Hello! My name is Nolan, and If you haven’t been able to tell already, I like penguins. I mean they are just the cutest animal in existence (seals take a close second). If you knew me, you would already know what my favourite animal is, but judging from the fact you are on the about me page of this blog, you don’t. Let’s try and fix that!

The first thing you should know is that I like to build, tinker, assemble, model, engineer, and generally mess around with stuff. As such, I’ve constructed various gizmos and gadgets for all kinds of purposes.

Whenever possible in PLP, I like to try something new, and take risks to achieve new ideas. Most recently I’ve gotten into the world of 3d printing, and have tried to incorporate that passion into different projects. It started with Destination Imagination 2023, where I took some risks and went all in with 3D printing our  main solution.

3d Printed Clock Model

I’ve also explored this topic in other media formats, like for example when we created our podcasts. 

Through out my time in PLP we have also dabbled in other forms of media, most notably video. Video is always interesting challenge that never fails to challenge my skills. Thinking about all the different angles and techniques possible is mind boggling hard. 

Many of these videos have also been group projects, requiring the collaboration between many people. I often find myself in a position to lead these kinds of projects, and have constantly worked on managing a team as a result.

Now I can’t talk about myself without mentioning rock climbing. I’ve been doing it for over half my life at this point, and I’ve gotten pretty good. With it comes success, but also stress and expectations which can be hard to deal with. While I’m still not perfect at it, climbing has taught me how to create goals, and mentally succeed under stressful situations.

Of course I love climbing for many reasons, but one of the most overlooked aspects is the problem solving. Every climb is like a giant physics problem, in which you have only a certain number of holds and must position your body precisely to be able to stay on the wall. When it works it’s the best feeling in the world, when it doesn’t… well…

Anyway we’ve done at lot in PLP over the last few years. To catch you up, here’s a quick overview my learning journey so far, with some of my favourite projects of the years.

Timeline

2020

November 16

The Medium is the Message

The very first big project of PLP was a group project in which we made advertisements for local businesses. This project really got me used to all the new tools and apps that I would be using for years to come. It also was the first introduction to group projects, in which I quickly learned the importance in distributing work and roles to play to peoples strengths. In the end, I think the result speaks for its self, as I still think it looks quite good even years later. Learn More

2021

May 13

Chemistry Coding

One of my favourite projects in which we coded a game that taught you all about atomic theory. This is a great example where I took a calculated risk to push my self as far as I could go, making the code and systems as realistic as I could get them.

Learn More

2022

January 3

Revolutions On Trial

Another big group project in which I struggled to find my place. I continued to overcome fears, and persevered with my group to create as good of a show that we could manage.

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April 11

Destination Imagination

The biggest group project of them all, Destination Imagination! For this project I really flexed my maker skills to create working clocks and folding wings. It was also a big lesson in group project planning and holding people accountable.

Learn More

June 19

My First Film

Although I’m not super proud of the end result, this project was one of the biggest undertaking we’ve had in PLP. It turns out making an entire documentary in a few months is really hard. This project pushed me way outside of my comfort zone, and was a big lesson in managing large projects.

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2023

May 16

Juno Beach Centre

Definitely not the most flashy or exciting project we’ve done, but just as important and a really good showcase of how my writing skills have improved over the years.

Learn More

and so much more to come…

That’s all I know about myself. Well I do know more but if I told you everything we would be here all day. Feel free to leave a comment on anything you deem interesting enough to take those precious seconds of your day (I know you’re a busy person). 

Oh but if you are here to procrastinate your own work, then here’s my friendly reminder to GET BACK TO WORK. You can thank me later.

See you around,

Nolan :)