Licensed to teach English and History in the state of Virginia. Full time #housespouse. I'm just trying to live a happy life. I read, I run, I write, and I do other goofy stuff.
I was finally able to locate, learn, and use a large bed scanner. Which made it possible to scan a growth chart my mother had for me. The first measurement was for January 3, 1977 where I clocked in at a whopping 20 and one half inches! Fast-forward a year and a couple of months and I grew to 31 and one half inches.
For those that don't know, YouTube has been struggling with a few issues over the past few years (can you say Logan Paul and a dead body?). And as any company does over time, they make changes. One of those changes smacked me in the face this morning. I sat there checking my email first thing in the morning like always and see something from YouTube in my Inbox. In short, they will be turning off monetization for small channels. Specifically, they are giving everyone 30 days to meet their new minimum of 4,000 hours of watch time (240,000 minutes) and 1,000 subscribers.
That "and" is key there as I'm probably close enough to meet the minimum watch time to get to that goal this year. But the subscriber count is really where I'll take a kick in the pants. And to grow your channel by 900 or so subscribers in 30 days is so unlikely, I'm resigned to be demonetized for the foreseeable future. As in years. Even though I broke through the old minimum last year and actually made money at doing something I love, I've now been reduced to watching from the sidelines as the bigger channels get bigger and the smaller channels disappear.
I'm still bitter. I'm still processing my emotions. I'm still sad and mad and so many other things.
And no, I'm not going to ask you to subscribe to my YouTube channel or read my blogs. As much as I'd love to beg you to do that, I think you already would have if you enjoyed my content.
But I have to share something from one of my biggest supporters out there. My son. He is a huge YouTube consumer. If given the opportunity, he would watch YouTube all day and all night. What he enjoys is beyond my scope of understanding. I still can't comprehend how he can spend so much time watching people play Minecraft. I can't change who he is but I just don't understand. Getting back on track, as I was still processing the news and getting ready for work this morning, I shared the bad news with my son. The conversation went something like this:
Me: "I have some bad news William. YouTube has demonetized my channel." William: "They deleted your channel?!" Me: "No." William: "They deleted your videos?!" Me: "No." William: "Can you still upload videos? I don't understand." Me: "Well, basically I won't be able to make any money on my videos." William: "Oh. Well that sucks." Me: "Yep, it sure does."
It was a pivotal moment and I knew it. I was still pissed off and wanted to throw a chair through the window, but I knew, right there as I sat on the bed, that I would continue to do this thing I love. As I drove to work I wasn't sure if I wanted to put my fist through the window or cry uncontrollably. I ended up finding salvation in the bottom of my Starbucks coffee (#notsponsored!). And I realized I was having yet another John Locke moment where I just needed to scream "Don't tell me what I can't do!"
Since I started this journey through my midlife crisis back in 2016, I've struggled with my own identity. I finally found it last year. I'm a house spouse and a content creator. When I left my last job in 2016, I was kicked to the curb like a piece of trash. In 2017, I finally realized I wasn't trash and managed to pick myself up, brush myself off, and get back out there. It's 2018 and I'm back on the ground, wondering why the YouTube bus has decided to run me over.
I know there's a lot wrong with YouTube. I also know that I'm not part of the problem. I'll continue to edit videos just like I'll continue to research my articles. I'll continue to produce videos just like I'll continue to write stories. I'll even continue to pay for YouTube Red and YouTubeTV. But I feel like the platform I've enjoyed, supported, and been a member of since January 29, 2007, has betrayed me and all the other little guys out there. It wouldn't take a big push to get me invested in a different platform. ::coughcough:: Samsung? ::coughcough:: Casey Neistat? ::coughcough::
In closing, I'd like to ask you to do two things for me. First, support your family and your friends. Help them fulfill their dreams. Second, support those small, local businesses you know. Help your neighbors because they have dreams too.
