resistance.
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
Do It Ugly
The Biggest Lie You’ve Been Told
medium.com
December 26, 2025 at 12:47 PM
Creation does not need to be productive. Art does not need to be good. Your ugly website and your clashing colours are not a moral failing.
The lie is that you have to be “good” before you’re allowed to begin.
And the practice is the resistance.
medium.com/@brennanbrow...
The lie is that you have to be “good” before you’re allowed to begin.
And the practice is the resistance.
medium.com/@brennanbrow...