`Tis the season to get Spoopy! It's the 19th now so there's not a whole lot of time left to start getting your head straight for the holiday season. Embrace Halloween fully as it opens the gates to the end of the year. Don't resist it, dive right in.

Full spoopy playlist coming next week...

• What Is Spoopy? - in case you didn't know.
• Bollywood Superman - yes, you may have seen it before but does it ever really get old? No, it does not. Let this inspire your Halloween.
• Boston Dynamics Uptown Funk - look, I know they were trying to make something endearing here showing that these robo-dogs can also dance to your favorite mall song but, for me, this is just further establishing how terrifying our future robot overlords will be.
• Kanye presents his new video - this is so stupid, it's great.
• Wait - no, wait, this is so stupid, it's great.
• Scary Maze Game - another spoopy video to get you in the right headspace.

Have we talked about Gritty, the new Philadelphia Flyers mascot? I know he's very old Internet news by now but if you haven't treated yourself to some Gritty GIFs, you're missing out.

Big week for the ole yk Records! Go listen to New Man Sings and then check in on this new Jasmin Kaset video. Double dose of enjoyment.

If you're in Nashville, come out to The 5 Spot tonight (Oct 12th) for the New Man release show. Gonna be a good time.

And now.. this..

• Gritty Unmasked - Conan gives a little monologue time to Gritty.
• The Argument Sketch - revisiting Monty Python sketches is oddly rewarding. They're silly and stupid but also brilliantly smart. Stick with this.
• Toygers on the Prowl - I'm not too proud to admit that I watched every second of this with rapt attention.
• Warthog under the deck - you know it's coming and it's still scary.
• Snow Leopard Camera Fail - I watched this at least 10 times. Better every time.
• Classics - is it too early for this yet? Not for me. Not at all.

I've been enjoying an inordinate amount of offerings from /r/BetterEveryLoop.. like this guy. Maybe you will too.

Out of the frying pan and into the fire! Just got home from India and I'm off to New Orleans. The fun never stops around here.

Enjoy some distractions, you earned it.

• Brian Wilson - Smart Girls - in 1991, Brian Wilson (and his former therapist), wrote this song. At the time, it was meant to keep Wilson relevant with the popular hip-hop "craze" but it has not aged well. Endurance challenge, for sure.
• Edward Furlong Singing - just another classic entry in the "Horrible Solo Vocal Tracks from Celebrities" genre.
• Eminem as Talking Heads song - SuperDeluxe does this sort of thing frequently and, occasionally, it really works. You decide if they nailed it on this one.
• Bangalore Horn Variants - there was no escaping the constant car horns in India. However, some of them sound like Deluxe Doots, so it wasn't all bad. Here's a taste.
• Ween: The Stallion Pt 2 - while I have plenty of thoughts about Mr. Ed in general, I can't deny how perfect of a mashup this is with Ween.
• Eric Idle Breaks Down His Most Iconic Characters - this is an ongoing series from GQ and it rarely disappoints. Idle discussing all of his Python characters and the writing behind many of them is quite enjoyable.
• The Mute Group - Abuses & Superstitions - of course I want to remind you to watch this new Mute Group video as well. It's a painting come to life.

As it is October, I will gently remind you that it's time to revisit this guy.

You ever have those weeks where you feel overwhelmed by tasks at work and your personal inbox suffers for it and you can't even post once or twice to your blog because you've just got too much to do? Yea, me too.

But all First World Complaints aside, things are good in Eades World. Lots of projects unfurling and it feels good. Enjoy some distractions.