As a fresh-faced house spouse that's a 41 year old man, I'm a bit of a contradiction. And I'm okay with that. People don't understand my role in my family and in society and usually give a look of confusion when I answer the "what do you do" question. But to be honest, sometimes I don't understand my role either.
You see, as a house spouse, or housespouse if you prefer, I am fighting decades, centuries, and maybe even millennia of tradition where the "man" is the provider and the "woman" is the house keeper. So giving me a confused look is totally okay. But I challenge your preconceived notion about me because I still feel as though I "provide" for my family, just in other ways.
One of the ways I provide is by cooking. And I have a long and checkered past with cooking. Once upon a time, back in the olden days when television was on low-definition and cassingles were easily found, my ability to cook was limited to the simple things. A bowl of cereal. A sandwich with cheese and mayo. A box of macaroni was about as complex as I got.
As I grew older, I expanded my cooking abilities by learning how to make hot cereal, adding ham to my sandwiches, and, when I wanted to live on the edge, put tuna in my mac and cheese. But now that I'm a house spouse and YouTube creator, I'm delving deep into cooking. Deeper than I ever expected to go. And I have the women in my life to thank for it.
My wife was, and probably still is, extremely cautious about my cooking. While she seems happy to teach me how to cook certain things, she doesn't like it when I don't follow the recipe. Or when I DON'T. FOLLOW. THE. RECIPE.
I have my reasons for changing things, namely that when I cook, I try to put things in that I like but also know that the kids might like. And sometimes I just want a change on that recipe that's been used and reused so many times we're all a little tired of it. But another big reason is food allergies. My kids and myself are allergic to a few things and adding or removing or otherwise modifying a recipe is pretty normal. Prime example is most cookie and cake recipes from my grandmothers include nuts of some type. That's a big no-go in our house.
But back to the recipes. According to the Washington Post, they might be "dead." And I can sort of see their point. With Generations Y and Z, apps are the shiznit. Apps are so hip, that my daily crossword will use "APP" as the answer to clues talking about computer programs. Meanwhile, I still try to make "SOFTWARE" fit into three squares. Apps are so commonplace, they can do just about everything for you. And as the article suggests, cooking is one of those things.
Despite all of these things swirling around in the vortex of today and the future of cooking, I'm not sure I agree with the idea that recipes are dead. And as I sit here and think of ways to convince you that I'm right, the only thing I can do is prove that recipes will become more of an "artisan" thing. Like blacksmithing and glassblowing, using recipes will not die, only become more of a niche market for artists.
That makes me sad. As much as I want to preserve history, especially my family's history, I can see how cooking will become an art (I mean, it already is but you know what I mean) reserved for special meals and everyday cooking will be relegated to bots, apps, and maybe even food replicators.
So where does that leave me as a housespouse trying to learn how to cook? It leaves me in debt to those women who came before me and who are with me now. My grandmothers, their mothers, my parents, my wife, all of them have worked so hard at the hearth, the oven, the cooktop, to ensure I was fed and wouldn't go hungry. I can only hope my children can do the same for their kids.
Today's entry is a little different than normal. Over on my YouTube channel, I've slowly been picking out recipes from my grandmother's and making them. It fits right into my new full-time job of being a house spouse. Well, one recipe stood out as an ideal candidate for my 40 Years Ago Today entries.
Recipe:
From the November 15, 1977 issue of Capper's Weekly:
Oatmeal Bars
If you love oatmeal cookies and hate the time it takes to cook them, try these. Delicious!
3/4 cup shortening 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1/4 cup water 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 teaspoon rum flavoring (optional) [I skipped this since I didn't have any] 1 cup flour 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon soda [baking soda] 3 cups uncooked oats 1/2 cup chocolate chips 1/2 cup butterscotch chips
In
a large bowl combine shortening, brown sugar, sugar, water, vanilla,
and run flavoring. Stir until fluffy. Add flour, salt, and soda, mixing
well. Stir in oats and chips. Bake on well-greased pans at 350 degrees F
for about 20 minutes. Use one 9-by 13-inch pan and one 8-by 8-inch pan
for thin crispy type bar; for a chewy bar, bake in one 9-by 12-inch pan
[this probably should be a 9"x13" pan]. You will have to use your
fingers to press dough out onto pans. They are very good served with
gelatin.
