Devablogger

bradofarrell: This year at E3 during the Xbox panel during a...

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 10:46:28 -0400

This year at E3 during the Xbox panel during a scripted “trash talk” bit someone made a scripted rape joke (male gamer to girl gamer who sucks at a game: “just wait, it’ll all be over soon.”) and then they acted like it wasn’t a big deal and then they released an expensive, anti-consumer (DRM on physical games) piece of hardware. And then Sony just released the PS4 which is just the PS3 but better graphics and $100 cheaper than the Xbox. So THAT happened.

But then Nintendo just quietly released a bunch of great looking sequels for all of it’s major franchises (Mario, Pikmin, Donkey Kong, and Smash Bros.) and every single one of those games interestingly features playable female characters who haven’t been seen in decades like Dixie Kong and Princess Peach - and Pikmin now has a new female hero.

One of my favorite things about Peach in the new Mario game is that one of the power ups is a literal “cat suit” and Peach’s “cat suit” doesn’t sexualize her at ALL. You can’t even see her boobs. She just looks like she’s wearing over-sized footie pajamas it’s so cute. Also they added a pink letter to the Mario logo just to accommodate Peach’s re-inclusion into the franchise as a character with actual agency!

So at the end of the presentation they tell you to go to the Smash Bros website to find out about new characters. And then they announced this character, Wii Fit Trainer, on the site. And in an interview the director said he gets thousands of requests for almost every video game character under the sun and he’s gotten absolutely zero requests for this character and he put her in the game to be funny and defy fan expectation. This character is literally “hey fuck you we’re the ones making the games around here, and we’ll be goofy and funny if we want to and also check it out another female character in Smash.”

Also the inclusion of the Animal Crossing villager is interesting because Animal Crossing is VERY popular with girls and even though the villager is male I’m 100% certain his alternate costumes will include the girl default villager character. So that’s neat. The three Smash characters they announced were two girl(ish) characters from two girl(ish) games and then Mega Man.

Also in the new Animal Crossing game boys are allowed to cross dress and all of the animals are explicitly genderqueer in the dialog. Characters say stuff like “Boys can ware make up if they want to, I mean, it’s 2013, who cares?” and just today a jock rhino was looking deeply into my eyes and asking me to hike a football and I asked him if he loved me (which was one of the option out of other options about sports) and he was like “Oh I guess a lot can happen when you look into someone else’s eyes like that, huh?” He didn’t even care that we’re both guys. Also in the new Pokemon game you can be black.

Basically what I’m saying is Nintendo is quietly and systematically making their games more socially progressive and Microsoft made a rape joke and then said “what? it was a joke.”

"when your little girl asks you if she’s pretty your heart will drop like a wineglass on the hardwood..."

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 13:52:05 -0400

“when your little girl
asks you if she’s pretty
your heart will drop like a wineglass
on the hardwood floor
part of you will want to say
of course you are, don’t ever question it
and the other part
the part that is clawing at
you
will want to grab her by her shoulders
look straight into the wells of
her eyes until they echo back to you
and say
you do not have to be if you don’t want to
it is not your job
both will feel right
one will feel better
she will only understand the first
when she wants to cut her hair off
or wear her brother’s clothes
you will feel the words in your
mouth like marbles
you do not have to be pretty if you don’t want to
it is not your job”

- it is not your job | Caitlyn Siehl (via the-healing-nest)

(via Turn your brain waves into a scarf with “Neuro Knitting” |...

Fri, 07 Jun 2013 16:47:42 -0400

(via Turn your brain waves into a scarf with “Neuro Knitting” | KnitHacker)

Drawing arbitrary 8-bit images by playing Tetris - Boing Boing

Tue, 04 Jun 2013 18:09:22 -0400

Drawing arbitrary 8-bit images by playing Tetris - Boing Boing

Radical axis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Thu, 30 May 2013 10:01:50 -0400

Radical axis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

The radical axis (or power line) of two circles is the locus of points at which tangents drawn to both circles have the same length.

The Science of Loneliness: How Isolation Can Kill You | New Republic

Wed, 15 May 2013 12:48:05 -0400

The Science of Loneliness: How Isolation Can Kill You | New Republic

cookiepuss: This made me mad this morning. I know all my Tumblr...

Fri, 10 May 2013 12:45:33 -0400

cookiepuss:

This made me mad this morning. I know all my Tumblr friends are pro marriage equality but wanted to share someone’s personal story. They are due with their first child in June and have been together for a long long time. They own a home together. Michele works for a non profit organization and her wife is a public school art teacher. Two really upstanding awesome women. This is just a bummer to say the least.

I’ve been exercising my geometric construction and vector...

Fri, 10 May 2013 00:36:42 -0400

I’ve been exercising my geometric construction and vector art skills.

(via 050913 - devaburger’s Sta.sh)

"We are afraid to care too much, for fear that the other person does not care at all."

Wed, 08 May 2013 22:54:32 -0400

““We are afraid to care too much, for fear that the other person does not care at all.””

- Eleanor Roosevelt (via sweetpeapath)

ADAM & EVE Animation (by maxximuss1979)

Tue, 07 May 2013 16:52:30 -0400

ADAM & EVE Animation (by maxximuss1979)

technologyisreadytowear: LEGO Loom Machine

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 23:13:13 -0400

technologyisreadytowear:

LEGO Loom Machine

Gorgeous use of string art.

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 09:56:00 -0400

Gorgeous use of string art.

sharkinfested: Margaret Wertheim on hyperbolic crocheting. “So...

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 09:54:57 -0400

sharkinfested:

Margaret Wertheim on hyperbolic crocheting.

“So here in wool, through a domestic, feminine art is the proof that the most famous postulate in mathematics is wrong.”

The work of Judith Poxson Fawkes is inspiring.

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 10:08:14 -0400

The work of Judith Poxson Fawkes is inspiring.

Our Math Deficit Doesn't Add Up | Mother Jones

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 08:22:00 -0400

Our Math Deficit Doesn't Add Up | Mother Jones:

It’s natural for older generations to think the younger ones are dumber, more immoral, and lazier than theirs. More often than not, the older generation is flat-out wrong.

sweater turned bag on Flickr. I unraveled a thrift store sweater...

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 09:58:00 -0400

sweater turned bag on Flickr.

I unraveled a thrift store sweater (linen/silk blend. score!) to reclaim the yarn, wove the yarn into fabric, then sewed the fabric into a bag. There’s even a pocket on the inside! Used the Doni’s delis bag pattern.

burlap bracelet on Flickr.Here’s a glamour shot of the...

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 17:21:31 -0400

burlap bracelet on Flickr.

Here’s a glamour shot of the bracelet I made at a friend’s house. He had a potato sack sitting around, and the burlap was shedding. Such pretty fibers, and I didn’t want them to go to waste.

crocheted bowl on Flickr.Still busting my stash, I crocheted a...

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 10:13:18 -0400

crocheted bowl on Flickr.

Still busting my stash, I crocheted a small bowl from hemp twine. I have three more balls of the twine in different colors and no plans for them yet.

sesamestreet: Geometry of Circles: The unofficial music video...

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 10:36:41 -0400

sesamestreet:

Geometry of Circles: The unofficial music video of Pi Day since 1979.

Home and Garden pH Indicators

Sat, 02 Mar 2013 12:01:54 -0500

Home and Garden pH Indicators:

I’ve used turmeric and red cabbage before with good results. Fun for kitchen playtime.