Oh Japan, the Harbinger of Doom

At first I was shocked but then I realized that how is this any different than watching Britney Spears or Nickelback? It isn't different at all. Both are marketed commodities that are polished and set up in order to make everyone involved a bunch of money.

Oh Japan - why do you always have to be the harbinger of doom. And why do you always make it seem so innocent.

Insects vs Mini-Pies

I don't know who came up with this idea but I think we can all agree that is a great use of the the latest slo-mo filming technology.

Brilliant!

Tintin is coming!!!!

As I posted back in April of 2008 the Tintin movie is becoming more of a reality or at least a CGI reality. This magazine recently got an exclusive look at what is in the works.
There are a ton of big names involved in this movie (Spielberg, Peter Jackson - producers, Jamie Bell - Tintin, Andy Serkis - Capt. Haddock, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost - Thompson twins, Daniel Craig - Red Rackham). I know names don't always make a movie good but I sure hope it works out in this case.

Here are a couple screen shots from The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn.

This is one of the first Tintin books I can remember reading. Can you tell I'm excited?

Banksy on Advertising and Modern Art

The thing I hate the most about advertising is that it attracts all the bright, creative and ambitious young people, leaving us mainly with the slow and self-obsessed to become our artists.. Modern art is a disaster area. Never in the field of human history has so much been used by so many to say so little.
-Banksy (Wikiquote)

Ottawa's New Mayor

So Ottawa just voted in a new mayor today. Out of a huge group (the largest ever, I think) Jim Watson basically had to defeat the incumbent, Larry O'Brien. It was really a landslide win in the end though.

Personally, none of the candidates really spoke to me. I just want to see them take a serious look at the budget and start cutting extraneous things. We can't fund every little thing by over taxing people and then still end up in the red.

The problem with Jim Watson is that he comes from the provincial liberal party and we all know how well those guys are doing. These are the people who are subsidizing green energy by raising our energy bills 3 times. They are also instituting full day kindergarten and they almost pushed through a motion to teach little kids about sex ed. Yeah, I'd really trust the government to teach the kids about sex.

Anyway, his track record isn't so hot - so why did he get in you ask? Well it's complicated but Larry had several gaffes and really latched onto the wrong issues which Watson used against him. Watson also used the classic obama move by pushing the "change" word around.

The only plus side to these elections was that 10 new councillors were voted in which was the opposite of last time when all the incumbents were re-elected. That was, in my opinion the main reason Larry couldn't get what he wanted to get done. In my ward, Jan Harder got in again (no surprise). She is a fighter for our area which is great in many ways but she never has "cuts" on her mind. She only cares about what she can get for her constituents. I suppose there could be worse things, and people always tell me that, but I just wish these councillors could band together and cut a good bunch of programs city-wide.

So we shall see where this all goes.....

1 million fps Slo-Mo Bullet Impacts

Thanks to those awesome cameras they have now for filming stuff in ultra slo-mo for videos like Planet Earth they can now film other cool things...

This something I have always wondered about. What exactly happens when a bullet hits, well, pretty much any material. Sorry about the annoying techno music though.

The Rent Is Too Damn High Party

So this is what happens when you open up elections to everyone and their cat. This is a clip from a debate in New York for people running for Governor. This guy is unbelievable.


The video has been getting tons of views over the past week so naturally somebody had to do the awesome parody / follow up:

Climbing a 1768ft Broadcast Tower

If you want to know what it is like to climb to the top of a 1,768 ft broadcast tower but you don't want to risk your life then watch this video.

That is a job that I do not think I could do. You would think as they go higher they would be more concerned about safety but it looks like near the top they decide to forget the harness because it is too slow. Yes, too slow.

Remix the News: Part 2

A couple posts ago I listed a bunch of "music" videos that spawned from a remix of a news story by the Gregory Brothers.

Well they are at it again. Here is the original news story.


and here is the Gregory Brothers Remix:

The Best Music Video Ever!!!

I am completely serious. Nothing like this has ever been done.

Go to this website (http://www.thewildernessdowntown.com/) and you can view the latest Arcade Fire video for the song "We Used to Wait" off of their latest album 'Suburbs' (which is amazing).

I found it really intense and it becomes very personal. So amazing.

Especially if you grew up in the suburbs.

