Day 4 - The Patrick Box

When I was a very small child, I believe around 2, my father and grandfather built me a box.  The box was a rectangle about 6 x 6 x 14 inches long, constructed of 3/4 inch pine boards nailed together.  Both the bottom and the top of the box were hinged with huge, reasonably modern strap hinges, like you might find on a barn or shed door.  As I would come to know the story, my dad and grandfather built the box and then went to a local hardware store and purchased one of every type of latching mechanism that they could find on the shelves.  There were barrel latches and hook clasps and padlock brackets and screen hooks and other mechanisms the names of which I don't know. They painted the box green, undoubtedly with left over paint that my Depression era grandfather had used on some other project and then stuffed into a recess of his workshop because "it might be useful someday", installed the latches and hinges and called the project a success.

The finished box weighed in at about ten pounds, with a nice assortment of sharp, metal objects jutting from the edges and heavy doors that would slam closed if handled improperly. I am pretty sure that the Consumer Product Safety Commission might have had a few things to say about the design and toddlers.  Nevertheless, it was the 60's and my dad and grandfather gave me the box, perhaps for my birthday, and we, that box and the little me, became inseparable.

As family lore has it, I sat on the floor with the box and its latches until I had mastered every single operation.  Apparently, the box was my only focus in the world.  Of course my dad and grandfather were thrilled that I was so interested in this little creation of theirs.  "Tenacity, focus, mechanical ability, problem solving skills" are words that have been used throughout my life to recount this interaction between me and this little box of latches.  Someone decided to call it the "Patrick Box" and so it was.

Forty some odd years later, all I want to do is play with the adult version of the Patrick Box.

Today's Goals:

1.  Call one web designer from Freelancer.com to discuss proposal.
2.  Call a friend/web designer to get up to speed on website platforms.
3.  Have an informational interview with an industry veteran to discuss my project
4.  Work on samples and my workspace for some period late this afternoon or early evening.