New tricks

Mike Boyd shows off all the new skills(?) he "learned quick" in 2016, all in a single take.

And for what it's worth, the year in memes, according to NY Magazine.

"Procrastination is like a credit card: it's a lot of fun until you get the bill." -- Christopher Parker

Clear history

Everything goes terribly wrong for these parents with this unexpected response from Amazon's Alexa to their son's request to play a song called "Digger Digger".

And an African Gray parrot perfectly mimics the Google acknowledgement sound.




(If you want to be impressed, check out Clover, the so-claimed best talking parrot in the world that knows more than 350 words.)

"When did the future switch from being a promise to a threat?" -- Chuck Palahniuk

Portable fridge

Man matter-of-fact-ly shows how to carry a refrigerator on a bicycle, making you think he's done this kind of thing before. Bonus points for the cobblestone street.

And bed sizes vary a lot around the world; in some countries, a king bed is smaller than a queen bed in the U.S. Here's a nifty graphic of all those variations presented visually.

"The most rewarding things you do in life are often the ones that look like they cannot be done." -- Arnold Palmer

Miracle on 34th Street

Noah Forman did the impossible, hitting 240 consecutive green lights while driving through New York City. Sure it was 3AM, but still...

And from Will Geary, a relaxing and colorful visualization of one day's-worth of subway activity in the Big Apple, perfectly set to "Rhapsody in Blue".

"No man has a good enough memory to be a successful liar." -- Abraham Lincoln

Perish the thawed

Reverse melting popsicle gif

Strike an interesting mental chord with this gif of a popsicle melting in reverse. (It's watermelon flavor, and apparently complete with seeds, if that matters.)

And Deadspin says that all these authors of the worst tweets of the year should be ashamed of themselves. Read 'em and weep.

"If there are no stupid questions, then what kind of questions do stupid people ask? Do they get smart just in time to ask questions?" -- Scott Adams

Splice of life

Heath Waterman was amazed at the hundreds of adaptations of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" and spliced together 400 versions into a supercut to rule them all.

And humorous "unitasker" prank gift boxes like the Turn & Churn travel ice cream maker or Bacon Scented Dryer Sheets make for good cover.

"Our dead are never dead to us, until we have forgotten them." -- George Eliot

After the fall

When winter wonderland gets too litpic.twitter.com/8XldMH0JLQ

— Matt Kemp (@Matt_Kemp7) December 18, 2016

Oh, the Holiday spirit... two men busting some moves on a table ends as you might expect, though I have to admire the one guy's commitment. That giant bruise probably isn't what he wanted for Christmas...

And a breakthrough for imbibing anywhere, Guzzle Buddy is a wine glass with a cork-sized stopper instead of a stem. Put it directly in the bottle and enjoy the contents directly, without sacrificing elegance and dignity.

Just celebrate the life you had, not the life you could've had." -- Magic Johnson

Have a seat

Now don't get the wrong idea here -- Pony Up Daddy is a saddle designed for ferrying kids aboard adult humans. Watch it in action. Makes a great gift.

And the most popular fields of study over the last few decades.

"The bookful blockhead, ignorantly read, With loads of learned lumber in his head." -- Alexander Pope

In the key of boing

Man who's maybe seen Star Wars a few too many times plays the "Imperial March" on a coffee stirrer to showcase a peculiar talent.

And why is KFC such a yuge Christmas tradition in Japan, with 10X average sales and customers waiting in line for hours? Because marketing, yo.

"Where the senses fail us, reason must step in." -- Galileo Galilei

Bleating hearts

Action Aid decided to get weirder this year with a female choir singing We Wish You A Merry Christmas and other Christmas songs sounding like goats. You'll find all your Christmas favorites a la goat on their YouTube channel.

Also not sure what you're listening to... this blindfolded hearing test is a short NSFW comedic (?) clip that demonstrates the writing "rule of three".

"A fool flatters himself, a wise man flatters the fool." -- Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton

Crystal bridges

Skiing through this French Alps glacier's ice caves and exploring Nature's frosty ramps and halfpipes is like being in another world.

And this trippy interactive visualizer feels like you're flying through some molecular inner space.

"What springs from earth dissolves to earth again, and heaven-born things fly to their native seat." -- Marcus Aurelius

X-mas games

Brilliant Games Studios wanted to show what its new crowd-rendering system could do, so it generated 11,000 virtual penguins and 4,000 virtual Santas and set them loose against each other in a battle for the ages.

And this fancypants $30,000 ugly Christmas sweater is indeed fairly ugly, as is the price.

"To be or not to be. That's not really a question." -- Jean-Luc Godard

Keeping track

Watch what is claimed to be every scene ever of Tom Cruise running in this 18-minute montage from Burger Fiction.

Also all over, a map of more than 100 superstitions held around the world.

