LIFE has been like a rollercoaster since it was announced a while back. It looks like we finally have a happy ending to it's cancelled/uncancelled legacy though.  Sweetie Bot fired emails off to both Toywiz and USAopoly, and both confirmed it.  Toywiz even threw pre-orders up.  Want to play with some of the bigger fan favorite ponies out there? Hit it up over here!  Expect a release some time in August. 

And now, this is what it looks like when you drop a neodymium magnet into a fat copper tube

Sorcery!

In what is being described as a “surprising achievement,” an “astonishing victory,” and a “stunning election upset,” the provincial Liberal Party won a majority government in Monday’s Quebec elections. This unexpected turn of events led to the resignation of Parti Quebecois leader Pauline Marois (below).

While much of Canada has been focused on what this victory means for the separatist movement, and the implications of that for the country’s politics and economy — our dollar is stronger already! — the secular community in Canada and beyond has been more interested in the fate of Marois’ controversial Charter of Values, which was expected to lead to job loss for public-sector employees who wear religious head coverings such as the Sikh turban or Muslim hijab. The Charter would ban these garments, as well as other highly visible religious symbols, though certain Christian symbols would be permitted as representations of Quebec’s “cultural heritage.”

The Charter of Values has been divisive both within and outside of Quebec. Affected workplaces expressed concern about the time and money they would spend to comply and about the likelihood of “costly workplace conflicts” affecting service quality. Individual support for the charter was somewhat mixed: some individuals found the bill fair and sensible, while others found it downright xenophobic. And, though polling showed a slender majority of Quebecers in favor of the charter, many voters saw it as a transparent ploy to drum up PQ support by playing on identity issues.

Now that the Liberal Party under Philippe Couillard has risen to majority status, the future of the charter looks troubled indeed. During his campaign, Couillard expressed strong opposition to the legislation, though it’s unclear how much of his commentary was election-season hyperbole:

I’m 56 years old, [and] I’ve never seen anything this cynical in Quebec politics. This is very bad for democracy in Quebec. To fight for sovereignty, to fight for independence is legitimate in a democracy. But to deliberately seize on an issue as delicate as the coexistence of our communities, to program discrimination at the workplace for your own benefit, that’s unacceptable.

Having ascended to power, however, he has promised to address the issues the charter raised early in his term as premier and expressed hope that he could find common ground between those who support the bill and those who oppose it. It remains unclear what form that common ground will take.

In his acceptance speech Monday night, Couillard addressed these complex issues with words that, as the National Post‘s Graeme Hamilton put it, “reached out to minorities who felt targeted by PQ politics”:

My dear friends, the division is over. The reconciliation has begun. We are all Quebecers. The pride in Quebec, of our identity, our language, and our flag belongs to all Quebecers… We share the values of generosity, compassion, solidarity, and equality of men and women with our Anglophone fellow citizens who also built Quebec, and with our fellow citizens who came from all over the world to write the next chapter in our history with us. I want to tell them that the time of injury is over. Welcome, you are at home here.

Politics-watchers, including federal Liberal leader Justin Trudeau, generally agree that this policy will not be a priority for the new Quebec government. That said, the tensions that made the Charter of Values controversial — and, for some Canadians within and beyond Quebec’s borders, deeply appealing — are far from resolved.

(Image via Denis Beaumont / Shutterstock.com)

pure and simple truth

Most people need to save up before they get to travel and have fun. But for this lucky Californian, things are the other way round – he gets paid to do all that and more. Andrew Smith has been appointed the ‘Chief Funster’ of the State of New South Wales, Australia, a six-month job that will earn him a whopping $93,000. And all he has to do in exchange for the money is travel around NSW and do exciting things every day.

Smith landed the dream job after winning a contest as a part of an event to promote NSW as the ideal travel destination for young people. His challenge is to show travelers how exciting the Australian State can be by collecting no less than 802,000 moments of fun in six months. That’s one for every square kilometer of the State. So on a typical day, Smith can be found skydiving, hanging out with famous skateboarders, abseiling the spectacular mountains, and other such stuff.

