Even if you’ve never heard of “OCAD”, you probably know what it looks like, if you’ve visited downtown Toronto. The Ontario College of Art + Design (OCAD) which is, yes, a University, went through a major expansion into what we know it as today.
I’m excited to be studying in this “table top” or building on “stilts” or “pencils” as some people refer to it, known as the Sharp Centre for Design. The Design faculty and classes are located up there, and other faculties are mainly located below it and across the street.
I decided to search YouTube for videos on OCAD, and there’s not as much out there as there probably should be (or at least they’re hard to find). So I’ve put a few on here to share.
I came across old video segments from 2003 and 2004, during and after the expansion was complete. It’s really interesting and pretty amusing looking back at when it was so new, before I was very aware of it. Some comments are hillarious. Some people were strongly against it, some people didn’t think it was possible. Now we go to school there and it’s a pretty iconic part of Toronto’s skyline. Enjoy the random videos, below.
Impact of OCAD’s Expansion Project, 2004 – Ideas have space
OCAD Construction and Design on Daily Planet, 2003
OCAD Extension Legs on Bravo! News, 2003
In my second year at OCAD, I went to a presentation given by OCAD’s architectt, Will Alsop, who visited from England. A very unique, inspiring man.
I wasn’t around yet in 1985 when the original “We Are the World” video was released, but have definitely heard about it’s impact and the attention it received. Why? Because it’s not every day that nearly 100 celebrities come together to record one video! It never happens at all. Even at huge award ceremonies, they’re not performing together but instead just sitting in the same room – never mind different generations of celebrities coming together for a cause. This year’s song is aiming to raise funds for earthquake relief in Haiti.
The “We Are The World 2010″ video debuted at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics Opening Ceremonies, which I think was a perfect setting considering the ‘world’ is together at this time and the Games draw record television audiences worldwide. Here is the video:
We Are The World 25 For Haitisong and video was directed and produced by Paul Haggis and Quincy Jones. Over 80 artists had a part in it, including Pink, Miley Cyrus, Barbra Streisand, Jonas Brothers, Jackson Family members, Justin Bieber (why?), Snoop Dogg, Kanye West, and Tony Bennett. Yes, a very random combination but of course it is a great display of how the world can come together in times of need.
I personally purchased both the Song and the extended Video on iTunes. You can do so here.
Official description of the recording:
The 25th Anniversary recording features over 80 artists and performers. The recording of We Are The World 25 For Haiti embodied the same enthusiasm, sense of purpose and generosity as the original recording 25 years ago. Every one of the artists who participated, regardless of genre or generation, walked into the room with their hearts and souls completely open to coming together to help the people of Haiti.
Watching videos, favouriting videos, subscribing to channels. I’ve favourited over 200 so far, and these get automatically imported into my Facebook wall and Twitter feed. If you subscribe to channels you’re interested in, you’ll always have something you watch when you go to YouTube.com (just have it stay logged-in all the time, so your stats are recorded).
I’ve only uploaded 11 videos, which is nothing compared to the users who do daily vlogs and the celebrity news sites that post multuple videos a day. However somehow my channel has had 1,400 views since I made the account. The videos have over 8,000 views in total.
The power of YouTube, when videos go Viral! Have a look at this compilation of some of the most viral videos out there:
What are you doing on YouTube? What channels do you subscribe to? Do you upload your own videos on a regular basis?
On the random occasion that I caught American Idol on TV, the original song, “Pants On The Ground” by contestant Larry Platt came on, and it made my day. Here are his original lyrics, with the video posted below!
“Pants On The Ground” by Larry Platt
Pants on the Ground
Pants on the Ground
Lookin Like a Fool With Your Pants on the Ground
With the Gold in Ya Mouth
Hat Turned Sideways
Pants Hit the Ground
Call Yaself a Cool Cat
Lookin Like a Fool
Walkin Downtown With Your Pants on the Ground
Get ‘em Up…Hey!
Get Your Pants off the Ground
Lookin Like a Fool
Walkin, Talkin With Your Pants on the Ground
Get ‘em Up! Hey!
While watching an episode of American TV show 60 Minutes, I couldn’t help notice President Obama’s comments on the recent financial situation and who is responsible for the “mess”.
Given how fast the huge banks and corporations seem to have recovered from this downturn, I can completely understand what Obama is thinking when says “The people on Wall Street still don’t get it.” Because really, there are still 10% of Americans unemployed (which is huge), yet the “people on Wall Street” (big banks, etc) are already back to making insane bonuses of $20 Million a year!
I was able to find the part in the interview where Obama expresses his biggest frustration and really exposes the situation. Here’s the 2-minute clip:
Obama’s main point here is that the banks are still “puzzled” about why people are angry with them. The US President explained simply, why everyone would be annoyed:
“Well, let’s see. You guys are drawing down $10, $20 million bonuses after America went through the worst economic year that it’s gone through in decades, and you guys caused the problem. And we’ve got ten percent unemployment. Why do you think people might be a little frustrated?”
You can watch the full interview on 60 Minutes from the CBS website here.
Official description of the recording:
