I started growing when I saw my dad's weak setup. He had a few bag seed plants in a drainless 5 gallon bucket with soil he dug up from his yard, growing under a crappy light in a room without a door. I was like, "if you're going to use this space and run the risk, let me takeover and do it right." He was reluctant, but after the first harvest he realized that I wasn't playing around.
I've been reading High Times since I was like 8. Something about the buds intrigued me long before I had any desire to try it. I watched every old grow video and read every article that I could find. I planned on growing my whole life, but had a kid fairly young and had to put it off until he got older. I tried to get his mom to move out west so that we could, but she wouldn't go for it. I was convinced I could make a living off of it, but would have been content with just a few personal plants. I've always loved cannabis in a way that I could tell was different than the rest of my stoner friends. I would keep growing it even if I couldn't smoke.