BenSpark Family Adventures

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01971 Today was the Color Run at Andy’s school. I had the time so decided to help out and volunteer with setup and with spraying the paint on the kids. The paint was corn starch with food coloring. I got there at 10am and helped set up all the tents and put out the water and ice. Then I took a box of paints to the back of the school and set up to spray paint. Later I was joined by one of Andy’s friend’s parents and another parent. The fun run was a good time, a little more organization and direction would have been welcome but overall it went well. The kids had a great time on the run and they were covered, just completely covered in paint. It was a fun day and the school raised $24,000 for their programs and that directly benefits Andy and their friends.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01970 Today was stripe test and it was a tough one. Eva had the day off because of Graduation at school. I asked if she wanted to take class with me in the morning and test with the adults. She declined. Probably a good idea on her part. It was a tough class. After class my little buddy, Julian “helped” me do some pushups. Then he was playing around on the mats and took a tumble. So, he probably left early. When I was back watching Eva’s class I noticed a Hot Wheels car under the bleachers. I recognized it as one of my buddy’s cars. So I texted is mom and picked it up to bring it to class next week.

  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 #01968 My Aunt and Uncle purchased me a LEGO camera for my 50th birthday. This was a LEGO creatives set and can be built into 3 different models. There was the Camera, Video camera and another option. I opted for the camera because it reminds me of the old Pentax that my Dad had and that I had learned on. It now sits on my desk as part of my display of fun things. It even has two rolls of “film” that you can put inside the camera. Very cute idea.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01967 Andy decided that they would like to make some cupcakes today. The kids and Allison had the day off for the holiday and boredom set in.Since I work all weekend and sleep much of Monday we don’t go anywhere for the long weekend holidays. It just isn’t practical. Not unless I plan ahead to take the weekend off and taking a ho9liday weekend off is tough with a group with only 5 people on a good day. However, we’ve been down two people for a little while.so we hung out at home. But, we got cupcakes.

  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 #01965 I came downstairs this morning and Andy was working on an omelet. It was pretty fancy with pepperoni and olives in it along with cheese and then some cheese toast that Andy also makes. I don’t think I’ll have to worry about this kid starving or being unable to take care of themselves when it comes to food.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01964 I picked up Allison’s new car this afternoon. IT is a new Kia Sportage. They redesigned the car shortly after we leased the grey one. This one has pretty much everything we’ve wanted in a car and I am a bit jealous of all the cool features. There is wireless charging, charging ports on both front seats so the kids in the back seats can have power to their devices on car trips to the Cape. The car seems both bigger and smaller at the same time. It feels longer and also there is more room between driver and passenger in the front seat. However, parking it in the yard it feels smaller and seems to take up less room. The car also has our first ever remote starter. That will come in handy in the Winter. The car also has roof racks so I am excited about that and maybe taking my kayak out more.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01963 Yesterday I got a new lease for Allison. Tonight we took the last ride together in that car. We went over to Halligan’s for dinner. I learned that one of the guys I train with each Tuesday and Thursday is the son of the owner of the restaurant. He was very excited to learn that I had been there and that I enjoyed the place. The food is good and prices reasonable. We had the rest of Allison’s generous gift card to cover most of the meal, too.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01962 I took Andy to climbing today. Andy started off with the bouldering wall to warm up. I watched for a bit and captured them climbing using my new glasses. Before climbing my mom came by to visit and both kids were able to see her because Eva enjoyed the house to herself and Andy and I went to climbing. I was able to finish the latest book by Trudi Trueit, the Sailor Cipher. I now have to wait another year for the next installment. I really enjoyed the book and am looking forward to more. Today I also went and took care of getting Allison a new lease. The car will not be ready until Friday but that is okay. I’m excited for her to see it when it arrives.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01961 This is the local cat, Jorge. He hangs around our house once in awhile. He was hear a few weeks ago snatching up baby squirrels that I rescued. But I am sure that he got one or two around the neighborhood. He’s been around since we moved in and sometimes he disappears for a bit but always comes back. He’s been adopted by two different houses at this point. Not ours, we don’t need another one.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01960 General Mills sent me a package of new cereals and some granola to try out and talk about. When the UPS driver brought me the box they were excited and wanted to know what was in it. I opened the box with him and showed him the new Chocolate Lucky Charms and he was so excited and couldn’t wait to tell his wife about them. I tried them and they are pretty good. I haven’t tried the Cinnamon Toast Crunch Waffle ones yet nor have I gotten any yogurt to try the yogurt toppers. I’m going to have to go and pick up some Strawberry yogurt soon to enjoy those.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01959 Andy had Allison pick up a pack of four of the new Sour Patch Kids Oreos. I’m glad they only go a 4 pack because they were really weird. They were fine when we were eating them but then there was a sour aftertaste that was not great. It sort of hit in the back of the throat.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01958 I recently l listened to the seven books of the Explorer Academy series by Trudi Trueit. I had reviewed all those books at they came out and I really enjoyed the series. Relistening made me remember that there was going to be a second series focusing on another explorer, Sailor York. I’m interested to see where this series goes and if there will be a third series. I just started reading the book and so far it is fun.

