​

His interest in these began early in life. And if interests were like stars, then these were merely the brightest in a constellation which was no less than teeming with them.

Hardly idle were any of young Patrick's interests—nor merely passing fascinations.

Even as a youngster, whatever sparked a kind of beholden wonderment, would in turn drive an enterprise of self-immersion, and he would go to great lengths to learn all he could about it.

He would study it, draw it, mimic it, build it, dismantle it, rebuild it, and in time, he would develop a rather accomplished and innate understanding of whatever such an interest drew of his fascination.

​

Patrick was relinquished into state custody foster care as an infant and was adopted by a then-childless couple a few months later in San Francisco, California.  His adoptive parents would provide ample resources throughout his youth to cultivate his many drives and interests.

​

Not surprisingly though, young Patrick's interests, as well as his aptitudes, differed from those of his new parents. 

​

In school, he excelled in language studies, natural sciences and art. Math and history, on the other hand, required more diligence to learn and apply.

​

And quite unlike his adoptive kin and many of his schoolmates, Patrick was creative. This creativity manifested itself in a kind of industriousness that was willful, energetic and prolific.

Patrick possessed a zeal for constructing, fabricating and creating all kinds of things. His drawings were detailed and expository, leading to exploration of other media including drafting, illustrating & painting. 

At any given time, he was engaged in a variety of urban planning, geologic, aerodynamic and meteorologic projects—often simultaneously.

​

The most memorable of these included a working erupting volcano, a tornado generator which produced vortices from dry ice vapor, an orange Braniff International 747 model under siege by firecracker explosives, various human physiology models, commercial aircraft, jet engines, rockets, models of Star Trek's Enterprise, its shuttlecraft Galileo 7, as well as Klingon and Romulan war vessels. Later he would construct a mockup of the Enterprise's Transporter Room with a working control panel. 

​

​