Today was a sad day. One of those days that makes you realise just how fragile reality is. The oldest hotel in England burned to the ground today. I stayed in this hotel exactly one year ago. I had the most amazing room overlooking the cathedral. And now it’s gone. Three hundred years of history reduced to ash in just a few hours. All the things that occurred in those three hundred years. The good and the bad. All the incidents that the building survived. Now wiped out. Gone. I actually recorded a video from that hotel room that day. Little did I know that it would document the last time I could ever experience that room. That view. The history. That hotel. Life is fragile.
Having re-watched this video that I originally posted as a secret Easter Egg, it seems appropriate that the room in which I sat no longer exists. Remember, everything, really, is tears in rain.
It was sad to watch the demise of this historic building on the news, I have always loved historic places and often imagined the past lives of the people that inhabited them, the good, the bad, the notable and the ordinary will forever fascinate me. This video is one of your best as far as I am concerned, very frank. I have often wondered why I post videos and although I do not chase subscription it is obvious that without it there would be no point in bothering at all…. So perhaps in some way I do, but I have to say that the motivation for subscribing or giving a thumbs up is at the center of the issue and being part of the “crowd” or it just being the manifestation of some sort of “on-line friendship” is an anathema to me. Despite good advice I have always done my own thing, often to great cost. Lets face it it’s very hard not to be yourself and very often how one is perceived by others has as much to do with them as it does oneself…
The motivation for subscribing or thumbs-upping is interesting. There is definitely the sense that people are playing a game for some kind of perceived ‘friendship’. After getting over the initial thrill of all these YouTube TV channels, I unsubscribed from some of the ones of which I was oh so dedicated.
Apparently over 75% of my views come from non-subscribers. And I think “where the hell are all these views then?”… and it turns out everyone is still watching the same couple of review videos. Those bloody videos are notching up thousands of views. But the ones I WANT people to watch barely scrape a hundred.
It’s dawning on me that the sort of person that people want to watch and chuck their knickers at just isn’t, and never will be, me. But I can never change to be more like them because those people, in essence, piss me off (even if I watch them and kind of like them). This isn’t a violin rant. I’m quite content really. Just so long as I continue to engage with people who have minds of their own. Or maybe I’m kidding myself there too…. hmmmmm?
Oh I have never thought of these outbursts as violin rants, It seems to me that there are many games being played and it is hard to understand a lot of it. One only has to look around and watch what is going on in the world (and always has been going on) that silly games and silly people are the norm and that things rapidly get out of proportion when they form into groups. I think there are plenty of people who have minds of their own but they tend to be on the fringes and are often put aside by those huddled together. Its not new, as Noel Coward once said, “Some people make a career of motive discovery, they search every word for a clue, like old ladies peering under the bed for burglars.” I think if I were to ask you if you had a mind of your own you would say yes and I would probably agree. It is therefore quite reasonable to assume that there are many more, the thing is they often make the pack feel uncomfortable. It takes more effort and a charitable disposition to get to know them. As for what people want to watch, well that is the 64 million dollar question! I don’t want to sound judgemental (then again maybe I do) but some of the things people watch are bloody awful, particularly some of the “guitar channels” where there are people that really can’t play a note or even talk coherently acting with a real sense of authority and judgement. At times it is the most bizarre thing I have witnessed, perhaps youtube has become the modern equivalent to the circus freak show of the 19th century. There is obviously a need for such things and if that is the case what on earth am I doing? Ha ha, now that’s a rant Mr Six, I even end up doubting myself by the end of it! Thank heavens I have a mind of my own….. Oh oh this train of thought has given me an idea for a rather magnificent future video that may garner more than 50 views…. Onward to fame and fortune!
That is sad news even though I am American I can and do appreciate the historical architecture in the UK and in Europe in general, not only for the history and memories that must have been made over the years but also maybe because I’m a carpenter and can really understand what it must have taken to achieve such beautifully intricate buildings, especially given the available technology at the time. It’s so easy to take things for granted but you never know what the future holds. It’s funny you mentioned people thumbing or commenting before watching the video, I just witnessed this the other day again where the video is an hour long yet within minutes of it’s release there were several comments with jokes and thank you’s when it was impossible to have even seen half of the video, strange. As far as subscribers and views I see a lot of unoriginal channels with loads of views when the best most creative channels get far less appreciation for a reason I don’t understand. A huge reason I don’t make videos is because there are already hundreds of people doing what I do and in many cases they do it better so what’s the point? That doesn’t stop everyone though unfortunately. :} I hope things go the other way at some point where the right talented people get the recognition they deserve but I won’t hold my breathe. Take care and cheers Six!