• September 21st - hey, it's the 21st of September!
• September 21st - hey, it's the 21st of September! 2018 version!
• The Dining Nun - I saw a lot of this at DragonCon and it absolutely never gets old.
• John Grant - He's Got His Mother's Hips - openly inspired by "Sledgehammer", this John Grant video is unbelievably impressive for the variety of styles and the way they actually pull them all off.
• Dying - this is probably 2 minutes too long but it's funny pretty much all the way through, especially when considering how it had to be shot and edited. Impressive.
• Garth Brooks First Facebook Video - sure, you've seen it but have you seen it recently? Still good.
• Joe Diffie - Third Rock from The Sun - we had friends over recently for a house hang that evolved into a YouTube deep dive of absurd country music videos. This Joe Diffie ditty was a highlight, not because the song is particularly memorable but just because.
• Reba McEntire - Does He Love You - don't be fooled by this ballad! The twist at the end is shocking.

Take care.

Spent a few days in NY this week but still managed to release multiple podcast episodes, including four new pieces from Bandsplainer, the newest show in the WOTT network. I know podcasts are the butt of every joke lately but, frankly, I'm really enjoying the work and the shows that are coming from it.

Before you dive into the distractions please make sure you're aware of Fruit Loop Cat. I die everytime.

• Every Owen Wilson "Wow" in Chronological Order - it's not even an Endurance Challenge, it's just delightful.
• Arby's Casting Call - I am just discovering this but /arbyscastingcall has a LOT of homemade Arby's commercials. This is probably the most well produced of them all but it's a helluva rabbit hole to go down.
• I Ain't Afraid of No Rolley Coaster! - everytime a huge storm hits and I know there are people who refuse to evacuate or help themselves, I think of this tiny moment from a Mr. Show sketch.
• Conan O'Brien: Actual Items #3 - this week marked the 25th Anniversary of Conan debuting on NBC. In celebration of that, AV Club posted these top 11 moments, one of which is this Actual Items bit. Scrub ahead a bit to get to the actual jokes and then go dive into the rest of the clips they picked out. I mean, this is pure gold.
• Bongo Cat - speaking of deep dives, I'm late to the party on this one but enjoying the variants, insane variants and obvious pairings. Delights abound.

Take care.

I think I said this last year but I'm shocked it's September already. It's late in the year! Okay, it's too early to reflect on 2018 just yet but, dang, can't believe it's so much closer to the end.

Anyway, enjoy some distractions from that thought.

• I'm Thinking I'm Back - did you know that face swap technology is getting really good? Here's Nic Cage's face in a lot of movies to prove it.
• Bauhaus Fashion - the ~10 minute pieces from Great Big Story have proven to be addictive little stories that I enjoy on a regular basis. Here's a good one.
• Mitch Hedberg Compilation - it's been awhile since I gave ole Mitch a listen, happy for a revisit.
• Australian Man Doing Impressions - phenomenal and accurate.
• Dan the Meme Man - I think this kid is a complete idiot but I also think it's okay to be a complete idiot in this regard when you're a kid.
• Welles - Rock N Roll - very into the vibe of this video. It's like a mix between Ugly Americans, Fritz the Cat and a poorly printed catalog from the 60's.
• Cat Snax - I find this both oddly calming and amusing. Would take a ten-hour version.

Take care.

As mentioned, I went down to Atlanta last weekend for DragonCon. For those unfamiliar, DragonCon is a convention that celebrates all things geek culture. While Comic-Con certainly started with similar goals, it morphed into a giant movie industry event that acts as premieres for big tentpole films. I'm sure it's also a complete blast as an attendee but from the outside, it looks a little more corporate.

DragonCon has been running since the late 80's and hasn't seemed to ever make that switch. It consumes downtown Atlanta with thousands of people filling the streets and every hotel in the area with cosplay costumes and general, polite, enthusiasm for all the things. I may harp on getting stuck in a nostalgic mindset but there's a fevered creativity at work here that goes beyond "hey, remember this thing from your past?" Attendees merge characters (like Ghostbuster Admiral Ackbar), gender bend, race bend, celebrate all body types and even have their own in-jokes (like these two, paying homage to a carpet pattern).

All and all, it's an exercise in positivity. Even if you don't feel any affinity to the characters being portrayed (trust me, I empathize with Star Wars / Comic book exhaustion), it's hard not to appreciate the work and dedication involved. So, with that in mind, please give yourself a deep dive into the #DragonCon2018 and #DragonCon hashtags on Instagram to get an idea of the goodness happening down there every year.

