I first posted this video from Lasse Gjertsen some twenty years ago. At the time, he didn't know how to play drums or piano, but he knew how to edit videotape. Gjertsen was a YouTube sensation for a few years, then dropped off the internet. I've sometimes wondered what happened to him since then. According to Wikipedia, he is doing voice work and video effects for a children's TV show in Norway.
Saturday, February 28, 2026
Amateur
How the Greed of One Man Changed The World
One thing you really did study in American history class was the California Gold Rush. John Sutter found gold and everyone on the east coast decided to move to the west coast and get rich. But that's not the entire story. Sutter was actually a settler who was building a community, and the discovery of gold upset his plans and his life.
Samuel Brannan, on the other hand, saw opportunity in gold. His plan was not to get rich mining gold, but in publicizing it. He had come to the small village of San Francisco for religious asylum, but abandoned that to become the richest man in the territory. As people came from all over the world to seek gold, he took advantage of those people instead of the gold they were looking for. And the kind of people who came during the Gold Rush and stayed after it was over shaped the area into what it is today. Kurzgesagt After Dark looks at the darker side of the California Gold Rush. There's a one-minute ad at 4:52.
Spider-Man Dances!
Spider-Man doesn't spend all his time fighting crime. Every once in a while, he has to go out and pick up a few things at the store. And if there's a good song playing, he gets the urge to dance! YouTuber Ghetto Spider put on a show for other shoppers, who all pulled out their phones because no one would believe this otherwise. (via mille batson)
Friday, February 27, 2026
Cat vs. Computer
How dare you pay more attention to the computer than you do to your cat! Simon's Cat is being a typical cat again. After years of such shenanigans, i have learned to put my keyboard in my desk drawer when I'm not at my desk. And my cats have learned that my lap is a more rewarding place than on my keyboard. It helps that the heat vent is under the desk.
When You Win the Lottery
The odds of winning millions of dollars in a lottery are very, very small, and are only slightly improved by buying a ticket. But occasionally people win. The problem is that most winners believe they are now rich, when they have little understanding of how much money it takes to live like a truly rich person. Your payout is not going to be what you were led to believe, and it can be drained really quick when you see yourself as set for life.
First, there's income taxes. Then you need to pay people to manage your money. Then you need to consider your life span and how to make a limited amount of cash last before you quit your job. This TED-Ed lesson takes a hypothetical $3 million lottery jackpot and shows how it will not make you fabulously wealthy. However, it can provide you with a comfortable life if you manage it wisely. Personally, I have managed to avoid the curse of wealth by not buying a ticket.
"Africa," But Really Africa
There are 54 countries in Africa (plus three disputed territories), more than any other continent. You can try memorizing them by studying a map and then picturing the map while you recite them, but that hasn't totally worked for me because I always miss a few.
Dustin Ballard of There I Ruined It constructed a song to the tune of "Africa" by Toto with lyrics that name every country on that continent. Yes, they rhyme wherever they can. Far from ruining it, this song actually improves on the original by having something to do with Africa.
Miss Cellania's Links
Kansas Sends Letters To Trans People Demanding The Immediate Surrender Of Drivers Licenses. Birth certificates are affected, too. (via Fark)
L'Oeuf Electrique: The French Electric Egg That Arrived Decades Too Early.
Cats in snow. (via Everlasting Blort)
The Fate of Melania. The latest song parody from Randy Rainbow.
Paediatricians’ blood used to make new treatments for RSV and colds. (via kottke)
Buried Skier Rescued After Fellow Skiers Spot His Skis Sticking Out of the Snow.
Ghost Pools. A brief history of swimming in Atlanta and across America. (via Metafilter)
The Little-Known Story of the Enslaved Africans Who Found Freedom in the European Fight Over North America. You'll never guess where.
Hey, kids! Welcome to Camp Detention! The latest from Tom the Dancing Bug.
Cats Are Fans of the Oldies
Cats (and other animals) love to sing music from way before they were born. See more of them behind the fold.
Sketch Helped Police Identify Robber
Police in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, were on the lookout for a suspect in the robbery of a farmer's market. A witness provided a sketch of the perpetrator, which was shown on the local TV station. The response by newscaster Ethan Forhetz is priceless. Considering he was winging the news as it came in, he kept his cool pretty well. Now, lest you think this is a police sketch, it's not. It was drawn by a witness. Yet it was enough to lead police to identify 44-year-old Hung Phuoc Nguyen, who was still on the loose at the time of the report. It turns out that police were familiar with Nguyen already, and honestly recognized him from the sketch. (via reddit)
Thursday, February 26, 2026
The Louisville Leopards
The Louisville Leopards are an extracurricular percussion ensemble for kids between seven and 18 years old. Here they are, performing "Crazy Train" by Ozzy Osbourne in 2012. Ozzy and his family were so impressed, they donated $10,000 to the program.(via Fark)
Valentine's Day at the City Clerk's Office in NYC
Love was in the air on Valentine's Day as dozens of people got married at the City Clerk's office in New York City. Mayor Zohran Mamdani stepped in to officiate some of the nuptials. Was he there to help relieve the holiday crush, or was it just his way of celebrating love for the occasion? Either way, couples were thrilled to have their number called and see who their officiant would be. Those weddings will be talked about in those families for generations. (via Laughing Squid)
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