BenSpark Family Adventures

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01969 I decided it was time to finally get that 3D printer fixed. I had watched a ton of videos on YouTube looking for each and every screw and how things were supposed to go back together. I had the 3D printed part that my cousin, Shaun printed for me. This part replaced the broken Fan hood/housing. I had bought a little LED device to put in this newly printed piece but it would not fit and the power connectors were not compatible with my machine. I think you have to know how to solder and put together new connectors to make that happen. This is something I do not have the skill to perform at this time. So instead I am going to figure out a 3D printed housing solution for the mini LED screen and power it with the USB-C connector on it instead. I may try and add this to another print of mine down the road, we’ll see, though. To test out if everything was back and in working order I printed out a “benchy” that is a benchmark boat that one prints to make sure the p...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01966 Our 3D Printer is still torn apart because I was waiting for new Fan covers that my cousin, Shaun printed for me. He made two different ones that we should be able to use to repair the printer. I’ve been watching a number of videos to find the right one that will help me get everything back in place. I’ve got extra screws and that won’t do because they all came out of the printer and they should all go back in. I have a few things that are going to be difficult but eventually I’ll get it fixed.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01957 Tonight I attempted to put everything back together on the 3D printer. The problem I ran into was using the wrong screws on the sides of the fan cover and that resulting in breaking the fan cover. I then looked all over for a way to order the part as a replacement. Unfortunately I could not find one on the Creality website. But I did find that people have created 3D models that could be printed. So, my cousin Shaun is going to print me up two new covers and I will give it a go again. This new cover also has a space for an LED screen that I can add to it.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01954 I took Eva to Krav tonight and while there I attempted to take a few photos with my new glasses. They are not meant for action but I did capture Eva doing some kicking with her partner, my friend Nicole’s son, Christopher. The two of them work well together. Still working on the 3D printer. I still have not determined the actual issue.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01953 All last night I attempted to print something for Eva. The printer would print one layer and then nothing would come out. I was able to get the filament out once, reset the printer and print a baseline item, a scraper. It worked fine. Then I attempted to print the item for Eva again. It would not print.Then I could not get the filament out, it jammed up in the extruder (something I learned later). This is what happens when I take things apart and try to get to the problem but cannot find it right away. Also, there are no manuals anymore that would show you an entire diagram of the product. Not even in a .pdf format. So I have to rely on YouTube videos and trial and error. I hope I can get this back together properly. I later got to this point to fins a piece of filament that I could not pull out. I had to snip it off to get this piece to release. Still did not fix the issue.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01903 Funko has gotten into the wireless headphone space. I found these Iron Man ones at Five Below. I got them because they looked really fun. The holder is very much like the Funko POP Pez Dispensers that I have collected. This is the only figure that I found that was a Marvel superhero. The headphones are comfortable but do not work for very long. I have to take them with me each Saturday to work because I definitely need headphones at work. Blocks out the noise of people around me.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01868 I was at Target tonight on my way to the office and I decided to get a new set of headphones for gaming. I’ve gone through so many of these things. The issue is not what I am hearing but rather what other people can hear from me. If you went by the guys that I game with they never hear me that well. There are a couple of reasons for this. The microphone is not close enough to my mouth on my headset and it is fixed so I cannot move it closer. The other reason is that I do not talk loud. I’m hoping that these headphones will work better, it is a good brand and wasn’t super expensive but they weren’t cheap either. I’ll find out how they are the next time I game with my cousin, Shaun.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01799 The other day I got a new case for my phone. My old case cracked so much that parts of it fell off. I don’t think I’ve kept a phone long enough before that it actually outlived the case. My phone just got paid off so it is 2 years old at this point. It still is in great shape so I’m not upgrading anything yet. But, in order to keep it in good shape I picked up a new case. I also got a new wire for the car because Android Auto was not working consistently and I think it was the connections between the phone and wire in the car. The new wire is making things work so much better. On the phone front I ordered a case and screen protector for Andy’s new phone but it has not arrived yet. It is late along with a coupe other things from Amazon. Not sure why those particular things ended up late but here we are. I have not let Andy take the phone to school yet because it needs a case and screen protector first. I may see if I can get a cheap on at Best buy so that An...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01741 The folks from Twinkly have hooked us up again. This time with a sample of their newest lights, the Twinkly Candies. Twinkly Candies come in four varieties and Eva choose the Stars version because she loves the moon and the stars and though that these would be amazing for her room. I’ve already gotten a few great Twinkly products int eh past and I know how cool they look when you program the lights individually with the Twinkly App. That is the coolest thing about these lights. You can control every single one of the 200 light set. Program them to over 16 million colors. These will look amazing once she cleans up in her room so we can put them on the wall. We will do that soon, but I wanted to mention that these are available now on Amazon.com for $69.99 and come in 4 varieties. There are the stars, hearts, pearls and candles.