Headed down to DragonCon this weekend. It'll be a quick trip but I suspect it will be absurdly enjoyable. Watch the grams for progress as I imagine I won't be able to stop taking photos of every single thing I see.

In the meantime, here's this...

• Donut County - after many years of teasing, the game where you play a hole that swallows objects is finally available on tons of platforms, can't wait to dive in.
• My Roommate Sonic - thanks to the AV Club I also stumbled on this prior offering from Donut County creator Ben Esposito. It works as a short film but it's also a full-on game; should you want to take on the yearning roommate role yourself. There's some questionable undertones here but I have to believe there's no harmful intent.
• Cats Whiskers - maybe not that fascinating for all but lots of slo-mo cat footage, so, I'm in.
• Sandusky, Ohio Primer - I've shared this plenty previously but it broke 12,000 views this week thanks to a post on /r/listentothis. The post got yanked because "Chris Farley" was in the title and the video isn't really a song as much as it's a Hello but, regardless, I'm very pleased to see the view count get there. Also, our first Troll comment. Great stuff.
• My Bad - don't interrupt a conversation.
• Playing Pokemon Blue - tiny endurance challenge to patiently wait through the beginning but it's an amusing payoff.

If you're desperate for something more, check this short film SwanSong featuring Noel Fielding - not an incredibly upbeat offering but good to see the Mighty Boosh star doing some more dramatic interpretations.

Personal news, I finally finished my taxes this week. Impressive, no? It's only August.

As a celebratory release for us all, enjoy the following:

• Wednesday Finale - I've probably posted too many of these videos but this is the last one. As in, the last one to be made. ZimoNitrome made one of these every week for a year. Insane. The Internet thanks you.
• Paul Flart Loses His Job - this requires a little context. First, know that Paul Flart is a Security Guard who has been documenting his farts for six months. It's not particularly entertaining but he did it. He also gets fired for it since he posted each one online. The firing is the best part, hands down.
• One Man Band in Prague - gets me every time.
• /r/Zoomies Compilation - I love a good Zoomie and 12 minutes of them is even better.
• Quichenight - Marijuana User - in case you missed this live performance from Quichenight that Bryan made happen, here it is again. Love this song.
• We'll All Have a Snack - I'll take it.
• Rappin' Rodney - Endurance Challenge. How much Rodney Dangerfield rapping can you take? I'm guessing the answer is: Not Much.
• Alien Invasion - look, I know this is as basic as it gets - a prank scare compilation - but that alien is just too perfect.

Need a tiny bit more? Enjoy this. Disturbing but perfect.

Stop what you're doing and load up Enhance.computer - a CSI style web game in which you try to locate a secret code inside of an image, using your voice. Commands like "Zoom In" and "Enhance" - spoken aloud - are the name of the game. It's best played in a busy office or co-working space where everyone will look at you like an absolute loon. via Kottke.

• Howdy Partner - Howdy Partner!
• T.O.P - DOOM DADA - this week I was slowly introduced to some proper K-Pop. It's kinda great.
• Hotline Bling: SVU - an absolutely stupid mashup. It barely works. Actually, it's hard to say it "works" at all! I watched the whole thing.
• Howie Mandel - "Watusi" - I'm sorry but if I have to know this exists, you have to know this exists.
• 28" Cheese Pizza Challenge - this mountain of a man eats an entire 28" pizza by himself. Sadly, there's no crazy turn of events like a 10-minute barfing or even major sweats. He just eats the whole thing no problem. I was transfixed in the worst way.
• Noice - your reminder that Weird Internet hasn't gone anywhere.
• Your Best Metal Scream - 7 minutes of people attempting to perform a legit metal scream. It's long but lots of amusing results along the way.

Have a great weekend. Take a deep dive into Vent Haven, the museum where ventriloquist dummies go to die. HT Forest.

