Monday, July 23, 2012
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Super Mario Marbles
Super Mario Bros. Glass Marbles Blow Me Away
Posted: 13 Jul 2012 04:00 PM PDT
Damn. Those are marbles? When I was a kid marbles were boring swirly colored little orbs. These things are works of art that look so awesome that they should be in some combination of a 3D Mario and a Metroid game.
These handcrafted Super Mario Bros. marbles were made by glass blowing artist Paul Stephan from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. All I can say is, the man is an artist. Each of these marbles shows an actual level behind our hero, with some amazing detail.
Damn. Now I really want to buy these. And I can't. Paul needs to get himself a deal and start working with Nintendo to produce more of these things so that we can all buy them. Great work, Paul!
[via Obvious Winner
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3DS XL
Satoru Iwata Tries to Explain Why No Second Circle Pad for 3DS XL
Posted: 13 Jul 2012 01:00 PM PDT
Each time I look at a photo of the Nintendo 3DS XL I wonder why Nintendo didn't just add a second circle pad to the console from the start. I always figured it was because Nintendo wanted to sell the Circle Pad accessory. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata is offering up the official explanation of why the portable console only has one circle pad.
According to Iwata the main concerns for Nintendo when designing the 3DS XL console was longer battery life and to have as large a screen as possible. He says that a second circle pad was never a main focus when designing the console, but it was something Nintendo looked into. He claims that the second circle pad would've required a physically larger portable and a smaller battery.
Iwata said during a recent interview, "When we looked at the design of the 3DS XL, we had to look at various factors. One was battery life. One was the overall size of the unit. And we had to make some trade-offs. The choice, if we were going to include the second analog stick, was to reduce the size of the batteries or make the unit much bigger. What we wanted to do was have a bigger screen in comparison with the overall size of the system, so we had various discussions and had to make trade-offs, and this is the outcome."
[via Nintendo Life]
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Ice trays
The Cube Tube Improves Upon the Ordinary Ice Tray
Posted: 13 Jul 2012 08:00 AM PDT
I use ice cubes regularly (who doesn't?) but I find filling up the ice trays after all the ice has been used up to be quite the chore. There's the task of having to pour water slowly into each compartment and make sure it's not too full or not too empty, before slowly walking back to the freezer to put the tray back in. There's also the mess and sanitation risk of having to handle each cube by hand.
A neat solution to this is the Cube Tube. It's basically a square-shaped container that you're supposed to fill with water. Then you insert the divider that does all the work for you, twist it in to seal it, and pop the entire thing into the freezer. And voila, you're done! No muss, no fuss, and definitely no spillage.
Pretty convenient, right?
They're not for sale yet, although the projected price for these Cube Tubes are about $7 to $8 when they go into production. For the convenience it brings, I'd say that's a reasonable price. Check them out on Quirky for more information.
[via Oh Gizmo!
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Bunny + Dr Who = The cuteness
The Cast of Doctor Who in Bunny Form, Why Not?
Posted: 13 Jul 2012 07:00 AM PDT
Here comes Doctor Cottontail, hopping down the bunny trail. Hippity Hoppity, the TARDIS is on the way… What the hell happened to the Doctor here? And Amy and Rory? Well, this isn't some lost Easter special episode. Etsy seller Catherine Boucher aka StitchyButton turned them into cute little bunnies.
Yeah, this has probably been done before, but if so, I'm sure it wasn't done this well. These time traveling hares are adorable.
She makes all kinds of famous characters into bunnies in fact. You might say that they multiply like rabbits. She makes Harry Potter, Marvel characters, and even the ladies fromGame of Thrones – but they're not rabbits, at least not yet. But these Doctor who bunnies are the neatest I think. Great work, Catherine!
[via The Mary Sue]
Monday, July 9, 2012
Grace at Work
by Margaret D. Mitchell
Week of July 8, 2012
"Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people." -Ephesians 6:7
"Say to those with fearful hearts, 'Be strong, and do not fear, for your God is coming to destroy your enemies. He is coming to save you.'" -Isaiah 35:4
A couple of my friends recently shared their greatest workplace challenges with me over coffee. Among their laments were: A boss with a double-mind; evil co-workers; multiple, drastic process changes and unattainable performance expectations.
Though these friends prayed together at work, they felt they had seen little improvement. What's more, they had grown weary in well-doing. They wanted to know where to go from where they were. Here are the results of that conversation that may help you, should you find yourself in difficult circumstances at work:
God's Purpose: Why Am I Here?– Yes, your job is for more than a paycheck! Your job is your divine assignment. It is your mission field. It is all divinely purposed! And it is seasonal! You are there so that God can do a work in you, through you and for you (on your behalf) simultaneously. He will use the people, the location and the daily circumstances to accomplish His will accordingly, even—and especially if—you find yourself in a job that you would've never selected for yourself. God will use it all! Are you willing to journey through it with Him and yield to His way of doing His work in, through and for you?
God's Strategy: What Do I Do?– Maintain a servant's attitude, and do the job you were hired to do with excellence. Watch your mouth, your attitude and your actions. Affirm to God that you need His help. Ask God what He wants you to see, know and do amid your circumstances. Ask God to enable you to receive all He has for you and nothing that is not of Him. Ask God to reveal to you His vision, strategy, reinforcement, divine appointments and divine connections. Ask God for a Christian prayer partner or group. Ask God to lead you to the sources and resources that have what you need. All along the way, ask God to reveal His understanding and solutions to problems. Your journey will contain incremental successes. All of it will challenge you in the area of character building to prepare you for your next promotion.