  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 #01956 This year is the 10th Anniversary of MArvel Unlimited. That is the online collection of Marvel comics that I have access to reading. Each year the people who subscribe tot he service get a special pack with some neat items inside. There is always an action figure and also a pin and sometimes a patch. This year was a Rocket Racoon pin and a Loki patch plus a Nova action figure. I’ll have to go through all my boxes of stuff from the past few years and get all 10 of the action figures together.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01955 Tonight I took Andy to Showcase in Foxboro for the 40th Anniversary Transformers night. The first 4 episodes of the original cartoon were being shown with the first episode having a live table read with many people from the original cast. That first episode was pretty cool and Andy loved seeing the voice actors do their thing. Andy did ask a few questions during the show and they had lots of criticisms of the plot. Questions about how robots as large as Soundwave could shrink down to be a tape deck that could be carried by a human. Questions like why would they make Megatron turn into a gun that needed to be used by other robots. Andy also saw foreshadowing from a mile away. It didn’t help that nearly every episode was basically the same. I explained that the toys were already created and then the show was made around the toys to sell the toys. Plot and storylines were very basic but over the years the lore around the Autobots and Decepticons grew from comi...

  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 #01952 Today we took Allison to Towne Tavern for a Mother’s Day Brunch. My friend Jack was providing entertainment to the venue. He performed many songs while we were there. We got there just as they opened but it was still a 20 minute wait to ge a table. Not terrible but I am glad we got there early. I asked to be seated close to the singer and well, they did that for us. We were practically on top of him. So we ended up being that family that is all looking at their phones but that was so we could communicate through a group chat. We couldn’t hear each other talk but that was okay we had lots of laughs through the chat. Eva got a traditional breakfast, Andy a pig pile omelete (bacon, ham, sausage and chorizo), I went with Chicken and Waffles and Allison got steak and eggs. Her steak and eggs were really good. the chicken and waffles were also very good but I did enjoy the stek a bit more. Jack was very happy to see us there ad come to find out, he was a student ...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01951 A while back I picked up this Fast & Furious LEGO Dodge Charger. The set comes with Dominic Toretto. It was a fun build and the car looks amazing.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01950 Tonight was Eva’s Freshman Sophomore Semi-Formal. I took some time off in order to get to see her off before she went to the dance. We went to Eva’s friend Miles’ house. His parents hosted all the parents so the kids could get together and take photos before the event. Then Miles’ mom drove all the kids to the dance. I missed out on this last year and I’m glad I got to go this year. Eva was very excited about the dance and she got a new tie for it, too. She also got a really cool looking piece of jewelry that she wanted for Homecoming but was able to wear it tonight. Eva has a really nice group of friends. The kids had a nice time together before the dance and also at the dance. andy had a half day today but the High School did not so I took them over to the Blue Pride Bistro for lunch. Andy had the Blue Pride Burger and said that it was the best burger that they ever tasted. We talked to one of the students there a little about the program. I think that An...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01949 I’ve been having some fun with the new glasses. Andy is fascinated with them. As we drove to school Andy had me ask the virtual assistant in the glasses all sort of questions. One thing that it does fairly well is it identifies things that you are looking at. When I came out of the house I went to the lilac bush and asked the assistant “What Am I looking at?” and it told me that I was looking at a lilac bush. I tried it with several other plants around the house. It worked really well doing that. My Chain Axe print is going well, too. I’ve printed both parts of the axe head so far and that took about 50+ hours. This one is nice because it has pegs that keep it together or will help keep the parts together better when I assemble it fully.