"You know you're old if they have discontinued your blood type." -- Phyllis Diller

Highlight

Out of season for sure, but watch how this gargantuan 573-pound firework lights up the entire sky. (The best of the bomb-bursting is around 01:30 in.) Here's the view of it from a helicopter.

And as is tradition, 54 nifty holiday Yule Log animations, each by a different artist. (It's for a good cause; all proceeds go to Camp Interactive, a kids' coding camp.)

"A vacation is what you take when you can no longer take what you've been taking." -- Earl Wilson

Scenic route

Action movies aren't far off the mark, says this motorcycle chase through the streets of São Paulo, Brazil. (Warning: Loud. Muting audio recommended.)

And a more mellow city tour, the Google's Window Wonderland lets you do a virtual walk-through of New York City store window displays for some classic holiday spirit.

"In trying to scramble out of a hole, it sometimes digs it deeper." -- Wellington Mara

Mixed signals

The latest concept design project from Lexus is this 2017 IS sedan covered in over 40,000 programmable LEDs strung with a mile of wire that turns it into a Christmas display on wheels.

And if you didn't care for the Cheetos jewelry set, it's not too late to order this Taco Bell ring set for that fast food lover who has it all.

"It is better to light a candle than curse the darkness." -- Eleanor Roosevelt

Battle of wits

HMB while I kick this safety post

Show 'em who's boss -- floor safety cone outwits (presumably tipsy) man in a short-lived but epic battle.

Also, Bill Dance in a classic fishing show blooper reel. And give credit where it's due... opportunities galore for swearing, but barely a one, dadgummit.

"There is always the need to carry on." -- Marjory Stoneman Douglas

Show some pluck

Publio Delgado's jazz guitar accompaniment makes funny internet videos better, like in this one for a truck rental and storage outfit. (Here's the original, which seems empty and lacking by comparison.)

But The No No No Cat video is possibly his best work, with the original sort of a distant memory.




Also, Modest Mouse, Steely Dan, The Doors and other bands whose names come from books.

"A sculptor is a person who is interested in the shape of things, a poet in words, a musician by sounds." -- Henry Moore

Stuck in park

Watch 200,000 LEGO bricks and almost 1,200 hours of assembly go into this "Brick Pony", a life-size LEGO model of a 1964 Ford Mustang in one minute flat.

And ranging from cheesy to creepy, terrible real estate listing photos that show what not to do when putting your house on the market.

"A bone to the dog is not charity. Charity is the bone shared with the dog, when you are just as hungry as the dog." -- Jack London

Corner case

This pro streetballer dude -- calls himself "The Tricky" -- can spin a basketball on pretty much anything, like his razor while shaving, for example. Better yet, here's a sampling of his ball-spinning talents displayed while taking the Mannequin challenge.

And still in time for Xmas giving, amazing pop art purses and accessories that look like real food from designer Rommy Kuperus.

"Mail your packages early so the post office can lose them in time for Christmas." -- Johnny Carson

Fireball express

Watch these students passing around a flaming lump of propane. Chemistry class these days is more interesting than I remember.

And take Ghent University's (?) vocabulary test, where you don't have to define the words, only mark whether each one is in the English language.

"There is no greater impediment to the advancement of knowledge than the ambiguity of words." -- Thomas Reid

Take it for a spin

I just can't watch this agonizing display of sitting and spinning high atop a building in downtown Toronto.

And it took 25 hours to set up, but this video of a triple spiral of 15,000 dominoes falling from Havesh5 is satisfying to watch.

"Just keep taking chances and having fun." -- Garth Brooks

Double-barrel polka

Ted Nugent probably would approve of this three-stringed guitar made from a shotgun that still fires.

And pricey perhaps, but these jet engine ceiling fans should keep you cool in the most extreme conditions.

"A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing." -- Emo Philips

Acted out

Watch the action match the words in this lyrics-literal reenactment of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" in this self-styled music video.

And a tripified music video for the song "Magnetic" by Dan Sultan that uses projection mapping and stop-motion animation to make a 3D-printed model come to life and belt one out. Seems like something Peter Gabriel would've done...

"By and large, language is a tool for concealing the truth." -- George Carlin

Nature's wrath

Check out the automatic junk mail shredder built into this house in the form of a very territorial cat that takes exception with the mailman keeping his appointed rounds. (I guess the laugh track adds a quaint AFHV touch or something.)

And did this guy really punch a kangaroo that was wrestling with a dog?

"Problems are not the problem; coping is the problem." -- Virginia Satir

Be unreasonable

Watch this short (under a minute) video called "Preposterous" about objects behaving absurdly, set to some swingy upbeat music.

And clothing absurdity in real life, this fitted full-body wolf print onesie is the next level if wolf skivvies won't cut it for you.

