HN user
My exact feelings... It seems like some nice events are happening around, but I have trouble keeping myself in the loop.
I tried to use Meetup and find events, but I didn't have good luck filtering off events (especially ones happening in months or even weeks).
I've started with a Creality CR-10S, and later on get a Prusa MK3S, meanwhile my brother took the old CR-10S, and get two Ender 3s.
I have to admit, that the CR-10S, and the Ender 3 is a lot of printer for the amount of money they sell them for - though, of course, you need to be prepared to fiddle with the printer more. But if you dial it in, and you gain experience, there aren't a lot of things you couldn't do.
I built my own Prusa, I think it's a fun experience, if you like building. My CR-10S came in two parts, I needed to screw them together... my MK3S came like a car after a crash test. But since put together, I haven't had to touch it, it operates like a wonder.
Of course a Prusa's price tag is much steeper compared to an Ender's. Prusa is an European product, the construction in my opinion is better, and they take a lot of care of the hardware and software. I don't want to go into nationalistic battles, but I was happy that I could buy a local product. Our Ender 3 didn't have a bootloader installed, so when we wanted to update the firmware to a more up-to-date Marlin, we had to take apart the machine, and flash a bootloader on the AVR, which is... troublesome for somebody who doesn't know about microcontroller flashing too much.
Regardless, I think for a beginner, the Ender has an extremely good value, and perfect to get into 3D printing, as it opens so many possibilities. I could print parts for the household, which I wouldn't ever find anywhere else. I've fixed multiple household appliances. The freedom that if I need something special, I can make it.
For me, the really baffling thing was the fact how restricted access the prisoners have to information.
The fact that prisoners cannot have access to the internet is, to some extent, understandable by me. Filtering an inherently bi-directional communication perfectly, to make sure no information gets out is difficult.
But nonetheless, internet is not the only source of information in the world. The fact that people, who are in prison, are stripped, or seriously limited access to information, and thereby to learn, is really baffling.
If you find your resolution in the fact that you spent your time useful by learning, and when you reemerge and reintegrate yourself into society, you will have a chance to be better before, why restricting it?