I have a lot of Patrick memories to share, too many for one post. But I'll start with one post.
The thing about Patrick that made him such a great friend to so many of us was that he was up for anything. If you needed someone to do something or go somewhere with you, he was down. Even if (especially if?) it wasn't obvious that it was going to be fun. And he wouldn't just show up -- he would be into it as much or more than you. When Patrick and I lived in the same city -- SF when we were in our 20s -- what I usually needed someone to do with me was to explore new things. Especially weird things. Off-the-beaten path things. And as many of you have already pointed out, that was Patrick's sweet spot, We did a lot of exploring together -- whether it was exploring questions in neuroscience over a beer, or going to see a random band at Bottom of the Hill, or driving across the country (picture #1 is Patrick in NYC at the start of a road trip we took with Stephanie Albin in June 2000).
It started the day I met him, actually. We were randomly assigned to the same hotel room when we interviewed for grad school at UCSF. So, together, we explored what it would be like to move to SF, to do a Ph.D. at UCSF, to spend time with and become friends with the students who were already there.
Later we explored many of the oddest spots in the city of SF, the state of California, and throughout the country. World's scariest donut shop? I'm there! Drive 100 miles out of your way on a roadtrip because there is a really weird men's bathroom at the Madonna Inn? Patrick, if you think it's a good idea, I'm in! Wanna hit up the Fireside Lounge in Reno with amazing fake flame ambience? Eh, Reno's not that far, I'll come along! (I lived in Boston at the time).
Before I moved to San Francisco I had never lived anywhere west of Washington DC. All this exploring was incredibly eye opening for me. After we no longer lived in the same city, of course, things were different. But it seemed like exploration was the theme of many of our meetups in recent years. Like the time when Kenny and Patrick showed up here in Durham and said, "We heard you can tour the North Carolina governor's mansion by Segway. We've gotta go to Raleigh!" I have posted a picture of this memorable event below.
As a result of all these explorations, Patrick was there for so many formative moments of my life. Shaping them and experiencing them with me. There are so many inside jokes about our journeys rattling around my brain right now that no one else will ever think are funny. Patrick, I wish I could laugh about them together with you one more time.
Picture #1: Patrick in New York City, June 2000
Picture #2: On Segways in front of the NC governor's mansion, August 2015
