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Have You Seen This? Jet-powered snowboard
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What's better than a snowboard? A jet-powered snowboard, of course. And now we've got one, kind of. - photo by John Clyde


THE WORKSHOP OK, first things first here. This is not an actual jet-powered snowboard, it's powered by fans, but let's be honest, if it were titled "Have you Seen This? Fan-powered snowboard" you wouldn't have clicked on it. Welcome to the seedy world of online news.

Anyway, this video is still pretty cool. The YouTube channel The Hacksmith makes some pretty awesome things and this snowboard is pretty cool. The entire video is 10 minutes long and you do have to sit through a small ad for Dollar Shave Club, but it's still worth it. If you just can't handle watching the whole thing you can jump to about 8:45 and see the board in action.

If you don't jump, however, you can see the pretty ingenious way they put the board together and watch them problem-solve the issues, which is entertaining in its own right. The video made me realize I need a friend who's a brilliant engineer and has access to things like a 3D printer and a workshop. Wait, I do have that friend. You know who you are and we need to spend more time together if you can build cool stuff like this.
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Have You Seen This? Street musician slays with clarinet
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Better than almost every face-melting guitar or drum solo. - photo by Facebook video screenshot

THE BIG EASY — Yeah, yeah, we all know that New Orleans is stuffed to the gills will incredible musicians.

But knowing that fact and then hearing that fact are two different things. You can step into any number of jazz clubs on any given night on Bourbon Street, and you’ll probably be impressed with virtually every act. Or you can sit at home on your comfy couch and watch this featured video.

In the video, you’ll see a woman who is in the groove. She is swinging hard, and wailing on her clarinet with a practiced expertise that makes it sounds so easy.

From note one you’ll be drawn in; your appreciation will grow with every second, and then your face will melt off when you realize how incredible she really is.

If you’ve never played a woodwind or a brass, you may not know everything that comes with a performance like this. Lung capacity and breath control are huge factors in keeping your notes clear and loud, and hitting those high notes is especially difficult.

So when this woman hits that high note and holds it for several seconds, you know you’re dealing with an exceptional musician. It means she has worked hard for years to develop skill on top of her natural talent, and we get to benefit.

It kinda makes you wonder how we let people get away with mumble rap and autotune when talent like this exists in the world.

I wish this video were longer, and I wish I had more information about this woman, but as it is, we’ll just have to appreciate the little flavor of New Orleans jazz posted by the Facebook group Clarinet Life.

Martha Ostergar is a writer who delights in the ridiculous that internet serves up, which means she's more than grateful that she gets to cruise the web for amazing videos to highlight for your viewing pleasure.
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