Videos on 🌲 mattmcq.me

Listers: A Glimpse Into Extreme Birdwatching

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 09:15:44 -0500

Why Movies Just Don't Feel "Real" Anymore

Fri, 30 Jan 2026 15:15:46 -0500

The War on Privacy

Sat, 24 Jan 2026 12:59:30 -0500

Of Monsters and Men

Wed, 03 Dec 2025 19:17:21 -0500

I have really gotten into the album My Head Is an Animal this year. I was pleased to find The Cabin Sessions, recorded ten years after the album came out.

Podcast with Chase Reeves

Sat, 06 Sep 2025 16:57:28 -0400

I’ve been a long time Chase Reeves fan through his YouTube channel as he has coached me through important bag and shoe decisions. He does this all with a very authentic and engaging spirit. This podcast gets into some good religious and spiritual territory that I can’t disagree with. This is definitely somebody I’d have a coffee with.

The Revenge of Analog Documentary

Thu, 23 Jan 2025 13:50:11 -0500

Before He was Bill Nye the Science Guy

Sun, 05 Jan 2025 18:38:42 -0500

Before he was Bill Nye the Science Guy, he was a regular on Almost Live, a local variety show in Seattle when I was a kid.

Yacht Rock

Thu, 02 Jan 2025 10:34:30 -0500

Last night we watched the Yacht Rock Dockumentary on HBO. This was recommended by a friend who knows we enjoy listening to Yacht Rock on SiriusXM. I learned quite a bit about this genre, but also it really gave me joy to watch.

https://www.yachtornyacht.com/

Making a Switch

Sat, 30 Nov 2024 07:38:40 -0500

There is something satisfying about making something you need, and making it well.

Apple Intelligence Review

Wed, 20 Nov 2024 16:04:52 -0500

I have come to the same conclusion on Apple’s ads as this reviewer did. I find this so well articulated. I’m sure Apple will improve their AI offering over time, but this was an absolute advertising failure in my opinion.

Predictive vs Radical Theory

Tue, 19 Nov 2024 10:09:06 -0500

From Cal Newport’s podcast, he discusses books he has read. In this 20 minute clip about On Settler Colonialism by Adam Kirsch, Cal discusses a useful framework of academic theory - Predictive Theory vs Radical Theory.

Yuval Noah Harari on our AI Future

Tue, 12 Nov 2024 10:55:17 -0500

There is a lot to unpack from this podcast with Yuval Noah Harari. He has a new book out entitled Nexus: A Brief Hisotry of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI which I shall be adding to my to-read list.

Interesting topics that resonate with me

What is AI
What is intelligence versus consciousness
What is information versus truth
How does this apply to government and institutions

How Sicario Fools Its Audience

Wed, 14 Feb 2024 09:42:00 -0500

An analysis of one of the better films made in the past twenty years.

We are all People

Wed, 14 Feb 2024 09:42:00 -0500

Every time I hear the word “people”, I can’t help but think of this from Flight of the Conchords.

An Ode to Lotions, Creams, and Salves

Wed, 31 Jan 2024 20:05:10 -0500

I was cleaning the bathroom and as I was attempting to clean the counter around the wife’s sink, the slightest touch would knock down endless bottles of lotions. I started picking them up and more fell over like a chain reaction of carefully balanced bottles. I had to ask my spouse why so many almost empty bottles. Does she need new ones? Can we consolidate? Why is this happening to me?

The many lotions she requires to keep her life force maintained reminded me of this…

Jackie Chan and What Is Possible

Wed, 31 Jan 2024 20:05:10 -0500

When I was a teen, I stumbled across a British series called The Incredibly Strange Film Show. I remember watching all of them and learning about John Waters and George Romero, but it was one episode in particular that captured my attention - Jackie Chan. What was amazing to me was how he had dedicated his entire life to bringing his brand of martial arts choreography to the screen. The athleticism and dedication gave me a clear sense of what is possible.

Great Discussion for Men

Wed, 03 Jan 2024 15:40:58 -0500

Running Sucks

Wed, 20 Dec 2023 10:08:24 -0500

Don't Think, Just Do

Sat, 02 Dec 2023 20:33:01 -0500

I never seek flow in getting things done, I always seek detachment from my monkey mind and just executing on what is in front of me. That is when I am most productive. I do not worry about the order of what needs to be done or the steps to do it or the time it may take or how I might feel. I just pick up the next task and execute. I use a notebook where I will identify the top three most important tasks followed by a running lists of todo’s that come up. Once the most important tasks are complete, if I am smart, I will just pick up the next todo without thinking much about which one should be prioritized.

Running Sucks

Wed, 29 Nov 2023 16:02:05 -0500

The Marginalian

Mon, 27 Nov 2023 08:56:12 -0500

In catching up on various newsletters, this caught my eye. I am still trying to figure out my footing on the Marginalian newsletter, but I am warming up to it.

The object of human communication is not the exchange of information but the exchange of understanding.

Punctuality by Van Neistat

Wed, 18 Oct 2023 15:54:51 -0400

8 Steps to Unf-ck Your Life

Wed, 20 Sep 2023 10:37:18 -0400

In Awe of the Legendary James Brown

Wed, 06 Sep 2023 13:18:32 -0400

Welcome to the Internet

Wed, 09 Aug 2023 09:25:50 -0400

I think I watch this about three or four times per year. It’s humorous and tragic and defines exactly why the modern internet is so awful.

Indiana Jones in Black & White

Wed, 26 Jul 2023 11:53:20 -0400

This video explores what makes Spielberg a good filmmaker via Raiders of the Lost Ark.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItbCLh4Auoo

Overwhelming and Collective Murder

Wed, 12 Jul 2023 10:02:28 -0400

The incomparable Werner Herzog talking about the Amazon jungle:

Bringing a Bag of Pancakes Onto a Flight

Tue, 27 Jun 2023 12:52:49 -0400

If you are not familiar with Kyle Kinane, you must spend the full eight minutes listening to his story of a man bringing a bag of pancakes onto a flight.

The Godfather by Mario Puzo

Tue, 27 Jun 2023 12:52:49 -0400

I read part one of The Godfather, but decided to abandon the rest of the book. The movie portrays the book really well, in fact almost exactly. The dialogue is nearly word for word. I think it is a testament to how well both are crafted. This leads me to wonder, why am I even reading the book if I get nothing new out of it? So I decided to move on.

Extra credit: Why The Godfather Is the Best Depiction of Masculinity

I Never Make it Past Season One

Wed, 14 Jun 2023 12:34:46 -0400

When it comes to television shows (do we call them something else now?), I have picked up a few that I consistently hear positive reviews from people I know. Generally if a lot of people are talking about it and multiple people recommend it to me, it’s doing something right. I’ll never have enough time to consume everything on every streaming service that I have been cornered into subscribing to (thanks kids). There have been a handful that I’ve watched over the past few years (Succession and Ted Lasso as a few examples) and through fear, I dare not go past season one. I think it’s still my trauma from how off the rails Game of Thrones went.

Time is an important constraint in art. It is so fundamental to our nature. Our time in this universe is finite and that adds a very healthy level of perspective. You can tell when art has something to say and knows where its conclusion is. A multi-episode show offers a deeper and richer story telling over a two hour movie. However, it should not go on indefinitely. I’d like to see more single or two season shows to offer a mid-term story arc. I understand there is a fair amount of pressure to keep a success going as there is money to be made, but you should always leave them wanting more. I’m glad to hear Succession had a well received finale, so perhaps it’s time to watch the rest of it.

Thinking Visually

Wed, 14 Jun 2023 12:34:46 -0400

The Spirited Man, also known as Van Neistat, posted a video last week on thinking visually that resonated with me. I don’t do well with the word stuff or hearing spoken instructions. I am definitely a visual thinker and learner.

Why Only Some of Us Think in Pictures

Sicario: Day of the Soldado

Tue, 30 May 2023 20:45:16 -0400

Finally watched Sicario: Day of the Soldado

I thoroughly enjoyed the first Sicario movie and would consider it one of the best movies I’ve seen in the last decade. A very excellent film on manipulating tension with some larger than life characters. The second movie was good, but not what I would consider within the same realm of the first film. I think one of the magic element of the first Sicario movie is the characterization. They are definitive and you very clearly get an understanding of who they are and their motivations. Matt Gruber did not have nearly enough time on screen. You want to know more about him and that’s part of the beauty of how he is written. I think any story that leaves you wishing a character had more time should be cherished and not turned into another movie. Another great example of this would be Lt. Aldo Raine from Inglorious Basterds.

Tour of a Whiskey & Cigar Room

Tue, 30 May 2023 20:45:16 -0400

I’m a sucker for a masculine space like this Whiskey/Cigar Room by Jeremy Siers. It has a very nice aesthetic with the dark colors and subtle backlighting. Who wouldn’t feel like a sophisticated man, sipping their whiskey, in a well appointed room like this.

I’m also deeply intrigued by in depth YouTube tours like this. The details and the process. It’s alluring in an unexplainable way. This has been inspiration for where I’d like to see my basement office go. Darker walls. Wood finishing. Maybe some backlit shelves. I’d definitely been thinking about adding a bottle of Scotch in my office, more as a joke. Difficult conversation, grab the bottle in frame of the zoom camera. It doesn’t at all feel like an HR conversation waiting to happen.