Forty years ago today, I turned one. I had a giant, round, chocolate cake to celebrate. And I got presents of course. Looks like I got a small cart to ride/scoot on that had some blocks on it. And from the looks of it, they were tasty. I also got what I think is a indoor/outdoor bowling set and a small green truck that looks like the Mystery Machine but isn't.
I won't pretend my announcement carries as much weight as someone that actually comes out of the closet as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or anything else. It was purely meant to grab your attention and to get you to read.
So what is my big announcement?
I think I know what my new identity is. It's house spouse.
I say "think" because I'm still struggling a little bit with the new identity. But after 15 months of being one, it's finally dawning on me that it's okay to be a house spouse.
Let me back up a little bit.
Even though I grew up in a household that was anything but traditional, I was always taught that a man runs the house and earns the money while the woman takes care of the kids and cleans things. And before my mom freaks out, I will clarify that I was never taught this by my parents. It was by society as a whole. Any movie or TV show or book or magazine or some random stranger you'd see in public would always emphasize, either deliberately or subliminally, that the man was the one to earn the money and the woman was meant to take care of him and the house.
Even through college, I saw examples of this in my own family. It was just normal. And that was fine with me. I never questioned it. It's how everyone lived.
But as I got older, more and more people defied that norm. Some did it in their own way, quietly, on their own. Others were more vocal about how they wanted to break with that American caste system. For me, I was happy to support anyone's way of life. For me, I typically earned less than my wife, and while it bothered me that I wasn't the head honcho of money, I never really felt bad about it. Over time I eventually made more than my wife and again, while I felt proud to be successful, I never really felt like I was better than her.
I guess in the end, as a couple, we usually decide on things together as equals.
As I embrace this new identity, I don't feel like I'm less than an equal in my marriage. Sometimes I feel like I'm the one with the better deal in that I can spend more time with my kids, but I don't feel like I'm less of a husband, less of a man, or less of a person just because I make less money than before.
So where does that leave me? Like I said, I've spent the last 15 months as a house spouse. I joked about it in the past but the more I thought about it, the more I realized this really was what my new job was. And since most men identify themselves by their profession, I'm a house spouse.
So there you have it. My big but not so earth-shattering announcement. Most of you already know I had a massive career change last year. This is just me finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and finally recognizing what kind of moth I am now that I've emerged from my cocoon.
Today was a big day 40 years ago. I went in for a "complete skull EMI brain scan" (what we would call a CT scan today). Turns out "EMI" is just the brand of the CT scanner. There's some interesting history out there on not only EMI but also CT scanners. A few tidbits in case you're interested:
Here's a YouTube video on the EMI Scanner (circa 1975):
Also of note, "studies that had been done by mid-1977 showed that CT head scanners perform reliably and provide accurate diagnoses of nearly all abnormalities in or near the brain for 80 to 100 percent of patients." And that by early 1977, only 400 scanners were present in the US.
All told, pretty damn impressive that a baby, who isn't even a year old, is having a scan of this sort done. I have yet to hear from Dr. Melvin Cheatham, but this speaks volumes to me about his level of care for his patients.
Sources:
Policy Implications of the Computed Tomography (CT) Scanner. November 1978. Accessed on January 4, 2017. http://ota.fas.org/reports/7813.pdf
Since my daughter couldn't swim this morning, and because the bug guy was running late, she rode her bike alongside as I did my mileage. Most of my mileage. I bailed at 2.75 miles of my planed 3 miles because it was so hot.
Aside from the heat and humidity, the run was pretty decent. It's always nice to sit back and trot along as I got some small talk time in my kid. That's always a great way to start the day.
Photos:
Found this bird nest today.
Video:
Today's vlog.
Weather:
Temps were about 85F. Humidity was high. Sky was clear with only a few clouds. Not much wind.