"The possible ranks higher than the actual." -- Martin Heidegger

Gill trip

More of a catwhale, really... guy catches a 112-lb. catfish, and using 10-pound line, no less, making it all the more remarkable.

And a little contrast for your morbid fascination, watch the grossness that is a fish decomposing over time. Nature is indeed self-cleaning.

"We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us." -- Joseph Campbell

No good deed

Good Samaritan motorcyclist exacts his revenge on absentminded and oblivious but rude-as-all driver.

And one of those interesting visualizations, this one showing the world as 100 people in a novel format.

"He that displays too often his wife and his wallet is in danger of having both of them borrowed." -- Benjamin Franklin

No soup for you

Watch Warhol eat a Whopper (of the Burger King variety), from Jørgen Leth's 1982 documentary art film called "66 Scenes from America," a collection of "moving postcards" from the United States.

And this tweet from AdAge has to rank in some Twitter hall of fame. (Of course the reactions to it are well worth reading.)

"There ain't no answer. There ain't gonna be any answer. There never has been an answer. That's the answer." -- Gertrude Stein

Take a divot

Watch a golf ball filmed in 70,000 FPS slow motion hit a steel plate at 150 MPH and get transformed beyond all recognition.

And lots else you think you know is wrong -- Napoleon wasn't all that short, bulls hate the color red, and other common "mythconceptions".

"Golf is a good walk spoiled." -- Mark Twain

Dock and roll

The mad jumper they call 8Booth is always good for a small-screen adrenaline rush, this time with a 129-foot-high leap into a harbor. (Apparently he can't stop making these jumps, whether day or night.)

Death, they say, is the great equalizer. Check out these notable epitaphs on the tombstones of 25 famous people.

"I have learned over the years that when one's mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear." -- Rosa Parks

Signifying nothing

Professional funnyman Will Stephen gives an entertaining and in-faux-mative talk about how to sound smart in your TEDx Talk, delivered in classic style.

And meteorologist Amy Freeze, dentist Randall Toothaker, and other people whose names might have had something to do with their professions (if you believe in nominative determinism).

"Statistics are used much like a drunk uses a lamppost: for support, not illumination." -- Vin Scully

Homer-cooked breakfast

A photo posted by Dan Cretu (@dan_cretu) on Apr 9, 2016 at 6:58am PDT

Dan Cretu created this pretty intricate Homer Simpson fried egg portrait, presumably with nothing more than a frying pan (and maybe a little breakfast magic).


Speaking of magic-making, watch this artist at the Corning Museum turn a blob of molten glass into an intricate dragon sculpture, and make it look easy.

"I want to help the helpless, but I don't want to help the clueless." -- Dennis Miller

Math problem

Yeah, it's these guys, again... the band OK Go's new music video "This One Moment" was shot in the blink of an eye, with hundreds of small events painstakingly timed and choreographed to take place over a few seconds. (They have liner notes posted with the video, and you also can read a little more about it on Mashable.)

And something of a quiz, classic pop songs in infographic form. How many can you figure out?

"A committee is a group that keeps minutes and loses hours." -- Milton Berle

Material damage

Around this time of year you might especially enjoy Fail Army's video compilation of people accidentally destroying expensive things like electronics, cars, boats, and houses.

And a imagine the Nativity in 2016. It might look something like this Hipster nativity set.

"Worrying is like paying on a debt that may never come due." -- Will Rogers

On the QT

If you find it intriguing that Quentin Tarantino created a cinematic universe that spans all his movies, watch those connections effortlessly unfold in this video as it flips between one movie and another and shows you how it's all related. (You can get explanations of what's going on in the video here.)

And scene-by-scene visualizations of how closely "based on a true story" Hollywood movies stick to the truth. (With spoilers, obviously.)

"Life is always going to be stranger than fiction, because fiction has to be convincing, and life doesn't." -- Neil Gaiman

Of course

Follow the yellow marble amidst the sea of green ones as it rolls its way down this unique river-rafting-themed marble run beautifully carved from hardwood.

And bet you never woulda guessed that purveyor of fine cheese-y snacks Cheetos is selling a $20,000 jewelry set. Something to chew on as Christmas approaches.

"You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them." -- Maya Angelou

Space invaders

An interactive exhibit to say the least, watch as paintings come to life and chase each other around this gallery through the magic of projection mapping. No Ben Stiller in this one.

And did you know South Korea had a toilet museum? Or so said BBC News in its report.

"Mediocre minds usually dismiss anything which reaches beyond their own understanding." -- Francois de La Rochefoucauld

E for effort...

...F for execution. Not-so-swift thief has trouble stealing cash drawer from a McDonald's. What, you think maybe they made the window too small on purpose...?

And ever wonder whether there was a method to the madness of classifying roads? Then take a ride with Phil Edwards as he explains the naming conventions behind roads and the differences between streets, avenues, lanes, ways, and the rest.