Oh and I almost forgot. You need the Google Chrome browser to make this work. If you don't have it you are seriously missing out. If you don't have it and you also like The Arcade Fire then there is no question that you simply have to download it now and watch this video.

The Bed Intruder Video Evolution

If you have been living under an internet rock over the past couple weeks you may have missed this latest internet meme. So I will attempt to keep you up to date because it keeps getting funnier.

Here is the original video which is actually quite serious:


Then some guys added some auto-tune and introduced music and voila, a the bed intruder song:


They invited everybody to do parodies of it and people responded instantly

The indie-folk version:


The piano version:


The Japanese guitar version:


And naturally the full band version:

The Video Website ('Social Network' Parody)

Maybe you have heard of that Facebook Movie that's coming out soon. Well here is the movie about the founding of Youtube:

This one was put together by the same guys who did the Wes Anderson Spider-Man trailer which is pretty epic too.

Darth Vader and the Holy Grail

This is so awesome since it puts together two of the best movies ever:
This is Darth Vader on his first job after switching to the Dark Side.

Making Fun of TV MegaChefs

Here is a Youtube chef poking fun at TV Megachefs while showing us how to boil an egg.

She has got all the bases covered.

Behold: Our new Pancake Flipping Overlords!

Watch and be scared as this robot learns how to flip a pancake.

A robot learning to flip pancakes from Sylvain Calinon on Vimeo.

It's only a matter of time before they learn how to do other things.....

Maybe in an Alternate Universe

After our crazy episode yesterday while trying to watch the Netherlands and Spain battle it out for the World Cup I would have loved to be reading this in the evening.

And apparently I could have because good ol' CBS news had posted this and left it up for several hours after the game ended.

Just think, I could have been under the assumption that Oranje beat out Roja for the World Cup title if all I had read was this pre-written article congratulating The Netherlands for defeating Spain “by a score of SCORE to SCORE”

Representing my Roots

I recently received an awesome little package in the mail from a close relative on Irene's side of the family in Holland.
I can now represent the Netherlands whenever I'm driving. I've always wanted these Euro-stickers even though they are not being used in Europe anymore. Of course trends always take several years to change on this side of the pond.


Thanks Ina!

District 11 in Joburg: With Football Fans

Here is the original trailer for District 9 the movie (which is actually pretty good).

But this is phenomenal! If you have seen the movie you will LOVE this spoof trailer which ties in world cup fans to the alien presence in the movie.

Spoofs
Tags: Atom.com,Atom Originals,Atom Blog,Upload Videos

So Awesome!

Lenny Kravitz randomly joins a Choir in New Orleans

Lenny Kravitz was something I listened to back in High School but he still has a bit of that cool factor. Now imagine if he randomly walked up to your choir and joined in with singing one of his most well known songs.

He was just sitting up on a terrace in New Orleans having a drink, and he heard the First Baptist Church in Lewisville’s The Voice of Praise Choir singing “Fly Away” so of course he joined them.

Devastation from Earthquake in Toronto!

Thanks to Fred.

Don't hold your iPhone like that!

Some interesting news coming out about the iPhone recently. The latest iteration seems to have issues when you hold it a specific way. It just so happens that it is the most comfortable way to hold the thing.

Check out this hilarious article which shows Steve Jobs telling people to just "not hold it that way". This is a serious problem for Apple because you can't fix it with some software patch. I don't know how it would have got past their testing stage.

But apparently this is the best way to hold the new iPhone:

Thank you Yoda!

Thank You, Internet

Has anybody else heard of this Zach Anner guy? Apparently, he posted a video on Oprah's website to pitch a TV show for a contest she was financing. Thanks to on-line voting and the power of forums like Reddit and Digg his pitch is now in the lead by a good margin.

Here is a video of his thanks to the internet.


What a funny guy!

Go Holland!!!

I'm out to watch the Dutch play Cameroon this afternoon.

But has anybody else noticed the vuvuzela button on youtube yet?

In honor of that I present my favorite vuvuzela photoshoped picture yet.....

Oh Maradona - I know you will probably win it too. What a punk.

Fresh Prince of Middle Earth

Some guy doing an Ian McKellen impression of the Fresh Prince intro. Does it get any better than this?

This guy is good!

You're Gonna Miss Me - Lulu and the Lampshades

This must take insane coordination skills and pretty good voices too.