Fluids and Fuel:
Breakfast was two egg whites, two slices of toast, and coffee. Plain water during the run. Lunch was leftover spaghetti with hamburger.
Aches and Pains: Things felt fine. Except for the heat.
Gear: Wore shorts and a t-shirt.
Today's Motivation: Felt kind of blergh-like but still felt semi-motivated to get my run done.
Naughty Neil: I had three hamburgers for dinner. Ouch.
Got my 4 miles in this morning in my new team uniform. Or gear. Or kit. Or whatever you want to call it. It was long overdue in arriving but well worth the wait. Glad I had the chance to test it out before I left on my trip. The cycle jersey looked like it would fit but it was snug. I know it's supposed to be snug but I didn't expect my arms to be so big. Made me feel a little like the Incredible Hulk - one flex and I'd rip a seam. But I didn't. And I know cycle people are usually smaller than me (more aerodynamic, right?) but I still felt like a stuffed sausage in there.
The shorts were a little surprising. They looked way too small (size XL) but they fit quite nicely. So that was cool. No chafing after 4 miles, which was even cooler.
The rest of the run was filled with horse flies, neighbors, and lots of sweating.
The rest of the day was filled with sitting in the car driving to my moms. Once there, it was time to talk, eat dinner, film the cows, and stay up late.
Almost forgot! So I got a message today from an old running friend. She saw my photo and both she and her husband commented on how much weight I had lost. Totally made my day! Thank you Royanna! And, on top of that, yesterday I did my monthly measurements. I was a few days behind schedule because I was sick, but here are the numbers:
Weight - 233.2 pounds (down from 246.2 right before I quit work)
Waist - 101.5 cm (down from 110 cm)
Total cm Measurements - 650.5 cm (down from 677 cm)
Photos:
Video:
Weather: Temps were about 80F. Humidity was high. Sky was overcast. No wind.
Fluids and Fuel: Nothing before the run. Plain water during the run. Ran out of water after 3 miles. Recovery was coffee followed by an egg white sammich thingie from the gas station with a few, ONLY A FEW DAMMIT, hashbrowns.
Aches and Pains: The sleeves on the jersey bunched a little but once fixed there was no pain. Right shoe probably wasn't tied tight enough so I felt some chafing on the heel.
Gear: Shorts and cycle jersey.
Today's Motivation: I knew I wouldn't get a run in after I got to my mom's so I got up early and got it done.
Naughty Neil: The gas station food wasn't a great choice but it was a good choice in what I chose. Lunch today was light and dinner was fairly healthy. I'm doing much better. But I still had some McDonalds fries. But only a medium!
Splits:
As I ran, I realized what names I had come up with for the neighborhood routes I use. I created them, used them a few times, then forgot them. And instead of going back to find them, I just ignored them and called them the "loop" when I should have used the proper word. So, a "loop" is a full 1.5 mile loop around the hood. A "lollipop" is 1.25 miles, and skips one of the dead ends. A "circle" is 1 mile and skips both dead ends. If that doesn't make sense to you, don't worry. A lot of what I think of doesn't make sense to me either.
Loop - 18:34
Loop - 18:46
Circle - 10:48
Finish - 48:09
Today's run was well needed. Down right necessary. And although I was slower than I wanted to be, I survived, didn't get bit, and feel pretty damn good right now.
The weather yesterday was very wet and very stormy when I woke up so I just went back to bed and skipped my run. For a few minutes I thought about going after work but I ended up cooking dinner for the kids which meant some creativity in the kitchen. Pancakes are tricky to cook.
So today I needed to stay true to my word and get my run in. And I did. And I even did my workout, although not as many reps/sets as I wanted to.
Anyway, the run was nice. The weather wasn't. Warm and muggy and the flies were out. Yuck. Saw my dad finishing his walk as I was starting mine. Also saw Mrs. Sparbel out getting her workout done.
And there might be a horse fly war brewing. Details to follow.