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01948 I picked up my new glasses today. I finally decided that putting my glasses on top of my head to read something up close was getting too annoying to keep doing over and over so I got progressive lenses. I also was tired of switching my glasses back and forth for sunglasses so these are also transitions. Some pretty cool technology in my glasses. But that’s not it. My glasses are the Ray Ban Meta smart glasses and they do much more than allow me to see much better. I can take photos and video with them and even use a virtual assistant to identify things and much more than that. I had seen these over a year ago and was interested in them then when Andy got their glasses. We had used the allotment of insurance money and discounts to get those glasses so I waited a bit longer. I had an eye exam right after turning 50 and that seemed like a good time to go and get new glasses. So I did and they came in today. It took a little bit to set up the app on my phone bu...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01947 The absolutely massive Ashbringer sword that I printed for my Sensei is finished, finally. This print took over a week to complete with the printer running nearly non stop. Luckily the files were good and nothing messed up while printing. It is nice when that happens. I took the whole sword and put it together with duct tape and then presented it to Sensei at class this morning. He was so excited. He’ll be fully assembling the piece.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01946 After about a week and a half of non stop printing of a sword for my Sensei I decided that I ould print something fun for myself. I’ve been wanting a double bladed battle axe for Comicons but I cannot find one that I really like. So, I found a file for a Warhammer Chain Axe (Axe + Chainsaw) that I am going to modify to make into a double bladed Chain Axe. It will take some time to manipulate the files but I think in the end it might be pretty amazing. It took the file and scaled it up to 150% of the size and then had to split the file to print it and this part here is going to take 36+ hours to print. It is going to be massive.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01945 Each year I have two special drinks. A Guinness at Saint Patrick’s Day and a Margarita for Cinco De Mayo. Tonight Allison made tacos as well as some very tasty margaritas. Andy had a virgin one with just the sour mix. they seemed to like it. But they really liked loading up on tacos.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01944 Today was May The Fourth and it was a good day for Free Comic Book Day. When I got home from work I took the last piece of Ashbringer off the 3D Printer and put it together to show the size of it. I sent it off to my Sensei and he was very pleased. I’ve got to cut the dowel to the right size. He’ll put everything together himself. I am thinking that I may make one for myself, it is a very cool looking sword. Over at Free Comic Book day we picked up a few books ,looked around and took a photo with the cosplayers. Eva got a full set of books and I got 5 books myself. Andy found one book but wasn’t that interested overall. I’m hoping to find more books that they would enjoy. Out of the books that I got the best one by far was the Energeon Universe one which had 3 mini stories that went along with the three main series from Skybound, namely Transformers, Void Rivals and G.I. Joe. These stories actually fit right into what has been happening with these series so...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01943 Last weekend when we went to Connecticut for the Comedy show we went to a place called Pop on the Block. They had many different flavors of popcorn and a special where if you bought 3 packages you got one free. We picked up one flavor for everyone. We got Andy some bacon cheddar flavored. For Eva we got a sweet rainbow flavor and I got Ragin’ Cajun and Allison got a Garlic flavor. It is much better than the bacon flavored popcorn that I attempted to make last night.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01942 About a month ago I printed Eva the top of a trident. She asked me to pick up a dowel do that she could make it full sized. I went to Lowe’s yesterday and picked up some materials to complete the sword for Sensei and also a dowel for Eva. The dowel was too big so I returned it today after Krav class. I found some PVC pipe and fittings to make a full sized trident. Of course I had to make sure it fit so I assembled it in the store and carried it around. Got a few funny looks.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01941 I’ve printed the guard, the hilt and a few additional parts of the sword. Today I started printing the blade. This looks so sleek printed in black. I know the blade itself will not be black in the end, but it looks really good like that.