The Most Dutch of Days

It's been hot here in the Netherlands - getting into the low 30s (the high 80s / low 90s).  It may not seem too hot to you, but in the Netherlands, it's humid and there is no air conditioning, which means that sometimes inside the house is hotter than outside.  And there is no relief, not even at night, when temperatures inside the house raise to 32 and won't go down for days.

On one of these hot days, we decided to get out of the city, actually looking for wind (in the form of a nice breeze from the North Sea) by taking out bikes and going on a bike ride that almost reached the North Sea.

Bram, with friends Ivona and Harish, as we just begin the trek.

As we head out, we realize that this will be the most Dutch of rides, as we head out along a narrow path along one of the major canals, typically used to bring cargo in from the sea.

A cargo ship.

Then turning north, heading along yet another canal.

Check out the sign... cows ahead.

Let's just say the sign did not disappoint.

Which later led to this awesome picture - can this get more Dutch?

Local wildlife.

Finally, we reach the location of our lunch - placed near another windmill!

View from the windmill, over a bridge that crosses the canal, that works via cantilever.

Bridge rising.

Bram ordered a "salad".  It was mostly meat.

Back on the bike ride, Harish and Bram talk while biking.

And I take pictures while biking!  Haha!

Trees along a road.

A field of anti-Bram.

We reach a cute, tiny town, that is having its market day.

Even the trees are happy here.

More wildlife, this time in action!

Turning back to Groningen.

We took this ride on the Forth of July.  And who else did we run into but the Statue of Liberty!  What?  That's crazy!  A statue of Liberty in the middle of the Dutch countryside!!!

And other less patriotic statues...

#1. Papaoutai

And at number 1 is Papaoutai (Where are you dad?) by the French singer Stromae.  It looks like it takes place in the fake town from the 40s that is the nuclear test site in the newest Indiana Jones.  The video shows the struggles of a young man as he questions why his dad is never around.  The song itself is awesome, and the video answers the age old question: what does it look like when a mannequin dances?

#2. Chandelier

It's amazingly well done.  At number 2 comes Sia's Chandelier, which features the eleven-year old Maddie Ziegler.  Maddie's dancing is amazing, and she is an incredible and talented dancer, not just as an eleven-year old, but as a dancer in general.  It is heartfelt and every once in a while, you can see the typical sweet goofiness of an eleven-year old seep through.  It's also refreshing that the singer herself doesn't feel the need to be in the video and take all the credit.

#3. Happy

Pharrell Williams' Happy will make you feel happy.  It always works for me.  Several people get to have their chance to dance in this video, but what makes it cool is that these people are from all walks of life, backgrounds, economic statuses, body types, ages... but they have one thing in common - they can all dance.  There is even a 24 hour version - where you can listen to the song on loop and watch people dance for literally 24 hours.

#4. Thriller

It was mysteriously absent from NME's list, but Michael Jackson's Thriller made mine!  It's like a full length feature film, complete with end credits and the disclaimer that any similarity to persons living, dead, or undead is purely coincidental.  More than 30 years may have dimmed the acting and special effects, but the dancing and music is just as awesome as the day it was released.  Added bonus - watching Bram do the zombie dance every time I put on this video!

#5. Sugar

As perhaps the most famous wedding crashers of all time, Maroon 5 go around L.A. in one day crashing as many weddings as possible, surprising wedding guests as they break into their song Sugar at their wedding receptions.  I don't know if it's staged or not, but I do think that at least some of the weddings are real - you can't fake the look of confused bridezillas about to explode as they see something not going "as planned" on their wedding day, as stages and curtains start getting set up during their receptions.  But these looks quickly change to bewildered joy as the band is revealed, singing to cheering fans.  Some of those reactions can't be faked.  Anyways, whether it's real or not, it always makes me smile to watch this video and to see people doing nice things for other people on their special day.

