Thursday, September 29, 2011

When Wine Doesn't Work Try Soothetube

One overcast afternoon, I fumbled with the remote to find some zone-out television programming. After ten frustrating minutes and fifty eight channels later, I stumbled upon a gem. There it was, the tail end of a Joy of Painting episode on PBS. I am a huge fan of the late Bob Ross, but not because I have any interest in becoming a budding artist, but because his voice that has always had a relaxing and almost bewitching effect on me. Yes....happy little clouds...zzzzzzzz. When the show ended, my journey began to seek out full JOP episodes. First stop, YouTube. Much to my chagrin, the Ross family is hellbent on protecting their empire and each video is restricted to just three minutes-hardly enough time to satiate my taste for tranquil speech. A few forgettable search words later, I stumbled upon the answer to my prayers, Soothetube. It seems that I am not the only one with a strange hang up. Soothetube touts itself as the most relaxing site on the net and for good reason. Take for instance the video of a guy demonstrating how to build a chuckbox. Now, I have no clue or care of how to build one, but its the rhythm of his voice and the monotony of such a mundane task that takes me to a place of sheer and utter relaxation. If male voices are not your cup of tea, then check out a gal named, YanHaiYing, pour one! This insightful Asian gal has some 6,000 videos with her doing nothing more than making pre-packaged, processed desserts or flipping through a magazine. However, if beauty is in the eye of the beholder, the same holds true for relaxation. Some of Soothetube’s videos walk a fine line between creepy and customary. Blame it on M. Night Shyamalan, but I find the sound of someone whispering to be downright freaky. But don’t take my ears for it, check it out for yourself.