Stuff I Learned from Having Boys: YouTube

My kids have been an education. I've learned many of the regular things you'd expect a mom of 3 boys to learn: always keep plenty of baking soda and vinegar in the house, make sure you check behind the bed for dirty underwear on laundry day, and anything can be turned into a weapon.

I've also learned a few lessons I never could have predicted. For example, there are kids who make videos while they open packages of Pokemon cards and then post those videos to YouTube. I guess the real shocker isn't so much that people make these videos, but that other people actually watch them. 

Here are a few YouTube video series I never would have heard about if it were not for my boys.

Will It Blend - Nerdy blender scientist blends all kinds of cool stuff in his pricey Blendtec blender. Stuff like an iPhone 3G, glow sticks, golf balls, a crowbar, a Wii remote--you know, stuff you really need to reduce to dust. My favorite episode is the Old Spice episode, but you really need to watch some of the other ones to understand the humor before you enjoy a bottle of Old Spice being blended. There is one thing that won't blend, however.

Is it a Good Idea to Microwave This? - In the same vein as "Will it Blend," but with young men in their 20's who either have a very forgiving mother, or who are totally destroying their frat house basement*. This show has been banned in our house because the teens use PG13 language while they hide behind a tinfoil door and watch what happens when they microwave Nerf guns, paint balls, fire crackers and more.

Fred - If you haven't seen "Hey, It's Fred," count yourself lucky. Some fourteen year old boy has created what might possibly be the most annoying character in the history of characters. Fred Figglehorn is a 6 year old boy with a helium balloon voice and a raging case of ADHD (emphasis on the H). The videos are fairly benign, until your 8 year old begins to talk like Fred. Then you have problems. Here's Fred getting a haircut. Word on the street is that Fred is getting his own movie. (Scholars of The Bible will surely recognize this as one of the signs of the apocalypse.)

The Annoying Orange - The biggest thing Annoying Orange has going for it is that it's not Fred. If Fred and the Annoying Orange ever got together it's possible the result would be an effective form of torture.

KipKay Hacks - This guy tells how to take regular stuff around the house, take it apart and put it back together to do something completely different. Make the world's loudest alarm clock, a high powered t-shirt launcher or learn how to build a laser guided sling shot.

There is one series of videos Ethan likes made by a boy who reviews different electronic gadgets with his cat puppet sidekick. They have amazing repartee.  

However, I think I've reached my limit for boy videos tonight. Jonah is still channeling Fred and I have a bit of a headache.

*I've recently learned that the microwave testing is all done outside. You can learn more by checking out the comment I received from Jonny Paula in the comments section.