Hi there, it's nice to meet you! My name is Sam Weaver, I hope you like my website! This page is my attempt to explain myself as a person. (If you're looking to learn about my work, try here.)
I'm 23 years old, and I live in the beautiful city of Raleigh, North Carolina. I'm a student studying Computer Science at North Carolina State University . I've built software professionally for 9 years. ( Wait, then why did I go to college?) I love to read, and other entertainment is fun when I have time.
Pop-culture favorites:
Movie
The Grand Budapest Hotel, 2014(Wes Anderson)
Book
Stranger in a Strange Land, 1961(Robert A. Heinlein)
TV Show
Community, 2009(Dan Harmon)
Video Game
Space Station 13, 2003(developed by the community)
When I get a chance to take a vacation, I love downhill skiing! I've been skiing for about 13 years, but mostly on the East Coast of the US. When I was a kid, I convinced my family to visit Whistler Blackcomb, in British Columbia, which was the best skiing I've ever done. I can't wait to go back!
What I love about skiing is how effortless it feels. It certainly wasn't easy when I began, but I'm to the point now where I can look at somewhere on the slope, and just sort of... drift there. Without even thinking about it. It feels like I'm flying!
I consider myself an optimist, but not to the point of it being a character flaw. I like solving problems, and that means that I have to be realistic, but I generally view things with optimism over the long term. Tolerance and nuance are very important to me. Almost all issues are more complicated than they seem, and almost everyone has something valuable to say. I don't like it when people speak in absolutes, because it tends to oversimplify a person or a situation.
Core values:
Love
Every person deserves to be loved and appreciated.
Goodness
Humans are good. If a person acts to harm others, they've probably been hurt by others.
Tolerance
We shouldn't refuse to communicate with a person, even if we don't share their beliefs.
Fun
We shouldn't be afraid to have fun (as long as it doesn't harm others!)
Curiosity
We should be curious and interested in learning new things.
One of my favorite ways to have fun is by going contra dancing! Contra is a folk dance with origins in England, Scotland, and France. I've been doing contra for about 5 years, and it's by far one of my favorite things to do.
Some of the reasons why I like contra include:
- Contra is a called partner dance, but you aren't expected to bring a partner to a dance. At a contra, everyone asks everyone else to dance, and you change partners each dance (once every 10 minutes)
- Contra is really accessible to beginners. Every dance starts with a 30 minute beginners lesson, and dances go from relatively simple to more complex throughout the night.
- Once you get the basics, you don't need to be great at contra to have a good time. The fun is contagious.
I also have a history in performance. In the theatre, I've spent time acting and working backstage. Also, I've performed with the Power Sound of the South, NC State's marching band, as a trumpet player.
Making music and acting have both contributed to the person I am today.
Another really important part of my life is robotics! I volunteer with FIRST Robotics Competition to help run events in North Carolina. I've been a volunteer for about 7 years, and it takes up most of my weekends from February - April.
I was on an FRC team in high school, and started volunteering while I was still a student. In college, I started volunteering for the whole season. This means that from February - April, I travel to different cities around the state, help unload two eighteen-wheelers, set up the field, (which is the size of a basketball court,) and then tear it all down at the end.
It's really exhausting, and it's hard work, but it's also a ton of fun! I enjoy getting the chance to help students learn about problem solving and debugging. If you've never had the chance to visit an FRC competition, I can't recommend it enough. It's so much bigger than you'd ever imagine. You don't have to volunteer, competitions are open to the public, so you can always visit as a spectator!
(For more information about FIRST in North Carolina, check out the website for the North Carolina District.)
The point of this page isn't to try and tell my life story, but the goal is to try and give a good picture of who I am as a person. To try and complete that picture, here's what I believe is my personal mission.