An aside, but I like this series of articles on design patterns in Perl, first here:
http://www.perl.com/pub/2003/06/13/design1.html
"If a pattern is really valuable, then it should be part of the core language"
http://www.perl.com/pub/2003/06/13/design1.html
"If a pattern is really valuable, then it should be part of the core language"
I really believe you get a lot better at seeing the benefits of patterns when you try to apply them in different languages and different contexts.
Are patterns something we should try to transcend in our learning? Meaning, you really do need to know them before you understand how to dismiss them in favor of something else?