For over a year now, Jake and Amir have released a short comedy sketch every couple of days, usually from their desks at the CollegeHumor.com offices in New York, creating one very likeable and sympathetic character in Jake, and one of the most grating, pathetically annoying characters ever, in Amir, masterfully played by Amir (who isn't actually like that in real life). These guys have perfected the skill of conveying gut-tingling, awkward social moments in two-minute bursts. I'd take two minutes of original creativity on the Internet over 20 minutes of recycled jokes and laugh tracks on television any day. Lately, the show has really come in to its own with more complex narrative techniques and better production quality. The last couple of episodes were especially good and you can check them out on their website at www.jakeandamir.com

For over a year now, Jake and Amir have released a short comedy sketch every couple of days, usually from their desks at the CollegeHumor.com offices in New York, creating one very likeable and sympathetic character in Jake, and one of the most grating, pathetically annoying characters ever, in Amir, masterfully played by Amir (who isn't actually like that in real life). These guys have perfected the skill of conveying gut-tingling, awkward social moments in two-minute bursts. I'd take two minutes of original creativity on the Internet over 20 minutes of recycled jokes and laugh tracks on television any day. Lately, the show has really come in to its own with more complex narrative techniques and better production quality.

Just a friendly reminder to Strutta players that while Strutta plays hosts to a number of hotly contested competitions, it is ok to make friends here, even if most competitors these days aren't doing it that way: 

Joey Chestnut managed to retain his title as the world's greatest hot dog eater after defeating six-time champion Takeru Kobayashi in a 5-dog overtime dog-off at this year's 4th of July Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest. This is truly one of the most exciting finishes in sports history:

We've said it before, but in light of recent developments it seems prudent to mention it again. At Strutta, we respect and protect your privacy.

One hundred and forty one years and one day ago, the British North America Act came into effect, uniting Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec and Ontario, creating the Dominion of Canada. Add six more provinces, three territories, some beer, beavers and the Internet, and we have the modern nation we know and love.

To celebrate, Strutta's favourite cat (not to mention the only feline with its very own Strutta account), Flippy Cat, built an enormous Maple Leaf out of red and white dominoes, then proceeded to knock them all over, as Flippy Cat tends to do. Check out the video below:

Advertisers are slowly discovering the Interwebs and how to use the poor resolution and "user-generated" orientation of sites like YouTube to dupe people into believing that the impossible happened, that grainy = true, that anyone can leap a car if they're wearing the right shoes. This is an interesting trend in that it makes advertising far more bearable to watch, and also forces viewers to be a little less gullible (but it looked so real!). Of all the fake "real" videos that have popped up on the web recently, here are two of the most convincing:

Over the last couple of days, there's been a video getting sent around of a ball girl leaping up a left-field wall to make a catch during a televised minor league baseball game. It seems to get a lot of its viral fuel from the fact that people want to believe a little ball girl could make the catch. The video itself is riddled with signs that it's fake, like the fact that all of the billboards around the field have been blurred or whited out, and there's simply no way that little girl could make a leap like that. But what is it an ad for? Look at what's beside the girl's chair when she sits back down at the end of the video.

Manitoba's Archangel Fireworks will represent Canada on July 23rd as the HSBC Celebration of Light ignites with a Godzilla-themed pryotechnic display in Vancouver's English Bay, where Strutta will be on hand as the official videographers of the competition.

Come by and check out the firework displays, then watch them afterwards on Strutta to decide which one you think is the best. Canada's entry will be followed up by the US display on July 26th, China on July 30th, with the finale on the 2nd of August.

Friday afternoon saw the Strutta offices alive with conversation, as dozens of members of our beloved tech community graced us with their presence to enjoy a few tasty libations.

That is, we offered free beer and a crowd gathered. Much fun was had. Raul was on hand to photograph and blog the gathering; his photos are below in the slideshow. In case you hadn't heard, Raul wants you to follow him on Twitter. 

People sometimes tell me they have this really great idea for a Strutta video but they're shy and worried about how they'll look on camera. Luckily, there's a way around this problem and it's called "acting". Acting allows us to be much cooler on camera than we are when we're not on camera. It's also a skill, just like tying our shoes, knitting or shooting, so it's something we can all learn. And the best way to do that is probably to get advice from a pro, like James Franco, currently starring in a web series on funnyordie.com called "Acting with James Franco". Check it out below and learn how to sniff jackets and better express yourself on camera.