How do you even get into something like this?

Slo-Mo of Fastest Animals on Earth

Here is an awesome BBC video of some of the fastest animals on earth. They have slowed down the speed and the effect is pretty cool.

The most impressive thing I found was that the water essentially boils just before the snail gets hit. Incredible.

Serious Weather Stuff

If you want to see what golf ball/baseball sized hail looks like - check out this video. It will blow your mind at around the 1 minute mark. I'd hate to see what your car looks like after this.

Is it just me or is the only really annoying part about this video the guy saying 'I've never seen anything like this before'. But I guess it's true - I've never seen anything like that before either.

Eyjafjallajokull

If you want to see an epic video of the Icelandic volcano set to some epic music then watch this one:

Iceland, Eyjafjallajökull - May 1st and 2nd, 2010 from Sean Stiegemeier on Vimeo.

It is a time-lapse video by Sean Stiegemeier set to a tune by Jonsi of Sigur Ros called Kolniður. I have always wanted to go to Iceland - now I do even more.

Ironing Man

I can't wait for Ironing Man 2!!!!

Star Wars Day

Apparently May 4th is the unofficial Star Wars Day. Since I found this out on May 5th I am posting this video a little late in honor of yesterday.

If you have never watched Star Wars then you can watch this as it covers the complete first trilogy in about 2 minutes. It should give you enough to carry a quick conversation with the average Star Wars fan.

Working on the Vespa

A couple weeks ago I decided to switch the rear tire and change the oil on the bike.

It went pretty well except I relearned that having the right tools makes every job more enjoyable. It would be nice to own a tool store......

A New Niece

This is a little late but I now have a new niece named Julia!

And here is her sister Elyssa looking all rock-star.

She has to walk around at night with sunglasses on and an umbrella even if it's barely raining (I wonder if she got the umbrella thing from Irene).

Earlier in the spring we had started to notice that a piece of soffit on our shed was starting to come off. I couldn't really think of why but it seemed to be slowly coming off more and more. There also seemed to be something coming out.

So when I finally got to check it out I realized that it was a pinecone jammed in the soffit. But as I started to pull it out I realized that there was several pinecones. They were totally jammed in there and I had to peel off the wood to get them out.

So I started to pull them out and I ended up with this crazy pile. My guess is that some squirrel stuffed the soffit with them in the fall and they all expanded in the warm spring weather.

That is my exciting life.

The Wheel of Death

I have never really had any real desire to see Cirque de Soliel but after seeing this video my mind has officially been blown. This is some serious acrobatics.

Yeah I think I'd want to go see that live too.

If that vid doesn't work you can go here.

The Most Useless Machine Ever

If this pic doesn't work - you can see it here.

Conversations with Jehovah's Witnesses

I recently have been having a few conversations with the Jehovah's Witnesses. They have come to my house 3 times in the last couple weeks so I must really be in their system.

Anyway, the big opening line was "Do all good people go to heaven?" to which I said "No" and then they launched into this talk about the new heaven and new earth. I had never thought about the fact that it was mentioned that way and so they had their opening to try and prove to me that there is going to be this separation. But it was all quite vague and I kept trying to push them to see what the main point of their argument was.

I was also insinuating that whatever eternal life is going to be like I did not think that it was a salvation issue and therefore what is your point with this argument. They kept claiming that it was important to study the Bible to see what it really said and since we both agreed the Bible is the final authority then whatever it says must be important to know. Therefore if it said there was a new heaven and new earth then we should know that.

So I said I would look into it and talk to people at my Bible study. This didn't really happen and so I brushed it off like everyone else when I mentioned it at Bible study. Basically you can't argue with people who have their own customized version of the Bible. But it was still eating at me because there has to be an answer as to whether they are right or wrong regardless of if I think it is a salvation issue.

So I searched online and this video popped up. This guy gets to the heart of the matter and really shows what they were working towards with me. It is just a simple funny conversation that demonstrates what they really believe about the final authority of the scriptures.

Water Consumption vs Gold Medal Game

Here is an awesome graph showing water consumption in Edmonton during the gold medal hockey game a couple weeks ago. I wonder if some people's toilets refilled a little slower than usual although you can guarantee that nobody would have been to concerned about that at the time.

Can't you just imagine a whole nation of people holding it in till the end of the period?

