[Forgive the lighter fare this week. I'm sick, so are my kids, and work is on me like media flies on what now amounts to The Jackson Four.]
In no particular order:
All-Blacks Haka — New Zealand's All-Blacks rugby team does their ritual pre-match Maori Haka. Intimidating as hell.
George Laraque v. Raitis Ivanans — Three words: "Good luck, man."
Bobby Clarke scores his 1,000th career point — I specifically remember the moment earlier in this game when Reggie Leach (who had arguably the hardest shot in hockey) struck Clarke above the eye with a deadly slapshot. Clarke did not even go down to the ice. He simply shrugged slightly, as if shaking wet hair off his forehead, and the blood began pouring down his face. He personified both the mental and physical toughness that I still aspire to, and this clip highlights his perseverance. His moment of shrugging off a puck to the face is the single toughest thing I have ever witnessed.
Harlan McCraney, Presidential Speechalist — The best thing Andy Dick will ever do in his life. Hilarious.
Secretariat runs away with the Preaknesss — (~3:20 of the video) Secretariat demands hyperbole, and I will not disappoint: He was the greatest athlete of the 20th century, and the move he made in the furlong around his first turn at Pimlico in 1973 was the most perfect and inspiring thing I have ever seen.
Lazy Sunday — The video that launched a million videos and made YouTube (and later Hulu) a household name. Still brilliant.
Rob Hisey lacrosse-style shootout goal — Mike Legg did it first, and in an actual game; Sidney Crosby's done that too; Robbie Schremp does it better; but I saw the Hisey video first, and was blown away. Amazing dangling chops.
Tiger Woods Nike commercial — Tiger's parlor trick was just stunning when I first saw it, and is no less so today. It has spawned many imitations, some of which (Ronaldinho, Freestyle) are equally Nike and equally impressive.
Battle at Kruger — Lions and water buffalo and crocs, oh my! If you're one of the three people who hasn't actually seen this, it's worth eight and a half minutes of your life to be reminded that human beings are only one of hordes of thinking creatures on this old planet.
All your base are belong to us — The single most perfect example of the power of the Internet. Simple yet brilliant, geeky yet hip, global yet communal. A spot-on, time-sucking, poorly-translated, painstakingly-executed phenomenon.
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