Author: Brian Enigma

Brian Enigma is a Portlander, manipulator of atoms & bits, minor-league blogger, and all-around great guy. He typically writes about the interesting “maker” projects he's working on, but sometimes veers off into puzzles, software, games, local news, and current events.

It’s dangerous to go alone! Take this $NOUN

For the last couple of years, I’ve been using AWS Lambda to make Twitter and Mastodon bots. (Full disclosure: I work for a company that got acquired by Amazon a few years ago.) It’s more reliable than running them on a random box I own (for instance, like I have to do for Video Glitch … Continue reading It’s dangerous to go alone! Take this $NOUN

Making Travel Games

At the time I’m writing this, I’ll be traveling to France in a couple of weeks, culminating in a week at Paris Disneyland, to meet up with my love, Christine, who is already there. (This post is pre-scheduled to appear after I arrive, so as not to spoil the surprise. Shhhhh!) We have a lot … Continue reading Making Travel Games

Laser-Cut Spell Saga Boxes

The story of Spell Saga, a tabletop novel, is long, twisty, and goes back to 2013. You might say it’s a bit of a… saga. The fancy “zero edition” cards arrived earlier this year, and I figured I do a little something nice to preserve them. I threw them in card sleeves (blue = deck … Continue reading Laser-Cut Spell Saga Boxes

Experiments With Mineral Water …With Lasers

In recent weeks, I’ve upped my game on mineral water exploration and experiments. I’ve had a SodaStream for almost ten years, and for a long time I barely knew the difference between seltzer, soda water, club soda, and tonic. (Hint: two of those are the same.) Let me share with you what I’ve learned and … Continue reading Experiments With Mineral Water …With Lasers

Diving Into the Origins of “Peanut Butter” [Updated]

No, not the creamy or crunchy sandwich spread that rhymes with “gif.” I’m talking about a more obscure usage of the term that you won’t find in your Merriam-Webster. You see, there’s a podcast I listen to, Do By Friday. They “challenge yourself, challenge your friends” every week. The hosts perform a task, watch some … Continue reading Diving Into the Origins of “Peanut Butter” [Updated]

The Award for Best Oscar Party Goes To…

I have a friend who’s been hosting Oscar parties for as long as I remember. They’re always big ordeals, with acceptance speech bingo and a predictions guessing game — both with prizes. A few years ago I downloaded a 3D model of the Oscar from Thingiverse¹. The 3D printer I had at the time just … Continue reading The Award for Best Oscar Party Goes To…

Repairing a Cast-Iron Christmas Tree Stand

I don’t expect the specifics of this project to apply to many, if any, readers. But I do hope you’ll stick around and see the problem I faced and how I fixed it. I have owned a wonderful enamel-coated cast-iron Christmas tree stand for many, may years. This year, we had a little uh-oh when … Continue reading Repairing a Cast-Iron Christmas Tree Stand

Locky: The Laser-Cut Tile Construction Set

About a year ago, I learned that I could load a 3D model into Fusion 360, and it can calculate all the slices necessary to turn it into a laser-cut cardboard (or wood or acrylic or whatever) project. They’re quick to cut out of scrap cardboard, and they’re fun to fidget with and throw around. … Continue reading Locky: The Laser-Cut Tile Construction Set

A Decoder-Ring Keychain

The last couple of years, I’ve made little Christmas gifts for my fellow Portland Puzzled Pint organizers. Last year, it was themed coasters. This year, I thought I’d make “code sheet” keychains. Or zipper pulls. Or lanyards. Or whatever the hip kids are calling them these days. It took a couple of design revisions to … Continue reading A Decoder-Ring Keychain

Potions Party Website

Less than a week after the Harry Potter Potions Party that Christine and I hosted, I wrote The Inception of the Potions Party, a quick blog-post overview of the party and the inspiration and tinkering that led to us saying “you know, I think this may just work. Not only work, but be super-amazing!” Today, … Continue reading Potions Party Website