All Of September 2019, In One Big Post
Libra season is upon us and everything seems out of balance.
If you're reading this post, you're probably a Digg dot com reader, which means you probably generally keep up with What The Internet Is Talking About. But even the most astute news nerd can miss a major event or two. That's fine. It's good, actually. Especially if you went on a vacation or did a digital detox or something.
Still, it's important to keep up with The Story that is always unfolding in front of us, no matter how funny, exciting, depressing or infuriating it can be. Composed of some of the most trafficked, best-performing stories of the month, this One Big Post should catch you up, starting with…
September 1 — Watching Keanu Reeves Learn How To Ride A Horse In 'John Wick 3' Is So Darn Wholesome
Man, we love Keanu Reeves. He's showed up — either due to a viral profile or a simple, sharable moment — on a handful of One Big Posts this year, and September is no different.
We began September of this year by watching this featurette of Mr. Reeves get back on the horse for "John Wick 3" training, and it is absolutely delightful. Watch that right here and enjoy a truly likable celebrity in a time when those are in scarce supply.
September 4 — Up Close With The Taycan, Porsche's First Electric Car
When we write (and think!) about tech, a lot of space is given to Silicon Valley companies with names lacking vowels that were founded after the turn of the millennium. But the place where tech so frequently creates change for the better is in industries and companies that have been around for decades. That is plainly visible in this Sean O'Kane profile on Porsche's new all-electric Taycan.
In a month where Swedish teen Greta Thunberg appeared before Congress to beg world leaders to do something about climate change, it's slightly comforting to know that a huge company that has shown such reckless disregard for the environment as Volkswagen is dumping tons of money into making an electric car that rich people will actually think is cool.
Here's O'Kane:
You could call the Porsche Taycan a lot of things. It's the tip of the spear for parent company Volkswagen's larger, multibillion-dollar push into electric vehicles. It, perhaps, is a sort of penance for the automaker's role in the larger Volkswagen emissions cheating scandal, Dieselgate. Some will call it a worthy Tesla competitor, while others might improperly call it a Tesla killer. In Canada this week, Porsche called the Taycan "daring," and said the company's goal was to build the "greatest electric car the world has ever seen."
The Taycan isn't wholly any of those things. But it appears to be a little bit of all of them.
Oh, and by the way, here's the car:
Looks like Porsche might have actually pulled it off, because that car looks hella cool.
September 6 — Singing The 'Friends' Theme In Minor Key Transforms It Into An Intense Ballad
You probably never noticed that the lyrics to "I'll Be There For You" by the Rembrandts are fairly melancholy. That's mainly because the '90s alt rock pop song that became the theme for the NBC sitcom superhit "Friends" is really, well, poppy.
Musician and YouTuber Chase Holfelder stripped the pop right out of that bad boy with his minor key cover, and it is absolutely mesmerizing. If you've ever seen "Friends," hit the play button on this piece of content and see how it makes you feel. We have an inclination you won't be laughing.
September 9 — The Wildlife Photographer Of The Year Finalists Are Stunning
Everyone loves a good photography contest, and every year London's Natural History Museum puts on one of the absolute best. The finalists for this year's Wildlife Photographer Of The Year Awards are simply fascinating to stare at. Rest your gaze on this precocious raccoon in "Lucky Break" by Jason Bantle.
If man's relationship with nature isn't already on the top of your mind after seeing the way at least one rodent interacts with an old beat-up Ford, then please allow Matthew Ware's "Beach waste" to knock you over.
See more finalists here.
September 12 — Watch A Tesla Model S Set The Record For Fastest Lap At Laguna Seca
Laguna Seca is a racetrack in California where the world's speediest vehicles can test their mettle. You might recognize it, it's been featured in countless racing video games, as well as the movie "Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo".
This clip, however, is from real life. Earlier this month, Tesla posted a video to its official YouTube channel of its Model S car posting the fastest ever Laguna Seca lap time for an electric production vehicle.
[Tesla]
Many of the record holders for production vehicles with combustion engines have been set by Porsches. So here's my question: how long will it be until that beautiful Taycan we saw earlier is racing against the Model S for the crown of the fastest lap? Not soon enough.
September 13 — MoviePass Shuts Down, With Parent Company Citing Failure to Raise Funds
There have been so many scams. Any number of stories could slot right here. Sports Illustrated's investigation into professional athlete leech "Peggy". The Tampa Bay Times' expose on the Vegas telemarketer redirecting donations to cancer patients to his own pocket. New York Mag's seminal story detailing the exploits of thief and Instagram influencer Caroline Calloway, as told by her ghostwriter Natalie.
But MoviePass is the scam we're talking about at this exact moment. We at Digg have slowly told the story of MoviePass through headlines and excellent aggregated writing over the past few years. We even wrote about it ourselves. Now, that story is done. MoviePass is bankrupt and shutting down. It couldn't make money, and no one who had money wanted to help it keep trying.
MoviePass is a curious story because the victims of the scam were unilateral. Venture capitalists had their cash drained and users had their prices gauged. Now, even in death, it is being made to pay for those sins. From Todd Spangler's story in Variety:
MoviePass parent company Helios and Matheson is being investigated by the New York Attorney General, which is looking into whether the company misled investors. The company also is the target of a class-action lawsuit by MoviePass subscribers claiming the change in the "unlimited" plan was a deceptive "bait-and-switch" tactic.
[Variety]
September 14 — Musician Plays 'System Of A Down' On A Very Tiny Set Of Drums
Slightly less serious, Digg's Facebook followers went nuts for this very silly and fun video of a tiny drumset covert of System Of A Down's nu metal classic, "Toxicity." Enjoy:
September 14 — This High School Dance Team's 'Avengers' Dance Routine Is The Best Thing You'll See Today
A little silliness back to back, this video of an Arizona High School dance troupe performing a completely stellar "Avengers"-inspired routine. Mild spoilers for the "Avengers" to follow, but if you weren't one of the 100 million people who saw "Endgame" earlier this year, you don't have to be one of the 3.5 million people who watched Walden Grove High School do its thing.
September 20 — It's 'Storm Area 51' Day, And Yes, A News Camera Has Captured Someone Naruto Running
Remember back in July when a viral Facebook event declared a rebellious civilian-led attack on Area 51 to take place on the seemingly randomly selected date of September 20? Well, September 20 came and people actually showed up near Area 51 in Nevada. One news crew even caught a would-be alien investigator mid-"Naruto run," an internet in-joke easily translated to real life by leaning forward and extending the arms backward while sprinting.
It's great. Watch here:
The actual event ended more with a whimper than a bang. The Guardian reported only a handful of arrests, a missing man who was quickly found and an apology from a US military Twitter account threatening to bomb civilians with a B-2 stealth bomber. Weird stuff.
September 25 — An Octopus Changing Colors While She Dreams Is The Most Mesmerizing Thing
Did you know octopus are incredibly smart creatures? They can solve puzzles, disassemble machinery, escape from tight quarters and generally outsmart humans. A few more potpourri fun facts: they can also change colors, contort their bodies and exert more force than their body weight. They even engage in play.
It stands to reason, then, that octopus would be able to conjure up some pretty wild dreams, and scientists have confirmed that to be true. Look at this amazing video of a cephalopod so deep in slumber she rapidly changed color.
I think that's a nice note to end on.
Anyway, that was September. This was August.
Here's to October <3
Did you like this One Big Post? Did you hate it? If you have criticisms, questions, concerns or queries shoot me an email at [email protected]. Make the subject line "September 2019 Post" so I know it's real.