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01684 One of the items that Andy needs for back to school are headphones. Specifically bluetooth headphones. So, I looked on Amazon.com and found an inexpensive pair of them and these have some really nice features for inexpensive headphones. They are over the ear so Andy won’t lose them by having them fall out. They have a indicator light on the case that tells you how much power each headphone has. Mine don’t even have that feature. I’m a bit jealous.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01663 I was in a meeting for work tonight and our new manager noticed a large black square behind me. They asked what it was and I told them about the Twinkly Squares. Unfortunately during our meeting I could not get it turned on because I had it plugged into the wrong plug and it would not turn on. I was able to turn it on after the meeting. I guess I’ll go ahead and start using the twinkly more to decorate the office.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01618 Our plumber came today and hooked up the toilet in the downstairs bathroom. He also set up more plumbing in the basement and changed out the Shower head. We now have a Kohler Konnect. This is a shower head with a detachable Bluetooth speaker. For years I have been putting my phone on the edge of the shower to listen to music. Now I can leave it on the counter and connect to the Moxie speaker and play whatever I’d like and be able to hear it quite well. I personally have a 3 song maximum shower but usually get things done in one especially if it is Carry On My Wayward Son. That is the perfect length for a shower.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01520 I have the ability to play on my XBox remotely. I can pair my XBox controller with my phone and use that to play any of the games that I have on my console. I use this when I am at work in the office so that I can let one of my games, Autonauts run through the night. In Autonauts you program robots to do a bunch of things for you in this little world. Some of it takes a while so I usually have it running at night when I’m watching TV. That way it can just run and I don’t have to do much. The little robots make a bunch of resources I can use in the game to advance in levels. Well, I had an XBox controller phone holder and I broke one and lost the other, so I had to get a new one. I like the design of this new one, however the one thing that is is missing is a stand. The old ones had a stand so that I could place the controller down and it would not tip back.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01509 I have a few things hanging on my microphone because I can’t figure out anywhere else to put them. I have my steampunk goggles, Andy’s steampunk monogoggle and my horns for King Richard’s Faire. There is also a hulk itty bitty stuffed figure on it as well. As I look even closer there is also a bear paw pendant and a leather bracelet hanging on it, too. I should probably find a better place for all of these things.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01472 I was looking through Amazon.com and saw this Iron Man wireless mouse. I have to go to the office once a week now and figured I’d grab a new mouse. I love how the eyes light up blue. It has a good feel and is very responsive. It also looks exactly like and iron man helmet. Great colors and look.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01471 The kids now have their own Xbox controllers and controllers go through batteries pretty quickly. So, in both an effort to keep them charged but to also keep the entertainment organized I got a charging station. This will keep the entertainment center cleaned up along with the hooks I put in for the headphones. The kids have also been really good about not overdoing it in the Xbox since that television is used by all of us.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01464 The kids got new XBox Controllers and also headphones for Christmas. These will live in the living room but we needed a way to keep them out of the way. They are too big to fit in the drawers so I got some command strips today and hung each of them up on the far end of the entertainment center. as long as they are put back and the wire wrapped up nicely this should stay nice and neat and relatively unseen.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01429 I’m working with the folks at Lightailing on a post that I am writing for the Men Who Blog site. They sent me their LED Light Kit for my LEGO Voltron set. I added those lights to the set today. a much more detailed review will be going up on the Men who blog site in a while but I did create a video and posted it to my YouTube channel. In the video you can see Voltron all lit up, too.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01415 I recently got a set of Twinkly Squares to hang in my office. The set came with six of the squares. This makes a rectangular display and many things I want to post are square shaped. Now with an additional 3 squares I can make a square to display. I put these up with the Velcro Command strips so that I could reposition the squares. This way I can take it off the wall and only have to replace half of the command strips in order to put this back on the wall. I’ll be putting these back up later this week. Allison got me the second set of squares for our anniversary. Andy told her that I wanted to get another set of these to make my display better.

Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01400 I was given a free Twinkly Squares starter Kit to review. Opinions are my own. My walls are covered with all sorts of fun toys and other things. I now have an amazing set of programmable LED Wall Panels from Twinkly that I’ve added to the décor of the office. These panels are programable, work with Google, Alexa and Apple and can be customized down to the individual LED. Each Twinkly Square has 64 LEDs on it in an 8×8 grid. You can combine any number of these squares together in all different shapes to create the look and feel that you want in your own home. I personally want to get the 3 Square expansion pack so that I would have a perfect 3X3 square of 9 individual Twinkly Squares. I think this would be the perfect size and addition to my office. For now the 2X3 setup I have is cool and fun. But I can make it better. I made a review of this fun product for my YouTube Channel. Here are more details on the Twinkly Squares from their press release: “Leading Italia...