trl.ca » video

A Vending Machine that Sells… Live Crabs?

Todd Lyons — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 12:20:25 +0000

Here’s a video worth viewing. Watch it, then consider: Are you impressed by the innovation and convenience-mindedness of humankind, or the limitless of our cruelty?

Classic Commercial: Man vs. Bear

Todd Lyons — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 12:28:03 +0000

With the exception of the occasional Super Bowl gems, most North American commercials are dull and hollow. Here’s an example of a great commercial, because you deserve a laugh today.

No Kill I

Todd Lyons — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 11:57:39 +0000

Classic Star Trek punk. Is that a real genre? A genre of one, perhaps. Here’s the eponymous track from the band No Kill I. Their name comes from the scrawling of an alien life form in the Star Trek episode The Devil in the Dark. Sad I never saw these guys when I had the chance.

The Darker Side of Positive Thinking

Todd Lyons — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 12:30:33 +0000

American feminist, democratic socialist, pop sociologist and political activist Barbara Ehrenreich explores the hazards of forced positiveness, the subject of her book Bright-sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America.

Korea’s Answer to Steve Moore

Todd Lyons — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 12:30:59 +0000

Steve may be the latest example of a drummer whose showmanship is completely incongruent with the music he plays, but he’s certainly not the first. Check out this guy:

Steve Moore: That Drummer at the Wrong Gig

Todd Lyons — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 13:30:57 +0000

It’s been a few weeks since I first saw this, but it refuses to go away. Sometimes I use my blog as a personal bookmark for things I’ll probably want to watch again in future years. This would be one of those cases:

My first thought upon seeing this video was, “If Tommy Lee ever leaves Mötley Crüe, this guy is IN.” As it turns out, Steve’s roots are in heavy metal. For more information about him, check out his interview in CityPages, and visit his website The Mad Drummer.

A Typical Day at the Post Office?

Todd Lyons — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 12:30:51 +0000

You. Must. Watch. This.

Placebo’s Actual Lead Singer?

Todd Lyons — Sat, 29 May 2010 10:03:24 +0000

No, it’s not Brian Molko, even if that’s what it says in the album notes.

No, it’s not Brian Molko, even if that’s who appears in the video.

It’s Dave Foley, from The Kids in The Hall and NewsRadio. Now don’t brush me off so easily. Imagine Dave’s voice, then watch this video:

I’m right, aren’t I? Manservant Hecubus is moonlighting as a lead vocalist! Relax Brian, I ain’t gonna go to the newspapers or launch an ‘emotional distress’ lawsuit against you. I think we’ve all learned something from Milli Vanilli.

Classic Commercial: Star Trek & MCI

Todd Lyons — Tue, 11 May 2010 14:00:01 +0000

The funniest thing about this commercial is how much these people loathe each other in real life. Time may never heal all wounds, but as you can see here, screen time and a paycheck can at least restore the illusion of healthy functioning.

Happy April Fool’s Day, Tweeps!

Todd Lyons — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 16:12:31 +0000

graphic by milles (flickr)

April Fool’s Day and Twitter were made for each other, don’t you think? Sharing-oriented messages with a shortened URL courtesy of bit.ly or some other tool? It’s the perfect combination of trust, expectation of useful content, and an obscured link. The perfect storm.

That was my thinking at least. For the last couple of weeks I’ve been trying to think of a good hook. This is what I unfurled today:

Ben & Jerry’s honour Ted Nugent with new flavour: Mango Wango Tango – http://bit.ly/aJu7VJ – #rockstar #icecream

Clever, I thought… though obviously a dated reference that would limit its appeal to an older demographic.

Not surprisingly, there were not great results. Even by using 5 different Twitter accounts that I own or manage, this effort only yielded 4 hits. Disappointing to say the least.

Then, based on a completely legitimate list I saw another person post, the idea hit me:

Top Ten Great April Fool’s Day Hoaxes – http://bit.ly/aJu7VJ – #aprilfool #funny #top10 #topten

Bingo! Thirty hits in just a few minutes.

While it lacked the creativeness of my first attempt — an idea which was plausibly true, the fact that this tweet was a hoax in itself was… tremendously satisfying. I was quite tickled. Kind of like these laughing rats, being tickled by a research scientist:

See you next year.