Imagine waking up one day and you’re video went viral. Thousands and thousands of views are piling up by the second. You are on top of the world. All thanks to one website called YouTube. YouTube is a website where content creators can create and upload any types of videos that viewers might (or might not) watch. I am one of those content creators.

I created my first ever YouTube video on May 5, 2018, titled, Best ASMR Triggers. My friends and I met up to go shopping on garage sale day in our town (Altamont). It was a very warm day, and you could feel the sun stroking your skin like a feather. We had a great time walking in town and viewing all of the random garage sale merchandise, such as old TVs, fidget spinners, somehow still being sold, and some jackpot finds, such as a (likely fake) 23 Carat gold Michael Jordan 1998 collectors card, which I quickly purchased. We had bought all of the useless garbage that our hearts desired when we headed back to my house.

Sweat dripping from our chins, we walked for about 15 minutes before we finally arrived at my beloved ranch. My friends and I strode into my house with all of our commodities and plans to mess around and hang out. What ended up happening was definitely something more than just hanging out. I had the brilliant idea to create a specific YouTube video, ASMR, using our newly acquired garage sale goods. ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response) videos are composed of quiet, gentle sounds that are supposed to be relaxing and can give an individual tingles, which are tingles running down your spine caused by relaxing sounds from an ASMR video. However, we were going to create a different ASMR video, one composed of not relaxing sounds, like a fork against a coffee mug (we bought a Campbell's Soup Mug), or banging on the microphone. We thought that this video was a gem, an ingenious creation conceived from the minds of the elite. Obviously, this video was a very ill-witted video idea, but some very, very ill-witted ideas become popular on YouTube, so we gave it a shot.

One of my friends had to leave, so the only remaining friend and I went to film our masterpiece. After multiple, multiple takes and modifications of the video, we finally got through our whole video plan without laughing. He then left, and I was left wondering, what was I thinking? I still wonder that to this day. I did not have the footage of the video, as we used my friends phone to create the video. I was anticipating the video’s upload for hours until I finally got a notification, reading, “From Complete Random (our channel): Best ASMR Triggers.” I was excited to watch our video, and I was anticipating this low quality video to go viral. I watched the video and was in awe that I actually went through and created this video. After that video, I never planned to start consistently creating and uploading videos, but I just had the urge to film more videos, and so I did.

I enjoy creating all of the videos that I make, but I specifically enjoy creating videos that I have to make props for, such as the video titled, “CRAZY 24 HOUR RAFT CHALLENGE *GONE WRONG*.” I still remember the scenery, my fields tall with hay, the air thick with the smell of clover, and the feel of occasional breezes of cool, late summer air. For that video, my friend and I constructed a makeshift “raft” out of a $7 mattress and lots of duct tape. The raft took about ten minutes to construct and inflate, and then we were ready to deploy the “Random Raft” (the name of the raft). My friend had also ordered some inflatable rings that you could throw around in the pool and a paddle to steer the raft during its treacherous voyage in my pond.

With high hopes, we brought the raft to my pond and started filming. I explained what we were going to be doing, and then my friend, without any hesitation, jumped right into the “raft.” To our surprise, the “raft” actually floated-and floated well. We were able to fully extend our legs when lying down, and it was quite comfortable. My pond is not the largest pond, but we had plenty of room to row the “raft” around. The pond smelled like a landfill of eggs and decomposing rats, and it left a rotten taste in your mouth. There were many leeches slithering in the water like slimy sea serpents. There were also snapping turtles, frogs, dragonflies and plenty of mosquitoes and horseflies that lurk beneath the surface of my pond, which made filming more difficult. The mosquitoes and horseflies in particular were giving us a hard time filming, as they were constantly biting us, like there were tiny pins and needles poking you. As you might expect, we didn't actually spend 24 hours on a makeshift raft in a stagnant pond. We filmed for about an hour, taking turns between filming and going on the raft. This video, as well as all of our others, was lots of fun to create.

At this point, you may be asking, Why do you create and upload these YouTube videos? Considering the type of content that I make, it is a very valid question. I create YouTube videos to try and make others laugh. I like to have an impact on people, whether it be one person or multiple people, and I always want it to be positive. I try to create “funny” content on my channel so that I can entertain others. I love to entertain people, so I make these videos to do so. One comment on one of my videos reads, “the videos like best asmr sounds was amazing and had me laughing out loud the entire time.” Seeing that comment made me realize that when you make others laugh or feel good, you make yourself feel good, and that is something that I always strive for. No matter how awful my content may be, it satisfies me that some people actually enjoy our videos.

Finally, being a YouTuber is important to me because it lets me express my ideas and makes me get out of the house and come up with video ideas. I love creating videos, and I love it even more when other people like our videos. I like to have an impact on some people (even if it is an incredibly, incredibly small impact).  Also, making videos takes time. I have to meet up with my friend(s), then brainstorm and produce video ideas, then put those ideas into motion through a camera. After that, we have to make sure all of the scenes are to our liking, and make sure that the clips are in order. We take a thumbnail (the picture preview that shows up when before you click on the video) and either do the process all over again for another video or go home. Creating these videos gets me doing something, and makes me think of ways to entertain people. All of the videos I film involve physical activity and/or the creation of props, costumes or structures, which takes time and effort. Making videos gets me thinking, and it gets me physical activity, which opens up a creative side of my mind. Without YouTube, I would not even think about doing anything to have an impact, and being a YouTuber shows that anybody can have an impact today.

In conclusion, I am a small content creator on YouTube, but I still can make an impact. My impact may not be as large as others, but at least I can go to sleep knowing that I've done something. Some people can become famous within seconds on YouTube. And who knows, maybe that could be you.

-A.J. Castillo