#6. Radioactive

Radioactive by Imagine Dragons has all the elements of a good action film - a bad guy, balls of flying cash, cage fights, and an unlikely but lovable hero.  It's actually a bit disturbing, as the cage fight features poor trembling stuffed animals being torn limb from limb.  But in the end, we all learn an important lesson - don't mess with teddy bears.

#7. I Won't Let You Down

I could spend an afternoon watching OK Go's music videos.  They really take the concept of the music video to the next level.  But I Won't Let You Down is probably the best - and totally amazing.  With quite possibly the most dancers of any music video ever and perfectly timed dancing, it was filmed with a flying drone and took about 60 tries to get right.  Impressive... very impressive.  

#8. White and Nerdy

Weird Al has a lot of great videos, and picking just one is hard, but perhaps my favorite is White and Nerdy.  Let's face it, it's awesome.  It parodies several rap videos, but even better, depicts scenes from a typical day in the life of a nerd.  A video that features dancing in front of Schrödinger's Equation has greatness written all over it.

#9. Street Spirit (Fade Out)

Street Spirit (Fade Out) is quite possibly my favorite song from my favorite band, Radiohead.  And this music video is as hauntingly beautiful as the song itself.  It's black and white, and filmed using variable speeds, sometimes within the same frame.  This video is more than just a music video - it's art.

#10. Doo-Wop (That Thing)

In another trans-decadal dance party, the music video Doo-Wop (That Thing) by Lauryn Hill has a split screen - the left half is 1967 and the right half is 1998.  As the video goes on, you see how lots of things have changed over 30 years - fashion, haircuts, even technology.  The neat thing is the border between the frames is not always linear, so it's fun to pick out what is from what decade.

#11. Tunak Tunak Tun

If only every meteor contained a happy dancing man.  This song is so catchy.  People thought Daler Mehndi was only popular because his videos featured lots of beautiful dancing woman, but his video Tunak Tunak Tun proved them wrong - he dances only with his "clones", doing dance moves that must have caught on in many parts of the world.

#12. Pretty Hurts

Sometimes, music videos go beyond simply telling a story to almost verging on a documentary.  That's the case with Beyonce's Pretty Hurts, which is powerful, serious, and makes you realize there is something seriously messed up in this society.  I can't say anything better than the video already does - so give it a watch.

#13. Rude

Sometimes, music videos tell a story.  At number 13 comes Rude by Magic, a sad, sweet tale about a boy asking a man for his daughter's hand in marriage.  Sure, he can't dance and his taste in socks and hats is appalling, but he's cute and obviously loves your daughter... so let love win!

#14. Kalluri Vaanil

At #14 comes the crazy video Kalluri Vaanil by Prabhu Deva Sundaram.  Everything that makes bollywood great is condensed into four minutes.  What could be goofier than the dancing?  How about the lyrics?  "What's inside your soft body?"  "Without the use of scanning, [can you] tell me?"

#15. Safe and Sound

Starting out the list is Safe and Sound by Capital Cities.  Where else can you see dancers from literally over 100 years dance side by side (including a two-dimensional black and white group from the 20s)?  It's clever and well done, and the lead singer sort of reminds me of my brother.  (He even does a cameo in a lady's swimsuit!)

Three Minute Breaks

Things have been busy here, so I've been neglecting the blog.  I'm sorry to my loyal or not so loyal readers out there.  I have many interesting things to say, but those will have to wait a bit until I have more time....

But in the meantime, I have garnered little bits of respite with my husband sitting in front of the computer, going through NME's top 100 music videos of all time.  Each video gives us about a three minute break to listen to some music and gain some appreciation for the art form that is the music video.  Some of NME's choices are, well, pretty strange (go through the list at your own risk), but it's also given us the motivation to look elsewhere for some interesting music videos.

So, for a little break, I've come up with my top 15.  These are by no means the best videos that exist, but they are my current favorites.  So over the next 15 days, get ready for a video a day.  Posting 15 days in a row?  Can I do it?  I hope so - if nothing else, get ready for a short break every day as I climb through my favorites, that combine great music, art, clever dancing, or just something that I hope will make you smile.