God knows and sees all things, and He will get you where He wants you to be and help you do what He wants you to do if you are willing to hearken. Pray for your boss, your co-workers and the company as the Holy Spirit leads. You will endure the journey and can be promoted faster (internally or externally) by processing through every challenge God's way. Remember, God takes us from holiness to holiness, from glory to glory. Sometimes, He accomplishes this work quickly by taking us through the furnace. In so doing, He redeems lost time. God can do much in these accelerated times in which we work and live. He is the ultimate multitasker. So count it all good, and journey through God's way, so you don't have to perpetually cycle through rounds of testing.
Guard Your Heart | Don Your Armor (Eph. 6:11-18) – Your heart belongs to God, so be careful with human connections, especially in your workplace. Not everyone will have your back or even like you. Some may feel envious or competitive towards you. Many will have different beliefs than yours. Kindness and prayer are strengths, but not everyone will be interested in what your heart has to offer. Apply wisdom. If people are not willing to receive what you are willing to give, there can be no deep connection without God's transformational power intervening. Know this ahead of time; respect and accept others' right to choose (God does); shake the dust off, and turn from situations where people do not accept you. In essence, don't waste your time. Remember, Jesus suffered rejection, so you're not alone. Speak a blessing over those who reject you, and ask God to redirect your path to those who are willing and able to receive. Be professional, move on and keep your eyes on the Lord.
Regarding your boss, she/he has a job to do, regardless of your friendly relationship with her/him. That means you must perform up to standard in the position for which you were hired. If you do not, you will be penalized. It is wrong to expect your boss to cover your inadequate performance regardless of whether you are friends with her/him. In workplaces, performance is paramount. Unless you are a member of a family business or own your own company, bosses will not typically extend the kind of grace your mother would. It is not their job to take care of you outside of your work life. It is their job to oversee you and your work while you are at work. They have a lot on their plate. And not all bosses will nurture you, simply due to time constraints. Various bosses have varying management styles. And different companies have different corporate cultures. Pray about this. Regardless of your circumstances, it is your responsibility to do the job you were hired to do with excellence unto the Lord. Excellence is Jesus' standard. If it is impossible for you to meet the company's standards, pray and perhaps speak to your boss about improving the processes that affect you or ask her/him to reassign you to an area where your strengths can shine. Ask God to make you aware when your job assignment is complete and finish well. How you finish is how you will enter into your next job assignment. And remember, God may give you a season of rest before your next assignment. So follow His lead.
Do not allow yourself to be provoked by your boss or co-workers. Those of us who have high callings on our lives will be perpetually tested on this until we overcome this issue, the purpose being to mature us to a level where we can stand among multitudes and glorify God with our thoughts, speech, attitude and actions no matter what offense is hurled at us. Jesus did. Whoever is provoking you is God's instrument in this regard, so count it as joy (James 1:2). Remember, God is sovereign, and no one can do anything short of God's permissive will. As Christians, we are to respond from the Holy Spirit, not react from offense. If you find that someone gets under your skin frequently, it could be that God is trying to get your attention to turn to Him to learn how to become "unprovokable. " You are in training for eternity! Ask God to help you, and listen to what He reveals to you. He knows just how to get you there.
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Friday, July 6, 2012
Zombies and Assassins Creed
Z World Zombie Theme Park Could Make Abandoned Detroit a Cool Place to Visit Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:00 PM PDT I'm sure most of us have watched zombie shows such as The Walking Dead and wondered if we would be able to survive a zombie apocalypse. An entrepreneur named Mark Siwak has a seriously awesome idea for a theme park that would let you find out how you would fare if zombies were to attack. The man has a plan to make a theme park using abandoned and derelict areas of Detroit called Z World. The idea is that people would come to the theme park in pay to enter a 200-acre apocalyptic style abandoned urban setting where you can run and hide from zombies to your heart's content. The idea would be to see if you can take refuge in the abandoned buildings and survive the zombie horde. Sadly, you won't be able to try out your Crovel at Z World. Siwak believes that this theme park could employ hundreds or even thousands of people in the Detroit area to shuffle around in zombie makeup and work other areas of the park. However, some think the plan is nothing more than an attempt to capitalize on Detroit's woes. Apparently, Detroit has lost approximately area 1.1 million citizens since 1950 leaving massive areas uninhabited and crumbling. That sounds like the perfect place for a zombie theme park to me. For now, we'll have to settle for this. [via Daily Mail] |
Assassin's Creed III "Rise" Trailer Tells Its Tale Using Real Actors Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:15 AM PDT We've seen our share of trailers for the coming video game Assassin's Creed III, expected to launch in October. So far the trailers we've seen have used actual gameplay footage to show what the video game will be like. A new trailer for the video game went live yesterday that uses live actors to promote the rebellion theme of the video game. The "rise" message of the video since makes sense considering the game is set during the American Revolution. The trailer shows a number of different actors in situations looking stoic as bad things happen – typically perpetrated by enemy soldiers or plain mean people. We've seen previous trailers that show naval warfare allowing the player to control or ownership and board enemy ships for hand-to-hand combat. There have also been rumors that players will be able to domesticate animals and play some sort of mysterious third character. From the looks of things, this may be one of the game to come in the Assassin's Creed franchise yet. |