"What's money? A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and goes to bed at night and in between does what he wants to do." -- Bob Dylan

Spin cycle

Lonely musically-inclined fellow uses his washing machine as a backup band to throw down a quick hoedown riff.


And creative guy Rafael Dymek created a fully-functioning smart touchscreen mirror based on Apple iOS 10, just like your iPhone.

"We must use time as a tool, not as a couch." -- John F. Kennedy

Fish out of water

DIYer cleans out his attic and conjoins an old Big Mouth Billy Bass with Amazon Alexa to put them both to good use.

And another anachronism, what might be the first selfies ever taken, ca. 1920., from renowned photographer Joseph Byron. And he did them the old-fashioned way -- no selfie stick, no duckface.

"You've got to be a thermostat rather than a thermometer. A thermostat shapes the climate of opinion; a thermometer just reflects it." -- Cornel West

Utter differences

Saara shows how to speak English in 14 different accents in rapid-fire succession, a follow-up to her 2014 release singing in 14 different genres.

And this project illustrates how perceptions of beauty vary around the world by asking female graphic designers to Photoshop a model to be more attractive to their country.

"Wise men speak because they have something to say; Fools because they have to say something." -- Plato

Open mic

Presumably bored guy asks Google Home to tell him jokes for 15 minutes straight, and it looks like the stress testing might have induced failure.

And watch a robot solve a Rubiks Cube in under a second, a new record, at least until it's broken.

"To err is human - and to blame it on a computer is even more so." -- Robert Orben

No hands

Impressive foot-eye coordination in this freestyle competition juggling soccer balls in ways you might not have thought were possible.

And some pretty tricky parkour-bike tricks through the streets of Barcelona.

"The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference." -- Elie Wiesel

Better soon than never

Have fun watching this supercut of gloating showboaters getting what they deserve -- a rude surprise just seconds after a mistaken victory celebration.

And we all have goals: This man likely set the world record for catching a grape in his mouth from the greatest height.

"We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope." -- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Cow charmer

Crazy how the reverberant strains of this traditional cow summoning song called kulning makes the cows come home. I wonder if it works outside of Scandinavia?

And prepare to groan -- it’s "pundemonium" with this punny artwork.

"Do not worry about avoiding temptation. As you grow older it will avoid you." -- Joey Adams

Penultimate

French artist Helena Hauss draws incredible lifelike artworks using just a Bic pen and a few hundred hours.

And don't be fooled, this food artist's intricate dishes and cakes are actually little tiny cookies.

"I bought a seven-dollar pen because I always lose pens and I got sick of not caring." -- Mitch Hedberg

Fin is in

Watch this artist turn everyday U.S. currency into the five-dollar "Bill" Murray using nothing but a pencil.

And some great examples of trompe l'oeil, visual illusion through the trick of perspective, in these really realistic murals on otherwise boring ol' buildings. (Even more of them at the A-Fresco website if you want.)

"Success in almost any field depends more on energy and drive than it does on intelligence. This explains why we have so many stupid leaders." -- Sloan Wilson

Key change

You probably don't typically think of power chords in the small-acoustic context, but check out this version of Black Sabbath's "War Pigs" covered on ukulele. And there's also a songbook in case you want to pick it up for yourself.

And a full choir performs a medley of electronic dance hits, including some a capella Prodigy, using only their vocal chords.

"What I am looking for is a blessing not in disguise." -- Jerome K. Jerome

Ain't no topping us now

Whether or not you like pizza -- and who doesn't? -- you might like this video of a series of peculiar pizzas being baked before your eyes. (You don't need to be baked yourself, though it might help.)

And more options, all the different languages spoken at home by New York City residents shown in an interactive map.

"The essence of the beautiful is unity in variety." -- Felix Mendelssohn

No parking

Moral of the story: don't forget to set your car's e-brake when you stop for a pee break.

And some pretty amazing photographs of daily life in Yakutsk, the coldest city on earth.

"Life is tough, but it's tougher if you're stupid." -- John Wayne

Satisfactorily unsatisfactory

Need a quick bring-me-down? Check out this animated short featuring a series of incredibly unsatisfying situations.

And this guy has a Youtube channel called One Million Times where he posts videos of a few-second-long event played repetitively as it multiplies in a grid. Tough to explain, easier to just watch one -- say, smashing 1,000,000 bottles of vodka.

"When nothing seems to help, I go look at a stonecutter hammering away at his rock perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it." -- Jacob Riis

Ship shape

This car ferry trip starts out looking dire and goes downhill from there to its inevitable conclusion.

Also some bad conditions, check out the heavy fog at London's Gatwick Airport, so thick you can't even see the planes trying to land.

"If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur." -- Red Adair

Aspirations

This little dog is (or wants to be) a bobblehead. Either that, or it's one heck of a tail-wagging effort.