As an uplifting inverse to the unhappy panda dog shown above, please enjoy this zoomer. Alternatively, I was going to use this but just couldn't resist that sulking dog.

Distractions!

• Running the Wednesdays - we've seen ZimoNitrome's work before but this is above and beyond what's come before.
• Da Shuhua: Molten Iron Fireworks - not a funny or absurd video but a fascinating one. Spend the necessary 3 minutes to enjoy this.
• Travis Scott - Stop Trying to be God - I'm on the fence about the song but the video is perfectly bonkers. Sometimes subtle, sometimes insanely over the top and paced just right with its reveals. If you feel yourself getting bored, just jump to 1:28, you'll get it.
• Phantastic Ferniture - Dark Corner Dance Floor - have really been enjoying everything I'm hearing from them lately. Album is great too.
• Smashing Pumpkins - "Bodies" with Chino Moreno - I hesitate to post this because I question Billy Corgan's politics... but I'm a Chino fan and it's an enjoyable version of this song. Can't help but enjoy it. There's a bunch of guest performances from this show, so I do recommend clicking through to the videos from that user.

Have a great weekend! Watch out for kids.

I actually took this week off of work to focus on personal projects and to clear my head from the daily stress. I don't think I've done such a thing in years and it felt great. Full stop, loved it.

I also had our foster kitten in the office with me and, lemme tell ya, kittens are mischevious. Who knew?

• Joe Walsh - Life's Been Good - I can't tell if this is an absolute trainwreck of a drunken performance or if it's an intentional presentation of reluctant art. Probably the former. Those shrugs tho.
• Batman Acapella Speed Run - I'd say this is an endurance challenge to see how much you can stand but, frankly, it's pretty damn good.
• Garmfelf - at one time I would have lost it watching now; now it feels like Intro Level Internet. Escalation is a real thing.
• Washing the Jeep - ... that being said, I think I could watch 10 hours of this and never be bored.

That's it! Short and sweet. I got things to do!

If you're feeling daring, try to watch this video on realistic faces on pies. I died.

I'm picking up a foster kitten this weekend and expect many cute things in my future. If you're in the marketing for a swell cat, get at me and we'll make it happen.

• Woo! - just enjoy it.
• Miami Sound Machine - Conga - I found myself listening to a rather dark cover of this song and it inspired me to just bathe in the glory of the original. Jump ahead a full minute to get to the goods.
• Live at Denny's - this video of a punk bands thrashing performance at Denny's may be from 2013 but it's a delightfully new treat for me.
• Party Vortex - likely the best thing at this festival.
• Larry David's speech to Steve Martin at the Mark Twain Awards 2005 - dunno how I stumbled on this but I enjoyed.
• Secret Video Game Tricks, Codes, & Strategies - Volume 1 VHS - endurance challenge. How much of this hour long video can you stand? Just try the Ikari Warriors code, the delivery is outlandishly bland given the time period and the subject matter.

Another week down, another long list of things I didn't get done yet. I really should take some time off of work work to do my other work. Do people do that? Do you vacate from work to do other work or am I infected with a work sickness that others don't feel compelled by? I'm assuming so.

Here ya go!

• Ain't No Lower Class Than TN Trash - great song, perfectly weird 70's commercial and an unbelievable headspin thinking about filming and cleaning this up. via Patrick.
• Better Call Saul, Season 4 Trailer - seems like the world of Better Call Saul is starting to merge a bit more with Breaking Bad. I like this show but will fight anyone that tries to argue it isn't slow paced.
• Jonny Marr is not thinking about Jar Jar Binks - cue this up and immediately jump to 0:37 seconds in. Overall, it's an interesting video but you really just need that one little clip and then move along.
• The Dark Knight v Burton's Batman - pretty interesting essay on the differences on the two films but, more interesting, is the similarities... of which there are surprisingly a lot.
• Majestic Cup - thematically tying it all together with some trash and a Batman reference.

Go enjoy this new podcast or dive into this album.