Photo:
The angry hawk.
Yesterday's Video:
Weather:
Temps were around 80F or 85F. Humidity was moderate to high. No wind. Sky was slightly overcast.
Fluids and Fuel:
Nothing before the run. Plain water during the run. Overflowing oatmeal, one egg, and two sausage for breakfast.
Aches and Pains: Nothing really. Still a bit wheezy but not really short of breath.
Gear: Wore shorts and a t-shirt.
Today's Motivation: Most of my motivation was because I didn't want to disappoint my coach. I told her yesterday I was really going to get my run in today. So I did. Felt much better after I got it done.
Naughty Neil: I've been doing really good on the food. It's hard as shit and I really wanted a Whopper for dinner tonight. But instead I had shrimp tacos and tortillas. Lots of tortillas. And dip.
Splits:
Time is an estimate because I'm too lazy to go back upstairs to get my watch. But it's close.
Loop 1 - 18:00
Loop 2 - 19:30
Finish - 37:30
Once upon a time, YouTube was a little-known website that hosted funny videos. Now it's not only as popular as Google, it's also a profession for many people. And while I wish I created quality content like so many YouTubers out there, I'm still new to this game. Sure, sure, I got on the YouTube VLOG wagon ages ago. But I never followed through because I didn't see the platform as viable for anything beyond consumption.
Now I'm back on that wagon creating.
But that's not what I want to talk about today. Today, I want to talk about the wave of the future: 360 degree video.
I don't know where Gary Vaynerchuk stands on 360 video but I know he's created some 360 content. For me, I'm betting on it being the next big thing in a few years. Here's why.
Mobile
My last employer never understood "mobile" and still doesn't. Sure, they've bought mobile app companies but they just don't "get it." If you think of all the people out there, not only in the US but across the world, the mobile phone is so common-place, many people have more than one. In order to reach a wide audience, you need to be on mobile.
360 video is not only available on mobile, it's the perfect platform. Think about it, you spin around in one spot, tilt the phone, move it around, it's so easy to understand, my eight year old son gets it. And when he asked if it would do the same thing with my laptop, I had to explain that no, it wouldn't. I needed to use the keyboard or my mouse to pan and tilt the 360 video. He seemed confused but understood enough to not ask anymore questions.
But 360 and mobile go together like bread and butter. They form a relationship so symbiotic that the viewer doesn't even realize they're the third wheel.
Everything Else
When viewing a 360 video on any other device, it stumbles. And this is where I think 360 will fail. Sort of. So when you view a 360 video, it doesn't require you to have a special TV or laptop or anything other than some way to manually move the image. A keyboard (the WASD keys), a mouse (click and drag), or the icon on the video (kind of like a virtual joystick). Any of these will allow the viewer to move around "inside" the video.
And that's a stumbling point. Sure, it's possible. Sure, it's easier to see the video with a larger screen. But it's that "manual" part that makes it fail here.
And that's where it will fail in other platforms too. It's not easy to pick up your TV and move it around like you can your phone. And sure, you can pan/tilt manually, but then everybody else that's viewing the video is going to be subjected to your choices. So unlike the standard TV show where you stare at the hot babe and everyone else stares at the funny pig, now everyone will have to stare at the hot babe and that will take away from their experience.
Which will make them change the channel or want to watch something else.
And the same applies to movies but on a greater scale. Clearly you're not going to be able to physically move the screen. And if you had control over where the screen was "looking," I'm sure most of the people would be pissed when you moved it away from the primary source of the action.
The Future
This brings me to where I think the future will take us, specifically in terms of the impact of 360 video on movies. As I said above, 360 movies won't work. They barely work in 3D. But this doesn't mean that 360 videos won't leave their mark.
Let me back up a minute. I think in the next 5 years, 360 videos will slowly become more normal on your phone. In 10 years, the demand will be great enough that movie companies will begin to ponder how they win viewers over when they're all clamoring for more 360 videos.
I think the answer for them lies in one of two directions.