And man successfully face-swaps with an Egyptian sphinx to enhance the historical landmark.

"It's a sign of mediocrity when you demonstrate gratitude with moderation." -- Roberto Benigni

Can-do candy

Sculpting in clay or marble or bronze is great, but check out the classic Japanese art of amezaiku. Beautiful as any classic carving, though eating the cool crafted crystal candy creations would seem criminal.

And better late than never... they can build rockets and land on the moon, but can NASA carve the ultimate Halloween pumpkin?

"Better a tooth out than always aching." -- Thomas Fuller

Censortive subject

This bizarro and grotesque 1968 satire "The Glass Harmonica" was the only animated film banned by Soviet censors, apparently for the recursive reason that they didn't like how the film portrayed censorship, a mainstay of their "union".

And some amusing proofreader's marks, at least as these things go.

"There are three things that I've learned never discuss with people: religion, politics, and the Great Pumpkin." -- Linus Van Pelt

Good hands

You can probably learn these three easy pen magic tricks, with the techniques for each broken down step by step -- unless you're me.

And a dad turns his 6-year-old's drawings into "reality" via the magic of Photoshop.

"People who have time on their hands will inevitably waste the time of people who have work to do." -- Thomas Sowell

Decadent

if this gent who immersed himself in 600 lbs. of Nutella doesn't have a mental problem, he certainly has a monumental (cleanup) problem.

And time-lapse videos of ants eating delicious snacks set to stock music. (There's a whole YT channel dedicated to such vids.)

"Once you get rid of integrity the rest is a piece of cake." -- Larry Hagman

What's the scoop?

Just under the Halloween wire, a demonstration of how to carve a picture-perfect pumpkin in under 30 seconds using a 60,000 PSI waterjet cutter, courtesy of the Waterjet Channel.

And have a look at this artist's series of sketches that (re)imagine movie titles with one letter removed. (He did them for a Reddit challenge where users were asked to, "pick a movie, remove one letter, give a brief description".)

"She got her looks from her father. He's a plastic surgeon." -- Groucho Marx

Zoom zoom

Amazing how burning steel wool looks like a raging wildfire when you look at it up close through a macro lens.

And a tutorial about how to make a super-detailed model tree is arts-and-crafts coolness.

"Fire and swords are slow engines of destruction, compared to the tongue of a Gossip." -- Richard Steele

Don't feed the porch

Porch hands are human-like and creepy, and seemingly everywhere. If only you could get the raccoons to work on Halloween.

And and a very lifelike bucket of scat that I'm sure you'll find handy for something or other.

"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies." -- Mother Teresa

Taken

This guy figured he'd just try to drive his car off the tow truck... what could go wrong?

And here's each and every shift from each and every Fast and Furious movie, a great show, in under three minutes. "I liked the part when they changed gears."

"About the time we can make the ends meet, somebody moves the ends." -- Herbert Hoover

Taste the rainbow

All the more appropriate a tagline if you arrange some Skittles in a ring on a plate, pour hot water over them, and watch the magic happen.

And this guy makes elaborate drawings with avocado -- from the Mona Lisa to Chuck Norris -- and then eats them.

"Just as the bird sings or the butterfly soars, because it is his natural characteristic, so the artist works." -- Alma Gluck

B and E

Oh deer. Woodland vandal crashes through front window of store building in what's either a botched burglary or a mess of confusion.

And the finalists in the 2016 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards.

"The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance - it is the illusion of knowledge." -- Daniel J. Boorstin

Branching off

This first-person perspective filming of a massive tree removal has an unexpected gravitas courtesy of dramatic musical soundtrack, only slightly soiled by the somewhat grating buzz of the chainsaw.

Also in fauna destruction... blowing up fruits and vegetables in slow motion is good healthy fun.

"Yesterday's just a memory, tomorrow is never what it's supposed to be." -- Bob Dylan

Aw chute

While you might think losing something while falling/flying through the sky is an unrecoverable error, this guy somehow bucks the odds, incredibly retrieving his lost shoe midair during a parachute jump.

And responsive pixel art that re-scales itself as you move your cursor.

"A closed mouth catches no flies." -- Miguel de Cervantes

Shame reaction

Poor fellow accidentally wreaking havoc in the TV department of an electronics store is like something out of a bad dream.

And this crash-test footage shows why you might want to strap down the luggage -- would-be projectiles -- you put in your car.

"We should not moor a ship with one anchor, or our life with one hope." -- Epictetus

On track

A swell compilation of matchbox car flips, twists and jumps apparently filmed using a little tiny dash cam. Nice feat, and some nostalgia to boot. (Thanks RB)

And the ABCs for Terribly Spoiled Children, an indictment of sorts.

"It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are." -- e. e. cummings

Overflow

Check out this great white shark force its way into a diving cage in a frenzied attack.

