petebrunelli

if this isn't space travel, i don't know what is.

Strength

In simplicity

A new look to the blog

I’m looking to reorganize content and create separate flows for photography, music, and tech. Why not kick it off with a photo taken of me in 2011 at Rochefort en Accord festival in western France, 2011, with pianist Or Solomon. Photos of me tend to be whatever the current opposite of cool is, so this photo is a nice change of pace. I am lean, mean, sporting the closest thing to a beard you have seen (or will ever see), and rocking my beloved Zon Sonus 5. And as amazing as this was, it also marked the start of a lengthy period of artistic and personal change. In many ways it continues to this day. If we are lucky enough we might experience this kind of pivot/catharsis where getting what we want tears everything down to the ground. And then we start to build again.

So it is with this blog, in miniature. I expect some bumps and bruises here as I work with modifications to the theme. Thanks for playing along.

Pete

utilism is the new brutalism

I chose this theme as it is inspired by the architectural style of Brutalism, influenced by the work of the Bauhaus school, which emphasized functionalism and simplicity in design. I have always had a love for the concept and mixed feelings about the results. I spent most of my adult life working in the architectural miasma of Hartford, Connecticut which has its share of brutalist buildings. Some days those buildings lifted me up, and others not so much. That is life…

  • Pronto!

    Just a quick update on my language learning adventure before I move into some new topics. I am still very comfortable with my decision to stop using Duolingo. I’m trying to be fair in saying that it has a place in the language learning landscape. If I was stuck with limited financial resources and needed…

  • More Than duo

    This is a companion to my previous post about my experience with Duolingo (actually Super Duolingo paid service). First off, I’m just a “punter” when it comes to Duolingo. Please check out the Duoplanet Blog, which is an excellent resource and answers questions more thoroughly and objectively that I have. I’ve linked directly to their…

  • 90 Days with the bird

    I gave Duolingo a real chance to teach me Italian and these are my thoughts and observations after three months… NOTE: Please read/skim to the end and maybe follow the post. Not only is this long and sprawling, but I know I will be making edits, adding images, and adding links to specific resources over…

  • EMCOMM Isn’t dead… It just smells funny

    Paraphrasing Frank Zappa [Jazz isn’t dead, it just smells funny] should give you an idea that I don’t take myself too seriously, even if I sometimes have strong opinions. My last post kinda took a detour into EMCOMM issues, and I stand by those comments. But EMCOMM is a valuable resource bot for hams and…

Brutalism in Architecture express the essential qualities of a building’s materials and structure in an honest and direct way. Architectural style emerged in mid-20s, based in raw and unadorned use of concrete.

Named by the French term béton raw, or raw concrete, Brutalism became popular in the post-WWII era, when the need for affordable housing and public buildings led to widespread use of concrete.