First, there's the obvious answer because it's already out there; IMAX. IMAX movies give viewers a larger image to look at which naturally causes them to move their heads around. The IMAX Dome gives viewers a 180 degree field of view. I don't see domes going up all over but I do see some retrofits coming.
A shorter screen than IMAX, but wider could be the solution. Yes, it can go up and down a little, but the downward view is going to be blocked by the people in front of you. And too much screen above is going to leave you with a stiff neck like you were sitting in the front row. But there's room on the sides that aren't used. I don't think the screen would expand too far beyond the midway point because those in the front would be looking to the sides too much. So maybe a quarter to a third would be used.
As for the movie itself, I still think the primary action will be in the front and center. But there may secondary actors or scenery or plot that takes place on the sides that may add to the experience or the story or just make things cooler.
Image this. You're watching Lawrence of Arabia. You look left and right of center and see sand dunes all over the place. Sure, Lawrence is right there in front of you but think of all that scenery to the sides that could add to the movie. Or the train tracks going off into the distance on one side while they're planting the bomb and way way off you can see the puff of smoke from the train.
You get the idea. It's an option. And I think what makes it work is that it could add to the viewer's experience. It could make the movie better. Then again, it could be like 3D and be completely over-used and end up making people mad.
The other possibility I see working is visors. Or goggles. Or Google Cardboard. Or something like that where the viewer watches the movie through their VRware glasses and can look in all directions in the movie. They can be in the middle of the Gryffindor table during the Christmas dinner and see Ron on one side of them and Harry on the other. Hermione could be talking to Ron from the other side of the table but it would feel like you're there in Hogwarts.
The downside to this possibility is that it takes away from the movie going experience itself. Not so much the movie, but the trip to the movie theater. The popcorn, the sticky floors, the annoying kid behind you that kicks the seat. All of those would be gone and you'd watch the movie at home or where ever you wanted.
Sure, the goggles could be an added feature for select movies like the 3D glasses, but the goggles wouldn't be disposable and would therefore be the source of disease, damage, and equipment failure. It would be like walking into the movie and your date gets a great pair of goggles and yours show everything in green. Or you get pink eye. Or they just don't work.
Conclusion
In the end, I think 360 videos will slowly set the pace for technology changes in the movie industry as well as the mobile phone industry. As demand grows, the related industries will need to adapt or die. And if you made it this far through my rambling predictions, it should be pretty obvious that I think this will be the wave of the future in some form.
A few days back, I had a dream about Casey Neistat. It was bizarre but it had a moment of clarity that's important.
I went to a grocery store or market of some sort and Casey was there doing some sort of book signing. He had a huge line. So I hung around, got impatient, and left. I came back awhile later and there was no line and Casey was just sitting there chilling out.
As I went up to get an autograph and selfie with him, some other dude rolled up and cut in front of me. As I was giving him the stink eye, he and Casey were talking about something and he said something to the effect of "I'm going to write a few words and get paid a million dollars for it." To which I responded something to the effect of "I'm going to write a million words and not get paid for it because I know the money will come later." To which Casey really responded in a positive manner to my thought process and brushed off the jerk that cut in front of me.
Now, what does all that mean? Well, it was just a dream. But when I woke up, it made me re-think my blog and how I have ads on it. I've never been a big fan of ads on websites. And it was something I've long thought about changing. So as of right now, there are no more ads on my blog. Will that change in the future? I doubt it.
You see, Google AdSense has a minimum payout of $100 a month. When I looked yesterday, I had a whopping $14.62. I'll never see that money and I'll never get to $100 a month. I'd rather sacrifice the money and run a blog that's more visually pleasing.
So there you have it. No ads. Guess I could have kept it that short but I needed to explain the motivation behind it.
In other news, I'm working on more YouTube videos. I struggled with my channel back in the early days of YouTube, mostly because I didn't understand it. Now I'm a day late and a dollar short on what could have been a cash cow. But at least I understand it. Anyway, below is my newest video. Please check it out!
