About a week ago, my friend Josh told me about the vlogbrothers. They are author John Green and his brother Hank (of ecogeek) and they are, quite possibly, my new favorite people on the internet.
I have to admit, I’ve never read a thing by John Green (though his books have now mysteriously found their way to my wishlist). Until Josh linked me to vlogbrothers I’d never even heard of him. Once I started watching, though, I couldn’t stop. There’s years of correspondence between the two brothers on YouTube, and it’s inspiring to see that their project began as an experiment: two brothers agree to no textual correspondence for one year. They chose to try to keep up with each other via videoblog, and they succeeded. While they did so, they became an internet sensation with a dedicated following, and over the years their project has evolved into something that can only really be described as Crazy Awesome.
I think I like the vlogbrothers so much because not only are they doing what they can to make the world better, but they’re freaking entertaining as well. Both of them are crazy smart: John’s a liberal arts kind of a guy, while Hank’s a science geek. And they’re both supernerds. Harry Potter jokes, literary references, “Live Long and Prosper” hand signs, and more litter their videos. It’s so refreshing to see smart, funny nerds making an impact in a world where people tend to value, or at least pander to, the lowest common denominator. Most refreshing of all is the fact that no matter what they’re talking about, they always, always come across as relatable — even when giving very strong opinions on things ranging from politics to literature. And while they talk about serious business things sometimes, they can also be incredibly normal — one of their most recent exchanges (an accusation of Nintendo Sabotage and a rebuttal) reminded me vividly of my own sibling rivalries, though we didn’t have any pets to blame things on when we were young.
Beyond being simply enjoyable, the vlogbrothers have made me think of how I keep in touch with my siblings. We’re all in the Greater Atlanta area for now, but we are getting older, and our correspondence is mostly facebook messages and random, sporadic phone calls. It certainly makes me think that perhaps we could try a little harder to keep in touch now, before we find ourselves in our thirties and barely familiar with one another.
Count me as a brand-spanking-new Nerdfighter. DFTBA!
That sounds super-cool. I will definitely have to check them out. I often wish my brother and I had more in common.
I wish I were closer to my sisters. I’m pretty close to Cheryl but Tina? Not really. I don’t think she’s ever understood me fully. But when you have six years between your ages, finding common ground is gonna be hard.
I STILL LAUGH SO HARD AT THE POOP IN THE NINTENDO THING.