The mascot at a school for the deaf in Arkansas is the leopards. They are The Arkansas School for the Deaf Leopards.

The Arkansas School for the Deaf has become a tradition in the State of Arkansas. It was founded in 1850 in Clarksville, Arkansas by Augustus Ward, and was the first school for the deaf to be established west of the Mississippi River. In 1898, Dr Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, visited the school together with his deaf wife.

ASD periodically offers classes in American Sign Language for friends and family members of deaf children and will being providing podcasts in June 2014 on topics such as alphabet, color words, family signs, feelings, and much more.

A low student-to-teacher ratio means that each student receives individual attention. Most classes have less than 8 students. ASD is a leader in educational technology in the state of Arkansas. All students are encouraged to participate in after-school activities.

The mascot for the school's sports teams is the leopard. Get it? They are the leopards who are deaf — the Deaf Leopards! Quite the sense of humor! The Deaf Leopards are members of two different athletic conferences: The Great Plains Schools for the Deaf (GPSD) and The Arkansas Association of Christian Schools (AACS). The school participates in football, volleyball, basketball and soccer. They also have an enthusiastic and very attractive cheer squad! Go Leopards!

(Source)

The next installment of G.M. Berrow's pony book series is now available! If the image didn't already explain it, this one focuses on Rarity.  Have a synopsis:

Rarity is excited to welcome her new apprentice, Charity, to Ponyville. Rarity is sure that the two of them will become best friends, bonding over their love of fashion and glamour. But after Charity dyes her mane and tail to look more like her mentor, and begins to copy the fashionista's every move, Rarity realizes this pony is a problem!

And if you want the chance to win a TY plushie of the fashion pony, a contest is going on over at the G.M.'s Twitter. All you need to do is take a picture of the book and tweet it over to her for a chance to win. The deadline is the end of the month, so move quick!  

The preview pages were released a few days ago, and now we have the actual book popping up for official release. As was clearified by Mike Vogel on Twitter a few days ago, this is actually a prequel to the movie, similiar to the teasers they are releasing over time leading up to it, and sort of a seperate project entirely.  If you want to dive in anyway, you get pick it up on Amazon or iTunes.

Thanks to Sweetie Bot for the reminder.  So robotic~  

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The universe is infinite, and so is Neil deGrasse Tyson's ability to edutain us in 140 characters.

 

 

...

It seems that Goat Simulator has proven to be more popular than Coffee Stain Studios had planned. Despite saying that it would not support the game after initial release, it has already thrown that idea out the window and answered the calls of the fans.

The Internet’s favorite game will be getting a new map “roughly the size of the original map” and jam packed with achievements and new goat models. The fun doesn’t stop there, because the new patch will also add a local multiplayer mode, so you can go goating around chaotically with your friends.

Perhaps if Goat Simulator proves popular enough, Coffee Stain Studios will submit and go the full mile, adding online multiplayer as well. Only time will tell.

Best of all, this new patch, which adds a level and multiplayer, will be 100 percent free. The core game itself is a slightly steep $9.99 for what amounts to a hilarious joke game, but Coffee Stain Studios is going to cut fans a break and deliver new content for no extra chanrge. Expect the patch to be delivered in mid-May.

You can purchase Goat Simulator for $9.99 at the official website with PC support only. No Linux or Mac will be made available until Coffee Stain acquiesces that promise also.

Source: Goat Simulator's Facebook

According to Devin by Devin Bosco Le [tumblr | webcomic]

The Haiku stairs on Oahu aka the Stairway to Heaven has 3,922 steps lead up to the stunning Puu Keahiakahoe summit. The stairway was originally wooden and was installed during World War II so the military could access a radio station antennae 2,000 feet up the mountain. In the 1950s, the stairs were replaced with steel steps that led to a newly established Coast Guard navigation station. The navigation station has been closed since the 1980s and the hike is also off-limits now; a security guard sits at its entrance for most of the day and the Honolulu Board of Water Supply -- which has jurisdiction over the hike -- requires that anyone who goes up it sign waivers and present a $1 million liability insurance policy.

