Len
@lendot.bsky.social
he/him GenX dude living in Pittsburgh. Bisexual, bipolar, autistic, a maker-type person, faux musician
"We're struggling financially; we should buy a bunch of companies. That'll fix us" is a thing that capitalismers seem to do a lot, and I'm not sure it ever results in anything but an even bigger bankruptcy.
I just feel like major business decisions shouldn't remind me of my drinking problem days.
I just feel like major business decisions shouldn't remind me of my drinking problem days.
February 1, 2026 at 2:46 AM
"We're struggling financially; we should buy a bunch of companies. That'll fix us" is a thing that capitalismers seem to do a lot, and I'm not sure it ever results in anything but an even bigger bankruptcy.
I just feel like major business decisions shouldn't remind me of my drinking problem days.
I just feel like major business decisions shouldn't remind me of my drinking problem days.
In "my brain works until it doesn't" news, I cruised along mostly fine assembling the printer, but moving on to setup, the belt tensioning mechanism was being fussy and that really threw me sideways for a couple of days. I *think* that's squared away now? Brain feels deflated.
February 1, 2026 at 1:16 AM
In "my brain works until it doesn't" news, I cruised along mostly fine assembling the printer, but moving on to setup, the belt tensioning mechanism was being fussy and that really threw me sideways for a couple of days. I *think* that's squared away now? Brain feels deflated.
Found this Gremlin photo from 2021. Not sure what the fuck happened here.
January 31, 2026 at 3:40 AM
Found this Gremlin photo from 2021. Not sure what the fuck happened here.
I wish I could stop having ideas for, well, anything. My brain's too incompetent for ideas.
January 31, 2026 at 3:29 AM
I wish I could stop having ideas for, well, anything. My brain's too incompetent for ideas.
Dude! He finally got it working! www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueCO...
Magnetically hovering guitar strings (sounds unreal)
YouTube video by Mattias Krantz
www.youtube.com
January 31, 2026 at 3:25 AM
Dude! He finally got it working! www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueCO...
I continue to be amused that my psychiatry appointments are for a day but not a time. I just get a text in the morning day of that's like "hi, I'm here until 4:30, pop into the virtual chat whenever."
January 30, 2026 at 2:43 PM
I continue to be amused that my psychiatry appointments are for a day but not a time. I just get a text in the morning day of that's like "hi, I'm here until 4:30, pop into the virtual chat whenever."
A less-obvious thing that throws my brain regulation sideways around the holidays is trash pickup being pushed back a day on thanksgiving, christmas, etc. I always look forward to the week after MLK day because FINALLY trash pickup gets back to normal. Unless we get a major snow storm that week.
January 30, 2026 at 4:56 AM
A less-obvious thing that throws my brain regulation sideways around the holidays is trash pickup being pushed back a day on thanksgiving, christmas, etc. I always look forward to the week after MLK day because FINALLY trash pickup gets back to normal. Unless we get a major snow storm that week.
It only just occurred to me that the worst 2 winter storms that have happened since I've lived in Pittsburgh are also mental health history bookends. '94 blizzard coincided with all the shit that formed the genesis of my mental health problems, and 2010 storm ultimately led to my bipolar diagnosis.
January 30, 2026 at 3:25 AM
It only just occurred to me that the worst 2 winter storms that have happened since I've lived in Pittsburgh are also mental health history bookends. '94 blizzard coincided with all the shit that formed the genesis of my mental health problems, and 2010 storm ultimately led to my bipolar diagnosis.
3D printers are getting so fancy these days. "Starting from firmware 6.4.0, a belt tuning wizard is available in the printer menu, navigating in LCD Menu -> Settings -> Manual Belt Tuning. The printer uses controlled belt excitation combined with stroboscopic feedback to visualize belt resonance."
January 29, 2026 at 5:08 PM
3D printers are getting so fancy these days. "Starting from firmware 6.4.0, a belt tuning wizard is available in the printer menu, navigating in LCD Menu -> Settings -> Manual Belt Tuning. The printer uses controlled belt excitation combined with stroboscopic feedback to visualize belt resonance."
I wish more companies made guitar cables like this with integral kill switches. I've been using these kinds of cables for about 20 years now and it's great being able to disconnect the cable from the jack and insert/remove it without impulsing the whole signal chain.
January 29, 2026 at 3:53 PM
I wish more companies made guitar cables like this with integral kill switches. I've been using these kinds of cables for about 20 years now and it's great being able to disconnect the cable from the jack and insert/remove it without impulsing the whole signal chain.
Assembly complete! I'm gonna wait until tomorrow to do the rest of the setup.
January 29, 2026 at 2:35 AM
Assembly complete! I'm gonna wait until tomorrow to do the rest of the setup.
Extruder assembled. And I was finally able to tie down some of the wiring mess in the main box , so it's ever so slightly less unwieldy now.