And a NASA animation shows all the rivers that feed into the Mississippi. Mighty indeed...

"I want you to take away the hope because that's the thing that's killing me." -- Denis Leary

Time and place

Frozen.

Somewhere in Japan, this amazing mime is taking a very, very long time to cross the street.

And a puerile Reddit thread seeks the funniest-named places in the UK.

"An explanation of cause is not a justification by reason." -- C. S. Lewis

Reaching across the aisle

I was watching football, so didn't catch this delightful little duet with Trump and Clinton singing "Time of my Life" after Sunday's debate.


And this XKCD comic about problems could apply to politics and life in general as much as it does coding.

"Reality is the leading cause of stress among those in touch with it." -- Lily Tomlin

Spin doctoring

Evidence that a new generation has discovered the wonder of playing 45 RPM singles at the 33 1⁄3 RPM album speed, with classic tracks like Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" as a slow groove, or Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" transformed into luded-out industrial disco.

"The great thing about getting older is that you don't lose all the other ages you've been." -- Madeleine L'Engle

Measure twice

Instructional video from YouTube’s Shop built channel shows how to build this seemingly impossible Escher-like fence thing using nothing but the skills you learned in high school shop class.

And tiny tools built by a master tiny toolmaker Marco Terenzi. You can buy them, too.

"Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible'!" -- Audrey Hepburn

Cut the sheet

Entertaining video explains how to read all the arcane marks and symbols on sheet music.

"If a composer could say what he had to say in words he would not bother trying to say it in music." -- Gustav Mahler

Tiny moments

Small doses of good entertainment in this couple of minutes of celebrity "nano-impressions" from Jim Meskimen.

And you've probably heard of body doubles for movie stars, but did you know there were voice doubles, too?

"One advantage of talking to yourself is that you know at least somebody's listening." -- Franklin P. Jones

What's the good word?

Ever wonder what those fast-mouthed auctioneers are saying? Well here's your chant to find out.

And if you're stuck for something smug to say, the Idiomatic generates random idioms out of other idioms to stymie and annoy.

"There's a great power in words, if you don't hitch too many of them together." -- Josh Billings

Back up

Watch things happening in reverse and be momentarily mesmerized.

And some allegedly forward progress... the Internet of (nasty) Things. Check out what John McAfee found happening on this "smart fridge" at a local Home Depot.

"If you want a guarantee, buy a toaster." -- Clint Eastwood

Tier up

Check out these wacky humans stacking they-selves into a seven-level human tower.

And another interesting arrangement, click anywhere in this blank square and see where thousands of other people have clicked.

"Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will." -- Mahatma Gandhi

Point of reference

A seemingly large chef whipping up a seemingly tiny lasagna is just one of the interesting cooking videos that challenges your sense of scale on the YouTube channel Walking with Giants.

And a B-2 bomber on a football field, scorpions and cats, and other photos that put relative sizes into perspective.

"Seeing is not always believing." -- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Oh, the humanity

Long before the dawn of our selfie-obsessed culture, this man filmed himself annually for 35 years and made a video going backwards to 1977, inspiring a documentary called Sam Klemke's Time Machine.

And the folks at this website Color.Works [https://www.color.works/] will turn your photo into a crayon mosaic masterpiece suitable for framing.

"Maybe all one can do is hope to end up with the right regrets." -- Arthur Miller

Lucky strikes

Wait for it...

Man accidentally on purpose launches a carbonated beverage bottle with an incredibly unlikely bounce.


Drunk guy using an ATM makes an unintended withdrawal.




And an unexpected offensive rebound with a champagne bottle.

"To succeed in the world, it is much more necessary to possess the penetration to discern who is a fool, than to discover who is a clever man." -- Charles Maurice de Talleyrand

Review revue

gjusta. #toothpix @gjustabakery

A video posted by TOOTH PIX (@toothpix) on Aug 13, 2016 at 9:00am PDT

Very much an LA thing to me, this guy Toothpix specializes in absurd and humorous Yelp video restaurant reviews like this one. All of his work is on display at his Instagram.


And check out fine establishments like Buns 'n Roses, Hannah and Her Scissors, Bin There Dump That and whole bunch of other punny businesses, crowdsourced and mapped, courtesy of Atlas Obscura.

"Take my advice. I don’t use it anyway." -- Source unknown

Take two

Can you guess which movie this is by watching these generic scenes made entirely from stock footage? (You can also check out these other "Scenes You've Seen" of blockbusters, award-winners, and indies.)


And this homemade "Kill Bill" fight scene completely wrecks a living room.

"I wanted a perfect ending. Now I've learned, the hard way, that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle and end." -- Gilda Radner

Imposer

In the latest installment of "Back to the Future", Donald Trump travels back in time to face JFK and Nixon in the first televised debate.

And smartphones replaced with butter, some humorous staff picks from your friends at Imgur.