Big news this week with the You Drive announcement. Hot on those heels is the release of the Atlanta Monster soundtrack from Makeup and Vanity Set himself; streamable here. I had no involvement in that second one but I still endorse it fully.

Speaking of endorsing, can you throw some upvotes over here? I woulda thought this would have caught on like hotcakes over there but, turns out, I don't really understand how Reddit works at all.

I'm grateful for the weekend. How about you?

• Sad Baxter "Believe Me" - the above GIF is from this new Sad Baxter video. It's reminscent of the goofier videos the late 90's but actually sticks the landing.
• GoPro: Les 3 Vallees - generally I have zero interest in snowboarding videos but the editing and pop culture references that pop up in this one is something else.
• Elmo at the Great Philadelphia Trash Fire of 2018 - nailed it.
• Can I Have a Moment? - nailed it.
• The Graphene Promise - generally I don't post 7 minute videos on actual interesting topics here bu I was fascinated with this little piece about Graphene, thought you might be too.
• Nekrogoblikon - Dressed as Goblins - this past week I discovered that a band exists named Nekrogoblikon. Let that sink in. The music is exactly what I'd hoped for; vaguely unlistenable (to me) on a regular basis but perfectly executed for a Goblin band.
• Drunk Man Reviews Yogurt - nailed it.
• Dog Having Fun with Balloon - nothing crazy here, just a dog having a delightful time. Let's all learn from that.

You know what's weird? Having a national holiday smack in the middle of the week. It was nice to have a day off but really made for a Two Monday's kind of feeling, know what I mean? That being said, I'll take it!

• Fireworks Fail: Oh Jesus - the most classic of Fireworks fail thanks to this terrified reaction turned celebration. Gets me every time.
• Welcome to Jurassic World - when you see perfection it must be acknowledged. This is perfection.
• Hey Man, That's Why We Got This Network - don't know when this was actually made, don't care. It works.
• The US National Anthem - VOX videos are always enjoyable and this take on the US National Anthem is no different. Insightful and amusing.
• Feed Me Human - trained to do this? I'm sure. Again, don't care, it's a delight.
• Trippy Rollercoaster Ride - There's a new GoPro camera that films this spherical manner and whoever thought to bring it on a rollercoaster was a wise individual.
• Richard Swift - "The Bully" - Mr. Swift passed away this week. He was only 41. This song - paired with the next - has always been such a great summation of his talent. While there's not a video to see here, there's a hilarious story being woven. It's lo-fi, peppy and 100% enjoyable.
• Richard Swift - "beautifulheart" - This is probably a bit of a bummer to wrap up Friday Videos with but this song always gets me and I thank Richard Swift for it. If you haven't given his solo work a spin, take the time to do so.

That's it. If you need some additional distraction this weekend, I recommend watching this guy play through an SMB hack that makes Mario look like Bob Ross. Pretty fun.

This past week I flew to New York for a one day meeting and then immediately flew back the next day. I stayed at the POD Hotel in Brooklyn and I gotta tell ya, it was great. Tiny tiny room, cheap rate and excellent location. I'm sure all of Williamsburg hates that it exists but I'm giving it my full endorsement.

I digress, here's some distractions to enjoy as we roll into a holiday week.

• Don't Let It Get You Down Lyric Video - the Sandusky, Ohio hits keep rolling in. Enjoy this lyric video for one of my favorite tracks from the album.
• Coupler - Invention I - the Coupler LP Gifts from the Ebb Tide came out last November. It consists of four tracks, the last of which being a lengthy 17 minutes. However, this track is a mere four minutes and the visuals to back it up are mystifying from start to finish.
• Portugal the Man: Beavis and Butthead - somehow Portugal the Man convinced Mike Judge to bring these two idiots out of retirement for a short video to open their concerts. I'm sure it wasn't cheap but the results were worth it.
• Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Frankly, I am entirely ambivalent to a new TMNT cartoon being released but the theme song (And score) is being done by Matt Mahaffey, one of my favorite artists, so I can't help but include the new show intro. It's bombastic to say the least.
• How the Internet Works - for a proper chuckle.
• Just the Cookie - love a good edit that turns into understandable nonsense.
• Wednesday My Dudes - you know that feeling when you discover an entirely new Meme and it has a massive repository of insane videos to go along with it? Yea, this is that.
• The Shining: Cut Take - the Internet is stupid and I love it.

