Game Grumps - Power Wash Simulator

 

Dan gets it.

Late Show - The Best Stupid Human Trick

 I remember watching this live and I've thought about it ever since. On the one hand, I could never see any way that it could be fake - the camera is zoomed in and no tether is ever visible - on the other hand, I can't imagine how it would be real. 

Two thoughts to break the tie. 1, if it is as simple as sucking in air powerfully, the gum should not be arcing upward. 2, She adjusts her head and mouth to follow the path of the gum which tells you it isn't really suction at work. If it was, the gum would follow her.

The comments' consensus is that the gum is tied to a strand of hair. With 1080p and frame-by-frame advance I see no hair but "it wasn't HD video back then" is the only thing I can conclude.

RLM Discusses the Munsters Trailer

 

The Wicked Witch Episode of Sesame Street Has Been Found

Ladies and gentlemen, it is finished, the end has come, the fifth and last Golden Ticket has just been found right here in Paraguay.  the lost and banned episode of Sesame Street featuring the Wicked Witch of the West has turned up online.

I was planning on making a joke about how this post syncs up with "Dark Side of the Moon" but the video already did that joke.

And here is the episode:

For a compilation of just the Wicked Witch parts, click here.

And a few thoughts...

For someone who was trying to rehabilitate her image, this was an INSANE move for Margaret Hamilton. The stark contrast of with makeup/without makeup is one of your main tools to get kids to not be afraid of you. So why not have a plot where the wicked witch is proven to be able to disguise herself to look like an ordinary old woman? Yes, even though the old woman may look normal, she's still a witch underneath and, don't forget, she wants to steal your dog.

"I won't give her back this broom until she gives me a little respect" is terrible principle.

The guy's acting is also terrible. I've always accepted Sesame Street's "big" acting because it was for children and that's the norm for children's programming, but this is just bad.

A lot of the reaction to this episode involves adults being shocked that anyone found this to be scary - the whole reaction was a huge overreaction. I don't think so. In the 50 years or so of Sesame Street's existence, how many villains have their been? How many villains with magical powers? The bar is set by Oscar the Grouch whose main weapon is being impolite. This episode would be a violation of viewer expectations.

When I was a kid, my one friend opined that the scariest villains in the world were Darth Vader and the Wicked Witch of the West. I quickly realized the verisimilitude of the statement and assented. He then added that when he was younger he opined that they must be married and that was too large a logical leap for me.

Jim Breuer Telling Norm Stories

 

As the title says, Jim telling Norm stories.

Jim's impression of Darrell's impression of Phil Donahue is phenomenal.

One story he doesn't tell, perhaps because he's tired of it, is the Twilight Zone sketch story:

The Stroad Designation

 

Do you buy this?

A New Youtube Grift I Never Considered

 

Be warned that this isn't the usual light-hearted or "interesting" kind of video that I post usually. This is dark, disturbing and very sad. In fact, I marginally don't recommend watching it.

But what I wanted to point out is that there's another new Youtube grift that I never thought of. Here's what you do:

1) Find a "20/20" or "Dateline" or "Hard Copy" (etc.) story that's really interesting.

2) Record yourself recounting the story into your webcam.

3) Add a clickbait title.

4) Rake in the cash.

Think about it... the News isn't copyrightable. And they've already done all the hard work of researching, confirming, gathering video and pictures, creating visuals. So all you have to do is re-tell the details and you're golden. Even if you want to use the photos and visuals that are copyrighted, it's arguably fair use. It's genius.

I also found there's a video that's a person reacting to this video. That's a double-whammy. That's Youtube-ception.

Month #8: India Snacks

Yes, this month's snack country is India. Let's start off with some trivia...

The game "Chaturanga" was invented in India in the 6th century, you may know it by its European variant Chess. The game "Chutes and Ladders" (originally "Snakes and Ladders") was also invented in India.

There are over 1600 spoken languages in India. There are 22 official languages.

Shah Jahan, fifth emperor of the Mughal Empire, built the famous Taj Mahal as a tomb for his wife Mumtaz Mahal after she died giving birth to their 14th child. It was designed to be like heaven on earth.

The average occurrence of twins in India is 9 per 1,000 births but there is a village, Kodinhi, which experiences 45 per 1000 twin births. The cause is unknown.

The largest tree in the world is in India. The Great Banyan Tree in Howrah is so large, it appears to be an entire forest.

Now on to the food...

1.) Mo'plleez Mini Lentil Samosas

Review:

Trying to preserve dinner sides and appetizers in snack form is a worldwide goal across all ages. And, let's face it, nearly no one is succeeding. I'm a big fan of vegetable samosas but can they translate into a shelf-stable snack?

As it turns out, the answer is a resounding Yes. These are awesome. Aside from being a bit crunchier and a bit drier than actual samosas (it's shelf-stable so of course they have to be), they're exactly what you would hope for. I've bought frozen samosas at the store, the kind you bake in your oven, and those weren't nearly as good as these are. Top marks and Four Stars. 

My one criticism is a bit of a nitpick but it must be said. These are super spicy and, in fact, they're too spicy for my taste. I was coughing a few times. But, of course, the Indians like their spice and that's just how it is.

2) Cornitos Nacho Crisps - Tikka Masala

Review:

When I think of India, I don't exactly think of corn. So that's right off the bat.

