Tear Jerkers

Sometimes you just need a video to help you release some emotion. For whatever reason, the following video has stuck with me since the first time I watched it. It's not a new video, so you may have already seen it, but I never tire of watching it. There's something so moving about this man's connection to his music, not to mention he's singing a great song:

Another video that is similarly emotional for me is a group piece. This organization is really fascinating, you should check out their website (http://playingforchange.com/) and see what they're all about if you like this video:

And finally, a non-musical clip. This movie is my favorite Pixar movie by far. There are two sections that really yanked at my heartstrings, but this one did it the most for me. I think I love it so much because it's a nice reminder to live your life doing what you love, and with the people you love:

Inspire

Some videos out there are incredibly motivational with respect to the way you live your life and view the world around you. This first video is one that I have recently discovered and am very excited about. It is a very important commentary on the media that we consume every day. Check it out and see for yourself:

Along the same lines,

 

And finally, a video about how you make meaning in your life. I don't love this video quite as much as the first, or the second for that matter, but it definitely shares some really interesting insight from someone in a difficult position:

Music Videos

Music is awesome. Songs are made infinitely better if they have a unique, cute, artistic, etc. music video to accompany them. Here are a few of my favorites:

This one is so artistic and fun (as all of Ok Go's videos are). It even inspired me to create my own video using their technique. Check it out, maybe you'll be inspired too!

This one is also very artistic, and just plain cool. I love it for a few reasons. One, imagine how long this girl spent in that bed to shoot this video. Also, I can't believe how much attention was payed to detail. Well, on second thought I guess I can...that's what they payed for. Judge for yourself:

I also am a sucker for cute heart warming videos. This is by far the best one in this category I've ever come across. The song is equally adorable and never fails to brighten my day:

Get Up and Go!

One of my favorite classifications of internet videos are those that motivate you to no end. As an athlete, may of these end up being memorable sports moments. I was a gymnast for eight years and was SHOCKED that many of my friends didn't know the story of Kerri Strug. See for yourself, you won't be disappointed:

Now, I'm a diver in college. Over the past four years I've watched quite a lot of swimming. While great finishes are exciting, the finish of this race is more than goose-bump worthy:

And finally, a video that's not about sports. If you have some time, watch this video about classical music. Benjamin Zander is a fascinating man, and somehow connects everyone to this forgotten genre of music:

If you like this, check out other videos at TED.com

Cats

Videos of cats are eternally popular on Youtube. I'd like to share a few with you.

First, here's my favorite Youtube cat video. I wish there was another video of the person videotaping doing this with his/her cat, but this definitely suffices. 

Videos OF cats aren't the only thing gaining fame. There are also some pretty hilaroius videos ABOUT cats. My roommates always joke that I'm a crazy cat lady because I have two cats, but seriously...put me up against this woman and I'm a below-average cat lover:

And finally...here's a video of my own cat! She's super fat and super lovable.

They're How Old?!

There's nothing more astounding than little kids who can do things better than you can. In this post I will focus on singing. These children have crazy skills and crazy voices.

This video has been gaining A LOT of popularity recently. Look out Nicki Minaj, she's coming for you! And she's got quite a few years to sharpen her skills:

This girl can rap and sing. Her youtube fame even got her an appearance on Ellen where she got to perform with Nicki Minaj!! What an awesome surprise! Check it out:

Here's another crazy video. This girl blew me away when I first watched it, and each time I've seen it since it doesn't dissapoint. How did she learn to sing like this?!?!

Incredible.

And while this girl isn't quite as young as the other two I absolutely LOVE the version she made of "Look at me Now."

I'm blown away by all of these girls. Is it talent or determination? Definitely both.

Adrenaline Continued...

So, I saw the segment below on 60 Minutes last night and was blown away. The first time I heard of this guy was in this video:

I was not only astounded by his incredible physical abilities, but by his general demeanor. This gut reaction was only exacerbated with the following 60 Minutes clip about one of his world record climbs:

How can he be so even tempered while he's flirting with death?! I suppose that's part of why he's received such acclaim. Either way, props Alex Honnold. I think we can all take a lesson from you in the power of positive thought. The best athletes, in my oppinion, seem hard to fluster. Think about this crazy soccer clip for example:

All of the players that score seem to have full confidence in their abilities and deliver the devastating blows as if they were easy. Talk about cool confidence.

Yeah. Right.

I love finding people who have crazy talents online. As a current diver and ex-gymnast, people who can control their bodies like the people you will find below always astound me. Enjoy these three very different types of gymnastics:

This one is my most recent discovery in this category. HOW DOES SHE DO THAT?!

This girl is not real.

This one is equally crazy because it's not one person but an entire team! So...synchronized...

How long did they have to practice for this?

This one is more for show than finesse like the other two, but still...WHAT?!

Need Some Adrenaline?

One of my favorite categories of video that I discovered this summer are videos that get your adrenaline pumping. Many of these are made possible by the GoPro camera which is pretty sweet. I did a warrior dash (a 5k race with military style obstacles strewn throughout) and saw a guy with one of them strapped to his chest! Maybe it'll be on youtube one day. In the meantime, here are some of the crazy heart stopping videos:

This one is incredible. It's actually a trailer! If you like it maybe the movie is something to check out in the future. I also love the soundtrack:

This one is similarly crazy. I love how these cameras put you RIGHT in the athletes shoes. Or skiis in this case:

This one is just unbelievable. To imagine choreographing something like this so precisely blows my mind every time:

Along the same lines, another type of video that I love are videos of people doing things you know you could never do. Next post soon to come!

Be Creative

This website is really cool. I also love the message. Be creative every day.

Be Creative

This is also a cool blog post about creative advertisements. I love ads like this (well, as far as loving ads goes) because they're fun and pretty brilliant.

Check Them Out!

Oh, and one more note about creativity. 30 Rock. It's brilliant. I absolutely love Tina Fey's sense of humor. This show has me in stitches whenever I watch it. If you're already a fan, you may appreciate this clip from another hilarious show:

Pretty messed up...but also pretty hilarious.

A Shiny New Blog. Oh, and a Hilarious Video.

Blogging is weird. There was a small period of time when I followed blogs written by my friends, but they were shortly replaced by more popular and far more addicting websites like Facebook or Stumbleupon. Not to hate on blogging. It certainly isn't the only odd phenomenon on the internet. Hey, I used to think Twitter was one of the most ridiculous ideas ever, and now it's probably my #1 web addiction. What changed? I figured out how to use it to best suit me. I hope to use this blog in the same way.

I realized this summer how often I have conversations that lead someone to pull out a computer and look something up. While sometimes this is purely for informational purposes, it is much more common for someone to mention a link or video they saw and then want to share it. Twitter has become my way to share, record, and chronicle the videos and links that interest me. Why blog? Well, it's an assignment for a class I'm taking called New Media Technologies. That was the initial push. In thinking of how I could use this blog for the same purposes as my Twitter, while making it different enough that people will want to look at both, I realized that blog posts don't have the same length restrictions that tweets do. Therefore, I will use this blog to elaborate on the fun videos and articles that I post.

One of these internet enhanced conversations that I've recently had lead a bunch of friends and I to watch my favorite episode of a hilarious Youtube series called Drunk History. Here it is:

I absolutely love all of these, but this is my favorite. Hilarious AND informative. Plus, I can't help but be blown away by how well done they are. Kudos actors, I can't imagine how many times you listened to the audio from the original video.