Every week when I write this little intro for Friday Videos I go through three or four drafts in which I apologize for not having enough free time to really cruise the Internet and find weird and random stuff. I almost always delete those apologies because who wants to some sad sack talk about how little time he has to waste?

Anyway, I do my best. I hope you enjoy. We all deserve a break.

• Welcome to Sandusky, Ohio - this is the intro video that Dave made to explain his concept album, Sandusky, Ohio. Watch it, I think you'll become smitten with the project.
• Bjork - Mutual Core - I don't think I've really enjoyed a Bjork song in at least ten years. However, her videos continue to impress. I'm loving whatever this insanely weird thing is.
• New Man - Maybe I'm Feelin' Fine - what's that? With all this Dave Paulson talk you forgot that New Man was announced as a yk Records artist and released a ridiculous video? No excuses now.
• Devil Can't Write No Love Songs - as I mentally obsess over the Garth Brooks / Chris Gaines countdown, it's good to see that old sketches from his original episode are available. This interaction with Will Ferrell as the Devil is always a treat.
• Larry King with John Mulaney - there's a whole series of interviews where Larry King plays "If You Only Knew" and rapid fire questions at his guest. This and the Nick Kroll one are certainly worth your while.
• lmk kebab - sometimes the Internet is best left unexplained.

Total honesty policy, there's no video I could show you this week that would top this thing. That's really all you need.

Here's some more, just for good measure.

• Between Two Ferns: Seinfeld + Cardi B - it's another awkward interview. Nothing particularly new here but still fun to hear what Galifianakis has to say.
• True Facts: Pangolins Posse - how zefrank turned this into a 7 and a half minute mini-doc is beyond me. Pretty great. Stay with it.
• TANK - a short film dedicated to the style and tropes of early 80's arcade games built with that vector style. No 3D modeling here, it's all After Effects and manual animation.
• Vegan Lawn Mower - because the Internet is weird and sometimes you need to be reminded of that.
• Cat Explorer - adorable and disturbing. Your favorite new "game."

Maybe watch Natalie Portman eat some ever increasing hot sauces. There's probably a fetish in there somewhere but it's also just proper entertainment. She really goes for it about 15 minutes in.

I'm not sure this experiment worked. The site feels like a Tweetstream more than a blog of any sort. I may have to rethink my approach. Regardless, it made for a less stressful week while away so maybe I can consider this a future "Vacation Mode" of sorts. I'm rambling now.

Here are some videos, enjoy the grab bag:

• Ween - Buckingham Green (Live) - this clip of Ween on Public Access TV at the height of their cocaine abuse (I assume) is one of my favorite things. It's a slow but enjoyable build.
• Calling Chiquita - here's a disturbing yet adorable clip in which an alligator frolics like a doggo.
• Squish that Cat - if you don't know Dr. Burstyn, you're welcome. He's got some pro cat handling advice.
• Violet Chachki - A Lot More Me - This music video is eleven minutes long but manages to maintain a vibe that mixes elements of David Lynch, Dave LaChapelle, Wes Anderson, Marilyn Manson and John Waters. I'm kind of stunned by the whole thing.
• The Minds Eye - hearing someone lose their mind in guffawing laughter is always infectious.
• Deja Vu Compilation - it's 10 minutes of Deja Vu. It has diminishing returns but the first few minutes are a treat.
• Dissin Your Flygirl 3.0 - this is dumb but I still watched damn near all of it. I look forward to the ten-minute long 4.0.

That's it! Have a great weekend. Here's a sloth yawning, it's unbelievably adorable.