Phone it in Friday CXXII: YouTube Roundup CLXXXII: House Cleaning

13 February 202612 February 2026 The Portly Politico6 Comments

This week I’m really phoning it in, as the video today is showcasing someone else’s hard work.

My pastor started a cleaning business, Cornerstone Cleaning Solutions. He specializes in carpet cleaning—and, boy, does he do an amazing job—but he also does general house cleaning, including my least favorite chore: dusting.

I had to get my house on the market and it was suffering from seven-odd-years of an overworked man’s routine. Without a regular feminine presence, the dust had piled up into thicc (as the kids say) layers. It was pretty disgraceful, and definitely not fitting for showings.

Yours portly worked overtime for about two weeks to dust and declutter simply to prepare for my pastor to come in and work his magic. He spent eight hours on his first visit deep cleaning the carpets, dusting, etc.

I’ve hired him to do twice-monthly visits until the house sells (it’s currently under contract, so God Willing, the closing will be soon). I made this video after his second visit (just three hours compared to the initial one):

Phone it in Friday CXXI: YouTube Roundup CLXXXI: Snow Murph

6 February 20262 February 2026 The Portly Politico5 Comments

My old bull terrier, Murphy, loves winter. She really seems to come alive in the cold, and even loves frolicking in the snow.

This Friday, I have three videos of Murphy adapting to some wintry climes:

Phone it in Friday CXX: YouTube Roundup CLXXX: Koi Pond Triptych

30 January 202629 January 2026 The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Yours portly has been uploading some more of his original compositions to YouTube. This week, I’m featuring three pieces that are part of (so far) a koi pond triptych of compositions. I’ll be adding to this trio of pieces, so it won’t remain a triptych for long, but that’s a good way of conceptualizing it for now.

I’ve really enjoyed these three pieces, which are all for small, unorthodox chamber groups.

Phone it in Friday CXIX: YouTube Roundup CLXXIX: Winter

23 January 202622 January 2026 The Portly Politico2 Comments

It is the deep midwinter, and even the Carolinas are getting their share of the white stuff. Murphy and I were up at Dr. Wife’s house in North Carolina this past weekend, and there was a little bit of snow on Sunday afternoon!

This weekend brings Winter Storm Fern, which is supposed to dump lots of snow and/or “wintry mix” and/or ice all over the Southeastern United States. Gulp! We’ll know more by Sunday.

In the spirit of wintry frostiness, here are a couple of recent videos from North Carolina all about the cold.

Phone it in Friday CXVIII: YouTube Roundup CLXXVIII: Rococo

16 January 202614 January 2026 The Portly Politico4 Comments

My YouTube uploads have been a bit barren lately, so I’ve got one quick video this week, featuring a Lipper & Mann dish or container in a flamboyant Rococo style:

Phone it in Friday CXVII: YouTube Roundup CLXXVII: The Eggcraticus Duology

9 January 20268 January 2026 The Portly Politico2 Comments

Yours portly is a little wacky. I like to play with my food—or, at least, my food containers.

That’s the setup for today’s videos, both of which feature the fearsome Eggcraticus, the villainous, ravenous egg crate who is out for eggs:

Phone it in Friday CXVI: YouTube Roundup CLXXVI: Cute Animals

2 January 202630 December 2025 The Portly Politico2 Comments

Regular readers will know how much I love animals. One of the more surprising changes as I approached middle-age is that I went from being aloof towards the animal kingdom to adoring animals. I’m not sure what changed or what clicked, but getting my dog Murphy was definitely a big step in that process.

Regardless, this Friday I have a couple of cute animal videos from below and above the waves:

Phone it in Friday CXV: YouTube Roundup CLXXV: Star Wars Figurines

26 December 202524 December 2025 The Portly Politico3 Comments

I’ve been going through a bunch of my old stuff in preparation for moving items to the new house. In doing so, I’ve come across quite a few Star Wars action figures and collectibles.

I was a huge Star Wars kid. I loved the original trilogy and tolerated the prequel trilogy (indeed, I was super excited for the latter). I particularly loved the miniatures. I’ve sold most of the action figures in the following videos to a colleague of mine—he will take excellent care of them—but I am keeping the miniatures. They are so cool!

So, here are some recent videos featuring these fun figurines:

Phone it in Friday CXIV: YouTube Roundup CLXXIV: Cruise Art

19 December 202517 December 2025 The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Dr. Wife and I took a cruise for our honeymoon aboard Royal Caribbean‘s Explorer of the Seas. The artwork impressed, delighted, and even confounded me.

As such, I put together a brief video showcasing some of the art onboard the ship. This video only captures a small fraction of the collages, paintings, photographs, mosaics, etc., aboard Explorer of the Seas. The selections were often odd, but they really fit the atmosphere of the ship, and added a touch of elegance and class to the cruise.

Phone it in Friday CXIII: YouTube Roundup CLXXIII: Triple Soundboards

12 December 20259 December 2025 The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Last Saturday I wrote in detail about the three-soundboard setup I used for a school play. It’s a rather technical topic (although I don’t get overly technical with it), but I made a little video that will either a.) clarify how the setup worked or b.) deepen readers’ confusion.

Let’s find out which!

The Portly Politico

One Southerner's unique, erudite, conservative perspective in a hectic world

Tag: Phone it in Friday