January 28, 2026 at 8:53 PM
Extruder assembled. And I was finally able to tie down some of the wiring mess in the main box , so it's ever so slightly less unwieldy now.
Love, exciting and new
Circuit board, we're expecting you
Love, life's sweetest reward
Let it reflow, it floats back to you
Circuit board, we're expecting you
Love, life's sweetest reward
Let it reflow, it floats back to you
January 28, 2026 at 7:10 PM
Love, exciting and new
Circuit board, we're expecting you
Love, life's sweetest reward
Let it reflow, it floats back to you
Circuit board, we're expecting you
Love, life's sweetest reward
Let it reflow, it floats back to you
Me: I'm going to do all the small-parts printer assembly on top of this little cabinet because the cats generally aren't interested in going there
Gigi: You're interested in that space, which makes me interested in that space. Stand back, I'm gonna do some F=ma on that M3x25
Gigi: You're interested in that space, which makes me interested in that space. Stand back, I'm gonna do some F=ma on that M3x25
January 28, 2026 at 6:11 PM
Me: I'm going to do all the small-parts printer assembly on top of this little cabinet because the cats generally aren't interested in going there
Gigi: You're interested in that space, which makes me interested in that space. Stand back, I'm gonna do some F=ma on that M3x25
Gigi: You're interested in that space, which makes me interested in that space. Stand back, I'm gonna do some F=ma on that M3x25
Today in printer assembly is the extruder and some other stuff. Not terribly looking forward to the extruder. As much as the designs improve it's still a tedious frankenstein assembly. Less involved than yesterday's CoreXY assembly, but a lot more cramming things into a tiny space from every angle.
January 28, 2026 at 4:51 PM
Today in printer assembly is the extruder and some other stuff. Not terribly looking forward to the extruder. As much as the designs improve it's still a tedious frankenstein assembly. Less involved than yesterday's CoreXY assembly, but a lot more cramming things into a tiny space from every angle.
We're in 2026 now but I still keep writing "democracy" on all my paperwork.
January 28, 2026 at 4:37 AM
We're in 2026 now but I still keep writing "democracy" on all my paperwork.
PSA. I'm about to go start a tiny drip in our utility sink. If you live in an area where temperatures are getting really cold, you might want to consider doing the same as a precaution against burst pipes. This is sadly too late for all the folks who have gotten hit with this already.
January 28, 2026 at 1:03 AM
PSA. I'm about to go start a tiny drip in our utility sink. If you live in an area where temperatures are getting really cold, you might want to consider doing the same as a precaution against burst pipes. This is sadly too late for all the folks who have gotten hit with this already.
Holy shit I should've gotten us new flash drives sooner. I just dumped a 5.5GB .iso onto my new one in 7.2 seconds (760 MB/s). I had no idea they made them that fast these days.
January 28, 2026 at 12:58 AM
Holy shit I should've gotten us new flash drives sooner. I just dumped a 5.5GB .iso onto my new one in 7.2 seconds (760 MB/s). I had no idea they made them that fast these days.
CoreXY assembly completed. That was the longest and most involved portion, so the rest should cruise a little better. And it finally looks like a 3D printer!
January 28, 2026 at 12:34 AM
CoreXY assembly completed. That was the longest and most involved portion, so the rest should cruise a little better. And it finally looks like a 3D printer!
Installed the XY motors and belts. It's a little hard to show the routing clearly, so I included their diagram as well.
January 27, 2026 at 10:06 PM
Installed the XY motors and belts. It's a little hard to show the routing clearly, so I included their diagram as well.
Follow-up: I'm only on step 40 of this chapter so I haven't had to do any slow rod insertions yet, but I have had to work with not just one but two lubricants. This is getting to be as bad as doing guitar repair work.
January 27, 2026 at 8:37 PM
Follow-up: I'm only on step 40 of this chapter so I haven't had to do any slow rod insertions yet, but I have had to work with not just one but two lubricants. This is getting to be as bad as doing guitar repair work.
I'm listening to a track from 2009 and I'd just like to say I'm glad that whole "all women are required to sing like they're doing a bad impression of Katharine Hepburn singing" aesthetic has mostly worn itself out. Mostly.
January 27, 2026 at 7:17 PM
I'm listening to a track from 2009 and I'd just like to say I'm glad that whole "all women are required to sing like they're doing a bad impression of Katharine Hepburn singing" aesthetic has mostly worn itself out. Mostly.
CoreXY printers are fairly simple in concept, but the implementation is much more complex than regular cartesian printers. I'm assembling the CoreXY portions of my new printer now and there are 12 pulleys involved.
January 27, 2026 at 7:00 PM
CoreXY printers are fairly simple in concept, but the implementation is much more complex than regular cartesian printers. I'm assembling the CoreXY portions of my new printer now and there are 12 pulleys involved.