Look: I'm on Google Streetview!

I knew I was going to be on Google Maps Streetview. I just noticed that they posted North Kanata so I immediately checked and there ya go!


View Larger Map

I remember this happening because I was about to put my helmet on and then I saw this car going by with a huge round thing sticking out the roof. I caught on pretty quick though I am sure it was after this picture was taken.

Here is the first picture:
Here is my reaction in the second picture....

Yeah pretty lame - I wish I struck some sort of crazy pose. This is taken outside my office by the way. Doesn't the Vespa make the office look stellar?

Fleet Foxes in Stop Motion

This is a fantastic little home made stop-motion video that my brother made for my other brother for Christmas. He bought him the cd, made him a custom case and then made this video.

Given that he has never done a video like this before I think it turned out pretty awesome. All the artwork was done by hand and then photographed and then adjusted in Photoshop. Also it helps that the song is one of the best modern indie folk songs out there. It is called 'Blue Ridge Mountains' and was written by one of the members about his love for his brother.

A Book Club Update

Yes I have finally joined a book club. I actually joined it late last year when a friend set it up. I have always wanted to do this to force me to read interesting books and then get some great discussion out of it.

The result has been pretty good so far. My favourite book picks have got to be 'Brave New World' (because it was such a defining book for me when growing up), some short stories by Franz Kafka (for the word Kafkaesque) and 'My Name is Asher Lev' (for the great discussion about art and other stuff). That last book really turned out some far better conversation than I expected. If you haven't read it and you are interested in art and artists this is simply put a must-read.

The next book we are reading is more of a return to traditional book club books I think. I am a little torn as to whether or not I will like 'Shantaram' by Gregory David Roberts. I mean I know I will like the book because it is one of those exciting books that spans continents, has interesting characters and has lots of action. But will it make me think the way those other books did? Does it have the same lasting presence? And what's with the author's weird spiritualism which feels like a cross between Hulk Hogan and Madonna's personal religions.

Well I guess there is only one way to find out......read it.

20 Interesting Apartments

Here is a great list of cool/strange/wierd apartments of the world. Just as a side note can you guess which album features these neat honeycomb buildings on the cover?

Why am I blogging about a rapper?

This has got to be a first. I have never posted a rap/hip-hop video or even blogged about it from what I can remember. However here is a Canadian rapper who has been making the rounds on the CEEB and seems to be getting more popular. What is separates him from all the other mainstream rap is his lyrics and attitude. I can't stand the rapping about getting shot and drugs and pimps. It is such a strange culture to be glorifying. This guy is totally down to earth and this song really shows it. Basically he is talking down on how mainstream rap music (at least partially) has created a new form of blaxploitation which has just been encouraged by the average black rapper. Now I can never say something like that because I am as white as they come. I mean I listen to indie-folk and read Kafka. So I really have no credibility.

Shad, however, has much more credibility. Take a listen:

Here are the lyrics Brother (Watching) by Shad:

I try to hold some hope in my heart
For these African youths
Coming up where im from
Many traps to elude
Surrounded by
Mostly white and affluent dudes
And somehow, you expected to have
Mastered this smooth
Swagger and move
With the right walk, the right talk
Fashion and crews
Souls subtly attacked and abused
And whats funny's being black wasn't cool
Where im from til suddenly
you started hearing rap in the school
Hallways
Admist this madness I grew
With knack for amusing through this little skill
For rappin at dudes
An' we all like to laugh at the truth
But when you young and same facts
Pertain to who you rappin em to
Well, I opted not to bring
That to the booth
But after a while, it sort of starts naggin at you
The crazed infatuation with blackness
That trash that gets viewed
And the fact that the tube only showed blacks
Actin the fool and I was watching...

(saturated with negative images and a limited range of
Possibilities is strange...)

And its sad cuz that naturally do
Sort of condition your mind and over time
That's whats attractive to you
So young blacks don't see themselves in
Scholastic pursuits
Or the more practical routes
Its makin tracks or its hoops
Or God-forbid movin packs for the loot
Even with this music we so limited - its rap or produce
And that narrow conception of whats black isn't true
Of course, still we feel forced to adapt to this view
Like theres something that youre havin to prove
Now add that to the slew
Of justification the capitalists use
For the new blaxploitation
Many actions excused
In the name of getting cash
That's adversely impactin our youth
With mental slavery, the shackles is loose
And its hard to cut chains when they attached at the roots
So what the new black activists do
For our freedom is just being them
Do what youre passionate to
Not confined by a sense that you have to disprove
Any stereotypes, so-called facts to refute
Or match any image of blackness
They've established as true
Perhaps we'll break thru the glass ceilings
Shatter the roof and emerge
From these boxes that they have us in cooped
And grow to smash the bold that they casted of you
I'll keep watching...