My  Little  Pony -   Maud Pie - Handmade  Plush

For Sale Custom made Maud Pie - - Handmade  Plush.
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/39081551417…

🔘 She is 14 inches long (including tail) and stands 16 inches tall     -LARGE SIZE
🔘 Her body is fully made out of  soft minky fabric.
🔘 Her eyes and cutie marks are machine embroidered
🔘 Filled with  polyester fiber fill light weight
🔘 Complies with British Standards BS5852 and BS1425
🔘 Made in a pet & smoke free environment.



Link to more pictures and ebay auction
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/39081551417…

May he rest in peace.

Although there are no details to go on at the moment, Ultimate Warrior has passed away at the age of 54, according to a tweet from Triple H just a short time ago.

Saddened to announce the passing of the Ultimate Warrior. Icon and friend. My sympathy to his wife Dana and his daughters

— Triple H (@TripleH) April 9, 2014

Warrior, was just inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this past Sat., April 5, 2014, in New Orleans. He then made an appearance at WrestleMania 30 before coming back to Monday Night Raw just last night for a brief segment.

We'll have more on this soon.

Update: WWE confirmed the news in a statement:

WWE is shocked and deeply saddened to learn of the passing of one of the most iconic WWE Superstars ever, The Ultimate Warrior. Warrior began his WWE career in 1987 and quickly went on to become one of the biggest stars in WWE history. Warrior became WWE Champion at WrestleMania VI, defeating Hulk Hogan in an epic encounter. We are grateful that just days ago, Warrior had the opportunity to take his rightful place in the WWE Hall of Fame and was also able to appear at WrestleMania 30 and Monday Night Raw to address his legions of fans. WWE sends its sincere condolences to Warrior's family, friends and fans. Warrior was 54 and is survived by his wife Dana and his two daughters.

Original design:



Did you know that green minky has a very, VERY limited variety? Well, I just found out. xP  Had to compromise for some of the colors, but I'd like to think it still worked out ahah

Pony Rayquaza, like the other ponies from this set, measures about 15" tall and is made out of minky and features tons of embroidered details. He has wire in his mask and wings for support, which makes the wings posable. I wanted to give him a super long tail to convey the snake-like dragon design of the original pokemon, so in order to save on space I opted to curl it. Both the mane and tail can be flipped to either sides of its body.

And with him the set is complete!
 



Not for sale
 

The dust in space tastes like raspberries!

What if we had to travel to space to get our raspberries? Luckily that isn't the case, but there is, in fact, raspberry flavoring in space. Despite what thoughts might come to mind, this doesn’t mean that aliens have lost any of their candy. The truth is a little more scientific than that. The chemical ethyl formate is an ester that is created when ethanol and formic acid react to each other. It happens to be the same chemical that is what gives raspberries their flavor.

Unfortunately, it would probably be a bad idea to go frolicking through these raspberry flavored clouds of dust. Ethyl Methanoate, though generally approved by the FDA, can be hazardous in more concentrated and larger proportions. If you were able to breathe in space and managed to find one of these clouds to walk through with your mouth open wide, then you would probably experience the following symptoms: irritation of the eyes, skin, mucous membranes and respiratory system, along with depression of the nervous system. However, it is safe in moderate doses like those found in raspberries. No worries.