"Convincing yourself doesn't win an argument." -- Robert Half

Off course

Like something out of a movie, this quick-thinking guy goes full ninja and barely escapes getting hit by an oncoming car. (Sure, it was only a VW Beetle, but still...)


And if your eating habits tend toward large portions of say, cat litter, golf balls, orange peels, or water wrigglers, then you need a commode that will not be overwhelmed.




Apparently there are a bunch of these demo videos out there.

"When it comes to luck, you make your own." -- Bruce Springsteen

False positive

A couple of illusions...

These two rectangles are traveling at the same speed:

Reality shatter. The two objects are traveling in exactly the same manner. Watch when it turns gray.pic.twitter.com/HpZsudeXSG

— Cliff Pickover (@pickover) June 18, 2016

And one that seems more obvious... the orange dot isn't pulsating.

Reality distortion. The orange dot that doesn’t actually change size. pic.twitter.com/7oMUtjYFhZ

— Cliff Pickover (@pickover) June 17, 2016

"The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it." -- George Bernard Shaw

Tick truck

To flaunt the performance and reliability of its vehicles, Scania made a gigantic 750,000 square-foot working clock from a small fleet of trucks that drove in circles for 24 straight hours. Apparently it kept pretty good time.

And some other things that became other things, Xhurces collects photos of former churches that are now a rock-climbing gym, restaurant, dance studio, and more.

"Time is an illusion. Lunchtime doubly so." -- Douglas Adams

Plan of attack

Everything went according to plan

Karma is a dish best served with a shovel.


And some perfectly drawn un-graffiti that makes a concrete support almost invisible.

"I'm a great believer in karma, and the vengeance that it serves up to those who are deliberately mean is generally enough for me." -- Beth Ditto

Summer extinction

Seeing this guy in a wacky T-rex costume flinging his jetski around a lake seems to signal the end of summer, if not civilization.

And here's what preparing sashimi doesn't sound like, courtesy of a Foley artist.

"Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds." -- Albert Einstein

Seasoned runner

Footage made from almost 100,000 photos shot over a 5-mile running route through the course of a year blends all the seasons together into a beautiful hyperlapse.

Also, the nearly 200 jobs Homer Simpson has held, with how much he made at each.

"Never mistake motion for action." -- Ernest Hemingway

Roll call

The imminent end of the world is the only plausible explanation for this invading horde of tumbleweeds so intense that it required a "snow" plow to clear the road.

And this moody short animation portends a dark future where overpopulation is dealt with through a mandatory postmortem social network where people are condemned to plug in and die. (Interesting "vibe", and also happens to be the music video for Lorn's song "Anvil".)

"Your heaviest artillery will be your will to live. Keep that big gun going." -- Norman Cousins

Off the deep end

Daredevil who calls himself 8booth proves once again that he is not afraid of heights or sanity with this ballsy four-story jump into a swimming pool.

Also daring would be to eat this so-proclaimed hottest tortilla chip in the world (courtesy of the Carolina Reaper pepper). So spicy, in fact, that they're sold one chip per package (which aptly is a coffin-shaped box).

"Only when we are no longer afraid do we begin to live." -- Dorothy Thompson

Bad dogs

If you like the Netflix show, check out this re-imagined opening sequence to "Barkos", a dog-themed "Narcos" parody.

And here's a how much alcohol Americans drink, broken down by race and gender in an interactive graphic.

"You're not drunk if you can lie on the floor without holding on." -- Dean Martin

Take a break

Interesting idea for a stress-relieving device called the anger release machine, which looks to be an art installation at a gallery somewhere. And I'd be twice as ticked off if it didn't break.

Also, researchers at MIT have created a website called "Moral Machine" to let humans like you and me decide what a driverless car should do in various life-or-death situations. Visit now and weigh in.

"Never attribute to malice, that which can be reasonably explained by stupidity." -- Spider Robinson

In loo of

Incredible video edit creates an epic bathroom scene from across all genres of movies, featuring characters like Tony Montana, Jack Torrance, the guy from Fight Club, Arnold, and of course Mr. Bean. (Apparently it's related to Hell’s Club, which had famous characters stitched together into one giant club scene.)

And confirmation that there is no lock on the door of the Existential Toilet, always alone in the cold vastness of the universe.

"You shouldn't get too close to the truth, because then maybe you stop being funny." -- Bob Newhart

Copy cat

Easily influenced, maybe, or just having fun -- rhino apes goat. [BoingBoing]

And 10 survival myths that might get you killed.

"Tell me who admires and loves you, and I will tell you who you are." -- Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Ewe gotta be kidding

No logistical challenge too great... here's a guy in Ethiopia pedaling his bike down the road with a couple of sheep hanging on his back. No joke.


And some punny artwork from Keren Rosen that turns idioms into literal groany caricatures.