3rd Annual Enjoyment Awards

It is the new year and although it started more than a month ago I figure that I should continue my annual tradition which was started in 2007 and miraculously also happened for 2008. So this is my most enjoyed random stuff of 2009.
Once again, I am not confining my list to music and it is not necessarily only from this year. My list is all about the stuff I got the most enjoyment out of in 2009.
Anyways, here it is:

My most enjoyed artist of 2009 was:
I gotta say Bon Iver. His album came highly recommended to me and I definitely did not regret spending the money on that one.

Some runners up were Sufjan Stevens (of course - after seeing him live), Joel Plaskett and Andrew Bird.

My most enjoyed album of 2009 was:
It is a 3-way tie between 'Noble Beast' by Andrew Bird, 'For Emma, Forever Ago' by Bon Iver and Joel Plaskett's album 'Three'.

Some runners up:
Jenn Grant - 'Echoes'
Great Lake Swimmers - 'Lost Channels'
M. Ward - 'Transistor Radio' and 'Post-War'
The Welcome Wagon - 'Welcome to the Welcome Wagon'

My most enjoyed compilation album of 2009 was:
'Dark Was the Night' which features Sufjan, Iron & Wine, Bon Iver, My Brightest Diamond and Canadians Feist, Arcade Fire and Buck 65 (among many others). It was put together mostly by the guys from The National as an AIDS benefit album. If there is one indie album you should buy this year it is this one because it gives you a great slice of the sounds and bands who are really doing cool stuff right now.

My most enjoyed song of 2009 was:
I always find this one so tough because it bounces around so much. I have to make a list:
'In the Blue Moonlight' - Joel Plaskett
'Tough City' - Oh Susanna!
'You'll Go Far' - Jenn Grant
'White Winter Hymnal' - Fleet Foxes
'Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa' - Vampire Weekend
and so many more.....

My most enjoyed live performance of 2009 was:
Sooooooo many to choose from! Joel Plaskett, Jenn Grant, Sufjan Stevens. Nope I can't really choose between those three.
The spring was a good time for concerts in Ottawa.

My most enjoyed Local Band (Greater Ottawa Area) of 2009 was:
I guess I haven't got into to many local bands this year but as far as Canadian Indie acts go I'd have to pick Octoberman and Dan Mangan - and both have strong ties to the west coast.

My most enjoyed music venue of 2009 was:
It's a tough choice between the First Baptist Church downtown and the Black Sheep Inn out in Wakefield. I'm going to the Church again in a few weeks to see Basia Bulat so maybe that will make up my mind.

My most enjoyed quote of 2009 was:
"I've downloaded hundreds of records....why would I care someone downloads ours? That is such a petty thing to care about. I mean, how much money does one person need?"- Robin Pecknold of Fleet Foxes when asked when asked whether he minded if people 'stole' his albums.

My most enjoyed beer of 2009 was:
Well I have enjoyed Beau's Lug Tread several times this year and thoroughly enjoyed it. Here is a picture of me enjoying said beer!

My most enjoyed TV show of 2009 was:
Firefly. I know it was made several years ago but I didn't get to watch it until this year. I absolutely love it. Don't think you have to be a sci-fi nerd to watch it either.

Also, I can't remember if I watched Battlstar Galactica this year or last year. It should be a close tie.

My most enjoyed movie of 2009 was:
Maybe the Where the Wild Things Are adaptation. It was pretty cool.

Maybe Serenity, because the finale to that Firefly series sure is better after you watch the series.

My most enjoyed proud uncle moment was:

When my neice, Elyssa, got over her fear of the Vespa (if even for an afternoon) at the Nepean Sailing Club!

My most enjoyed technology of 2009 was:
The continuing world domination by Google which just so happens to be extremely convenient for me since I use almost all their products.

