Category: recommended site

Wednesday ephemera

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Several bits of small stuff to share, so here it all is.
Knock yourselves out*.

Things are going all right

After yesterday’s post, this:

That’s quite a movement, ironically suddenly making illegal “small boat” immigration across the English Channel a whole lot harder.

Home Affairs is a mixed bag

Two tweets, just a few pixels apart on my laptop screen:

and:

And yes, I’ve experienced both ends of this spectrum.
Delightfully astonishing at the one end, but oh so frustrating at the other.

SA Mpox outbreak causes first death

Indeed:

Nothing to panic about here, but certainly one just to keep an eye on…

Explore your adventurous side

A recent advert on the web:

Ah yes. The silver self-defence spike. A true Camping and Outdoor Essential. And… does it really say “Thank you for choosing [manufacturer]” on the lanyard? That’s amazing.

I despair

A local page I follow on Facebook got hacked and started posting all sorts of weird stuff, including (but not limited to) a lot of AI generated content resembling American cities. In fact, the only local thing it posted was this range of images depicting (allegedly, at least) Cape Town, some lions in the Kruger, and some KhoiSan rock art in an ancient cave.

The worst bit was the comments though, with people from Cape Town fawning over the picture of their city. And this, despite all those new mountains, the sun setting on the wrong side, and that frankly weird extension bit coming out of Green Point.
Compare and contrast…

Also, while we’re on the subject, that is clearly not KhoiSan rock art, and WTF has happened to those lions? Our jobs are safe from AI for a while yet. But whether our lives are safe from idiot commenters on Facebook… well… that’s another story.

Winter in the vineyards

In more genuine pictures of Cape Town…
We took a walk around Groot Constantia a few days ago, and it was lovely.

Go and see more of the yellowing vines and lush, green grass on Instagram. And drop a follow if you haven’t already. Thanks.

* simply a turn of phrase, not an instruction.

New York film locations map

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Just the other day, I was saying about just how good some of the stuff on Youtube is.
Here’s another example.

I’m not a fan of New York or films. I’ve never been there, and I don’t watch them. But this was just a very clever way of sharing the recent cultural (movie) history of the city, and I even got most of the references.

Beautifully made – the video and the map – again demonstrating the talent and innovation that is out there, even on such a small channel. He got me to click the Subscribe button.
And no surprise to me that one of the first commenters was Casey Neistat: similar vibe right there. And that’s a recommendation if ever there was one.

Using a 108 Year Old World War 1 Lens

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One of those Youtube videos that makes you stop and think. I initially watched it because I was interested in the technical aspects of attaching a 108 year old lens to a modern digital camera, but actually that bit was overlooked almost completely, and I was drawn instead by the history, the storytelling and the powerful images that they managed to create in the video.

Absolutely worth 5 minutes and 20 seconds of your day.

Not much more to add to this – the video itself does most of the talking – but I will say that while there are many places on Youtube that are horrifically puerile and unsophisticated, I’m (thankfully) finding more and more channels with great ideas, telling interesting stories, and with really high quality production values. And because of these discoveries, I’m learning more, I’m enjoying the site far more, and I’m using it more too.

Is this finally the thing they call “growing up”?!?

The Pound Shop Boys

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Not sure how I have missed these guys until now, but as parody groups go, they’re pretty much spot on. And their choice of songs is none too shabby either.

Ideally, you’ll know a bit of Pet Shop Boys stuff, and the original version of the song that you listen to.

Thus, you’ll have to be a certain age and nationality to get this one, but that’s fine, because I am:

But there are plenty more to be had on their playlist.

Hint: The Coronation Street one is an absolute banger.

Cobbles

Back to the Beans

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While I was away, and with limited and sporadic connectivity, I decided that I needed something more than music to keep me occupied. And so I delved back into the world of podcasts.

Now I have tried this before on a number of occasions, but it’s never worked for me. Always something unappealing or uninteresting about the choices I have made.

And yet despite this, for some reason, I went back to a couple of previous attempts. The first was the BBC Radio 4 Comedy of the Week podcast, which was incredibly hit and miss. One funny, one actually horrifically painful to listen to, with awkward and sycophantic laughter.

So we’ll leave that again.

But I did really get into Three Bean Salad.

And that’s probably because I had chance to give it a few episodes. There are plenty of in jokes and call backs which can make it difficult to appreciate at first, but if you persevere, there are some truly hilarious moments to be had as well.

Especially their knack of delivering standalone lines which even out of context are just funny and lure you into wanting to know more.

So scared I couldn’t even take my clothes off.

Crime is never glamorous. Well, apart from diamond theft, obviously.

So was Stonehenge moved halfway across Britain by crabs?

Unless you’re wearing a protective nougat mesh over your face.

Yeah, sure. You had to be there, but in case you haven’t noticed, that’s exactly what I’m suggesting you do. Lots of fun, and loads of back episodes to delve into to fill the gaps between current offerings.