"Wherever you go, go with all your heart." -- Confucius

Offside

Don't look now, but this too creepily-realistic Tom Brady mask must have thrown some folks for a loop at the Cards/Pats game the other night. (Ironic that his head looks over-inflated.) Maybe it was actually Tom Brady under that Tom Brady mask...

And what animals would look like if they had eyes at the front.

"Character is much easier kept than recovered." -- Thomas Paine

With a twist

Quick, interesting, and useful tutorial on how to wrap cables like a pro with the "Roadie Wrap", so your cords, cables, and ropes look better, last longer, and won't tangle up. (Just remember the mnemonic -- "overworked and underpaid.") It might just change your life.

And another small wonder... "Micro Matter" is a series of tiny worlds somehow impossibly created in glass from Amsterdam-based artist Rosa de Jong

"Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end." -- Seneca

Penne and paper

Appetizing stop-motion video series that creatively "cooks" colorful cardboard consumables that look good enough to eat, all part of the Paper Meal project by Yell Design in Australia.

And for your beverage, interactive blobs show what type of alcohol people drink around the world, country by country.

"Vegetarians are cool. All I eat are vegetarians - except for the occasional mountain lion steak." -- Ted Nugent

Ponder

Wade around in this virtual pond of interactive colorful koi in this stunning art installation.

And this illusion has the interwebs going of late... can you see all 12 black dots at once? Some say it's not possible. (Read about it at Gizmodo.)

"The highest form of ignorance is when you reject something you don't know anything about." -- Wayne Dyer

In a scrape

Daring dumbass attempts insane cliff jump, somehow making it out unscathed (let alone alive), but just barely.

And in the cactus edition of "Will It Juggle?", Olga Kay juggles three cacti at her audience's request.



(More on her YT channel if you like jugglers who take audience requests. And other fun stuff on her site MooshWorld.com.)

"Stupidity has a knack of getting its way." -- Albert Camus

Your way

In what appears to be the first Burger King reseller arrangement, this guy built a WHOPPER meal machine out of LEGO that dispenses a real burger, fries, and a Coke for five simoleons.

And why struggle to see the TV while enjoying your tasty beverage? Now you don't have to, thanks to the brilliantly designed TV Beer Mug, which I hear is up for a Nobel Prize for booze.

"Laziness is nothing more than the habit of resting before you get tired." -- Jules Renard

Dance pox

A band seemingly called Dancing Noodle whips out some electronic dance music using rubber chickens, a table, and a paper cup.

And be warned: baby animals in amusing outfits like this one are awwww-fully cute.

"Originality is the fine art of remembering what you hear but forgetting where you heard it." -- Laurence J. Peter

Crumby weather

A new more informative way to start the day with this toaster that prints the weather forecast (or anything else you want) on your breakfast. [PSFK]

And make your message stand out with this ransom note generator.

"Make three correct guesses consecutively and you will establish a reputation as an expert." -- Laurence J. Peter

Ballet-lujah

The unique combo of cats and groovy 1970s graphics = internet viral success for this bizarre cat disco video that retro pop culture fan site Go Retro apparently called, "Doctor Who on a bad acid trip."


And does this remind you of your dog?

"Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad." -- Brian O'Driscoll

Flex-time

Check this interactive pole-dancing routine that looks like an astral projection warping the fabric of space-time.

And Yoga Joes are a 6-pack series of little green plastic army men in advanced yoga poses.

"Most people would like to be delivered from temptation but would like it to keep in touch." -- Robert Orben

Catch my drift

Tough to believe but the lines in this illusion really aren't moving; it just looks that way.


And the Shepard tone is an audible illusion where a tone seems to rise in pitch forever, but never actually does.

"Illusion is the first of all pleasures." -- Voltaire

Safety first

This staple-through-the-finger prank worked well enough that the "prankstee" was so involved he just about didn't notice it was a joke.

And video evidence why you should never stand behind a table saw while it's operating. The embedded board serves as a good reminder to this day.

"In tragedy, it's hard to find a good resolution; it's not black and white: it's a big fog of gray." -- Paul Dano

Set the scene

Old and new meet in this in pop-culture mashup of the "Avengers" set to the theme music from "Full House". Amazing how music dictates the tone.

And do you know the magic words? (If not, you will after this 45-movie supercut.)

"The 50-50-90 rule: Anytime you have a 50-50 chance of getting something right, there's a 90% probability you'll get it wrong." -- Andy Rooney

It ain't over 'til it's over

Yet another reason to avoid celebrating until you've crossed the finish line. (There are of course countless others.)

And Deep Sadness is an interactive online art-thing; click the shape to generate a new shape and a sad-ish noise (that sounds like it's from an old "Twilight Zone" TV show).

"Success is simple. Do what's right, the right way, at the right time." -- Arnold H. Glasow