My father had an assortment of tools around the garage, but mostly did a few carpentry type projects around home. When I was about 8, I remember him building a small table for a record player and doing quite a nice finish on it. When I got to 9th grade, the junior high school offered a woodshop class that dad encouraged me to take and it sounded interesting to me, also. I completed a couple of flatwork projects and one turned bowl - got good grades on all of them. After that, I didn't do very much until later in life.
From time to time, I'd hack together items for the kids but not anything I'd brag about today! I remained interested in building things and graduated to doing a pergola over a patio at one house, then a deck and swing/climbing set at another house. Like a lot of people, I began to watch NYW on a regular basis and saw several things I thought I'd like to try some day. Finally, around 1998 I took the plunge and started buying better tools.
Between reading woodworking magazines and watching TV programs like NYW and other DIY stuff, I saw there was no reason I shouldn't be 'brave' enough to use something besides cheap pine to make things. My first venture into 'real' wood was getting some cherry from a local supplier to build a quilt rack to mount on a wall. Although I had seen and heard about how nice cherry was to work with, I couldn't believe just how nice it really was until I starting milling it. Then, when I got the the finish stage, I was even more impressed! Needless to say, I was hooked!!!
As they say, the rest is history.