Or maybe the news that foreign owned cellphone companies are coming to Canada. Hopefully I can get the Google Nexus One!!!!

My most enjoyed purchase of 2009:
The new kitchen even though it isn't done yet.

My most enjoyed city of 2009 was:
Kingston, ON Canada - Lots of history, tons of awesome restaurants, small enough to walk around, big enough to spend money on the downtown. Yes I was impressed. Don't judge it by the view you get from the 401.

I have to say that Memphis could have won this. Maybe if I spent more time there and got a better feel for the city.
The other close second had to be Boston. That is definitely a city I could live in (if I could afford it) if not drive in. The roads are insane - almost as bad (read: awesome) as an old European city - but there is lots of beautiful coastal spots and some fantastic architecture. Kingston just won because I really felt like I understood the city after staying there. Boston would take a little longer - must go back!

My most enjoyed architecture of 2009:

It has got to be MIT in Cambridge by Canadian Frank Gehry.

My most enjoyed book of 2009:

It was probably 'Brave New World' by Auldous Huxley which we read for our book club. I have read it before but getting to discuss it was just fantastic.

Other than that I'd have to say 'Name of the Wind' by Patrick Rothfuss which is a remarkably well written fantasy story that I picked up on a whim on my way home from Memphis. I say remarkable because usually fantasy books are not all that well written.

Either way this year promises to be great for reading thanks to the Jubilee Book Club I joined.

My most enjoyed Jubilee Church event of 2009:

Probably the Soup'n'Socks initiative that we have going on right now. We run around downtown handing out free soup and socks to anyone who needs it (especially homeless people).

My most enjoyed news item of 2009:

Climategate.

My most enjoyed sport of 2009:
Definitely snowboarding, I don’t have any other regular sports.

Most enjoyed website of 2009:
Definitely xkcd but Neatorama is pretty close. Yup, I'm a geek.

And last but not least my most enjoyed person of 2009 was:
Irene - she wins it again!?! incredible!!!! I'm sensing a trend, is this rigged you think?

Foolishly Seeking True Love

Here is a great short film in the vein of 'Happenstance' or even that other Audrey Tautou film 'Amelie'. It has the fantastic narrator who almost seems to influence the story. It has the that subdued bit of humour. And it has that class that comes only from something foreign (or at least non-hollywood). So if you are a huge fan of Transformers don't bother watching this. :)

Foolishly Seeking True Love from Jarrett Lee Conaway on Vimeo.

For anybody with kids.....

This animated short is for anybody with kids but it's maybe not quite for the kids themselves. It is about Gary who doesn't want to go through the door....

Get Out
by Esma-Movie

Very well done!

Another Epic Animal Battle

This clip is brilliantly narrated and has some fantastic slo-mo footage. It isn't for the squeamish kiddies though - it is a full on massacre. Thirty Japanese hornets take on a nest of 30 000 European honeybees and destroy it.

If you want to know more about this insect you can check it out on Wikipedia of course.

Some interesting facts:

• These things can and will chase you for 3 miles.
• Each year in Japan the human death toll exceeds that of all venomous and non-venomous animals combined.
• It's body length is approx. 2" and the wingspan is 3"
• The Japanese honeybees have a defense mechanism in which they swarm the hornet and heat it up while pumping CO2 at them which kills them.
• The European honeybees (which have been imported into Japan) do not do this at all and are consequently destroyed.

The Earthquake in Haiti

Our thoughts and prayers are with the people in this country and especially the workers I know who are labouring to make it a better place. This will be an especially troubled time for an already troubled country.

Click here for the latest news from Coram Deo's Adoration School.

To donate to the Adoration School which has collapsed you can click here. (via Paypal)

Google vs China

Here is the story of the day (other than the Haiti earthquake). Apparently Google is threatening to pull out of China. WOW. What would that mean?

Think about this for a second. A company that is acting like a government. That is really what this has come to. This really shows how much clout Google actually has. They are claiming that the final straw was a hack of their servers that was designed to spy on human rights movements in China. If it's true than more power to 'em I guess.

Either way it will be very interesting to see how this transpires......

Photo thanks to Chris.

Dump Truck vs Sail Boat

I don't know what this best demonstrates.....

Is it the ingenuity or daring of the Haitian workers? Is it the incredible ability of the sailboat? Either way this is pretty neat.