As the packaging suggests, these are exactly the size, shape and texture of Doritos. Very close, but they're Doritos with a Tikka Masala flavor which sounds amazing to me. Does it translate? I say definitely. Obviously, in chip form, you're going to lose the creamy aspect of Tikka Masala, that's just inevitable... but the spice aspect is there. Like the previous snack, they are once again a little too spicy for my money but these things are what they are.

Overall, these are great, I wish the bag was larger. Try 'em. This is the first time I think I've ever seen "Tikka Masala" as a disembodied flavor. I was thinking I should by some Tikka Masala meat rub or maybe something to pour on a baked potato - the possibilities are endless. Is that possible? I see some powders on Amazon, so I think I'm going to try...

3) Bourbon

Review:

Feels weird saying the name of the snack is just "Bourbon" but what can I do?

I associate Bourbons with England. Doing some research, the origin is English, in fact Boubons were  voted the number one UK biscuit in 2018. But I suppose this is an Indian snack with English influence because the packaging says "Made in India."

Bourbons are chocolate cookies sandwiching chocolate cream. If you have tea, you're supposed to dunk them. I don't have tea. I also don't have too much to say: they're good, they're as good as you'd imagine chocolate cookies to be. But there are a million cookies on the market and nothing about these stand out.

4) Nice - Sugar Sprinkled Coconut Cookies

Review:

These are pretty simple. They're small, thin shortbreads with a sort of wash of coconut flavor.

Very simple, very elemental. I ate one and immediately another and then the next thing I knew, they were all gone. Pretty nice. Again, I'm not the biggest cookie fan, it's hard to judge but these are very good.

5) Bakemate - Kasatta

Review:

These are super weird. If you look at the picture on the wrapper you might think it has something to do with hard-boiled eggs, but no. The yellow in the picture is actually pale green. The middle is green and my best guess on the flavor was mint. Then I considered maybe it was lime.  Turns out, it's actually pistachio. The white outside is creamy. So the result is creamy and sweet but it's weirder than that. It's... somehow familiar but strange - there's something 1960s about it? Weird... but not bad... but weird.

The documentation I have says these are supposed to mimic ice cream and that they also come in strawberry.

---

So that's it for India. The list really started on a huge high note and made a smooth downhill descent as it went along. I don't sort these in any order, it just turned out that way. Still, this has been one of the most consistent snack countries and could compete for the best. In terms of individual items, I don't think anything beats the French chocolate, that would be #1, but the Samosa snacks and Tikka Masala chips would not be too far behind. Really impressive.

Dave Sends His Audience to Conan

 This is one of those things where I would avoid spoiling the bit in the title, but the youtube video title already spoils it and if that weren't the case, the thumbnail spoils it in giant letters.

A fun piece from the 90s, nevertheless.

The Munsters Trailer

 

Rob Zombie has made a new Munsters movie. The trailer has just been released. It looks.... it looks...

What is The House of the Rising Sun?

 

The Book Tied to 75,000 Disappearances

I am not usually a fan of this kind of paranoid, creepy documentary video, but this channel (Barely Sociable) is so consistent in quality and interesting topics, I keep coming back. See if this isn't a fascinating production.

On a nitpicking note, he could really benefit from an editor (in the literary sense) or at least a proof-reader. The number of grammatical mistakes, spelling mistakes or just awkwardly constructed sentences really distracts from the otherwise top-notch content.

Mowing High Grass

 

In a previous episode, I was dismissive of lawn mowing videos. I may have been a little hasty in judgement.

What's Your Favorite Independence Day Movie?

"I came to America in 1914 by way of Philadelphia..."

 "What's your favorite Independence Day movie?" I thought it was a fair conversation-starter. I thought of it ahead of time but when I was around people, I forgot to ask it. There aren't many movies that revolve around July 4th. There are so few that one might add war movies to the mix. That's a discussion in itself - somehow "Saving Private Ryan" doesn't feel like an Independence Day movies but "Glory" does. And, is it me, or are there way too few movies about the Revolutionary War? You'd think there'd be a billion of them. But, narrowing the field as best I could, and having the advantage of advance notice, I determined my answer was "Avalon" (1990).

"Avalon" is my favorite type of movie: it's largely plotless, only revolving around the relationships between people and the passage of time. In this case it shows a grandfather immigrating to the United States, follows the second generation as they go into business for themselves and much of the action is seen through the eyes of the third generation played by child actor Elijah Wood. It's the kind of movie that hits me harder than any other but I can't share with anyone because it's "boring."

Roger Ebert postulates that "Avalon" is about the deterioration of familial ties and it's the contention of the film that the fault lies with the rise of television. What a harrowing tale when you consider that it's not just television anymore, it's internet, youtube, apps, video games and social media. Watching it now, it's clear that he's partly right: the television's effects on the family is a running motif, but it's also undeniable that the main fault of family break down is simple human fallibility - petty bickering, rivalry, stubbornness, and so on.

I think of "Avalon" as a meditation on the generational continuum we are all on. The grandfather tells his story to the grandchildren who listen with rapt attention. When he tells stories to his children, they've heard them all a million times and are tired of them. Consider the experience of the storyteller himself: "If I knew things would no longer be, I would have tried to remember better." He also sums up the entire film: "Jules, if you stop remembering, you forget."