(Source)

This man's name is 746 letters long. He holds the record for world's longest name

The man with the longest name in the world's birth title is this: Adolph Blaine Charles David Earl Frederick Gerald Hubert Irvin John Kenneth Lloyd Martin Nero Oliver Paul Quincy Randolph Sherman Thomas Uncas Victor William Xerxes Yancy Zeus Wolfe­schlegelstein­hausenberger­dorffvoraltern­waren­gewissenhaft­schaferswessen­schafewaren­wohlgepflege­und­sorgfaltigkeit­beschutzen­von­angreifen­durch­ihrraubgierigfeinde­welyche­voraltern­zwolftausend­jahres­vorandieerscheinen­wander­ersteer­dem­enschderrassumschiff­gebrauchlicht­als­sein­ursprung­von­kraftgestart­sein­lange­fahrt­hinzwischen­sternartigraum­auf­der­suchenach­diestern­welche­gehabt­bewohnbar­planeten­kreise­drehen­sich­und­wohin­der­neurasse­von­verstandigmen­schlichkeit­konnte­fortplanzen­und­sicher­freuen­anlebens­langlich­freude­und­ruhe­mit­nicht­ein­furcht­vor­angreifen­von­anderer­intelligent­geschopfs­von­hinzwischensternartigraumhi, Senior.

It has 746 letters. His last name alone is 590 letters long. He was born in Germany in 1904, and appeared in all the Guinness world record books from 1975-1985. He died in 1985.

(Source)

According to Dave Meltzer, The Undertaker was willing to lose to Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 27 in 2011 and handpicked him to be the guy to end the Streak at WrestleMania 30.

When Brock Lesnar ended The Undertaker's streak last night at WrestleMania 30 (Sun., April 6th, 2014) in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, fans were left dumbfounded and wanting answers.

Did we just see The Undertaker's last match? Who decided it was time to finish the streak? Why was a work-shy part-timer like Lesnar chosen to be the man to break it?

It's to early to say whether The Deadman is now retired for good, but the severe concussion he suffered last night might encourage him to hang up the boots, if he hadn't decided to already.

As to the latter two questions, it now seems clear that The Undertaker himself decided that this was the year to finally lose at WrestleMania and handpicked Brock Lesnar to be the wrestler to defeat him, a theory I speculated about in my column last night debating whether he was a deserving choice of such a prestigious honour.

That was the word from Dave Meltzer on his WrestleMania 30 aftermath subscriber only radio show:

"As far as I can tell nobody knew about it. I mean it was kept a secret from just about everyone and it was Undertaker's decision I'm pretty sure. I mean I just brought up this about a week ago that when this program was first suggested and this is going back three years, probably more than three years, Undertaker's idea was to lose to Brock Lesnar, but that was three years ago and I honestly, even though I knew that I didn't actually think there was much of a chance of it and I don't know if this sets up a rematch next year or if this is it for Undertaker, I think it could go either way.... I guess in his mind, The Undertaker's mind, [he] was the guy because [he] was a real guy, you know, I lost to a real fighter, so it's OK."

For those that don't remember, WWE attempted to book The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar for WrestleMania 27 whilst Lesnar was still a UFC fighter and under contract to the organisation, but the match never happened as Dana White refused to let him fight and wrestle at the same time.

Lesnar and Undertaker even went into business for themselves by staging a quick confrontation after UFC 121 was over where an out of character Taker asked Brock "Do you wanna do it?" as each gave the other the evil eye:

Clearly, if Undertaker was willing to lose to Lesnar in 2011, then three years on and being even more banged up, he probably didn't have to be talked into it.

So Cagesiders, if The Undertaker wanted Brock Lesnar to end the streak, that makes everything alright then?

P.S. However, Meltzer was incorrect that "nobody knew", as although the finish wasn't reported on any major wrestling news sites, enough people knew on the day of the show that the betting odds favoured Lesnar come bell time. In his daily news update today, Meltzer claimed that WWE was shocked that the news got out, as they went to extreme lengths to keep the result hidden from their staff:

"An interesting note on the late swing in betting odds where Brock Lesnar actually was the favorite in some places is that those in WWE are surprised noting that even the most high up people didn't know until the three count hit.  Vince kept it a surprise from virtually everyone. I know of people who know the outcomes because they have to, and they had Undertaker winning."