This, I imagine, is going to be a new series of posts called, "Yours truly is either too busy, lazy, or just not in the mood to write something extensive". In this case, it's the latter, because I have to once more play the role of tech support in the family , again. I really hate diagnosing tech-y problems, so much. This time however, it's not my laptop that's causing problems, but my brother's, with his still new-ish HP Omen 15 gaming laptop's screen flickering like mad.

I tried everything software-wise, including a reinstall of the graphics drivers, running through software updates, and checking-in with the onboard diagnostics. Alas, it remains broken. I think this time, I've lost, and I can't fix this on my own. Now, I must send it to a shop to get the screen fixed, which would be a rather interesting experience, since I've yet to visit the busy parts of downtown Kuala Lumpur post-lockdown.

Can We Make This Go Viral, Please?

Credits to: Alex Pogorelov - ArtStation

That'll be an adventure for another day however, although the prospect of having something in the house that's broken, and stubbornly unfixed is annoying. It's tapped what motivation and focus that still remained in my psycho, so I've decided to write this short post of something neat that I've found. Trust me, you're going to want to read on, or maybe just watch this video. Remember how that Coffin Dance meme went viral, as a sign of times that coincided well when Covid struck the world?

It was everywhere, and nowhere can I go to avoid it. Just in case you've been living under a rock, or somehow have been lucky enough to avoid watching it, I'll link the video here. Be warned however, as its incredibly addictive. I don't know why, but I suppose the catchy song may have been a good reason as to why the video skyrocketed in popularity. I enjoyed the tune, as silly as everything else was. I've even been spending more time that I'd like to admit listening to some of the remixes.

Here's a cool one that's been redone with a retro-licious, 80s synthwave. So, you're welcome. But now, that's more or less died down, and as viral memes do, they only lasted a hot minute, before being relegated into obsolescence to the archives of the internet. Never again will it be mentioned by the algorithms, ever. I think now, I've found something that could hopefully be a fitting replacement, equally catchy, and this time it's not all too morbid.

In fact, it's quite adorable! This here is simply titled, "Bongo Cat In Space", and I first came across this while perusing through the depths of Twitter. Just, don't ask how I found it. I won't be lying if I said that I've been watching this on loop for some hours now. If you've watched the video, I think you can agree with me, no? It's a cat, on a rocket-ship, going to space, all the while playing a keyboard. The result is a masterpiece of musical engineering.

Other than the magnificent animation work done here, there's a few key components of this music video to unravel a bit more. That soundtrack is a synthwave remix of the Siberiade theme song. I'm not much of a movie geek to have known about this, but Siberiade, as I've now learned, it an old 1979 Soviet four-part epic film. It spans much of 20th-century Russia, and so far as I know, it goes through those tumultuous periods of war, drama, cultural, and social changes.

Now we come to the character, Bongo Cat. It's apparently quite a phenomenon, which I suppose is rather unsurprising, given how much the internet loves cats. Rendered as this marshmallow-like squishy cat, their YouTube channel is awash with remixes of popular songs, all featuring one or more of these animated felines playing a variety of musical instruments. Sometimes, the even sing - well, meowing - along! There's even a whole website where you could make your own Bongo Cat music.

Well anyways, put those two together, and you have this. I made jokes on Twitter about how I felt that this was equally a fitting sign of the times like that Coffin Dance meme. All this time, the plague is still with us, and the world is no less buggered than it was. I mentioned how perfect it would be to have this music play as the end credits to humankind's demise, as Coronavirus kills every person on Earth, while Bongo Cat escapes to space. I think that would be a great way to die, don't you?