I have been turning for about 20 years and I have always been involved with woodworking since I could remember; As a kid I would make bows and arrows, tree houses, boats, and go-carts with wooden wheels. As a teenager I started building RC planes following my passion for flying and I crashed so many that one day, looking at my last pile of balsa-wood, I went home and shifted my hobby to building something that would not fly, therefore not crash and burn.
I made my first bed with cherry and ebony and I was hooked. After work I would come home and make a lot of sawdust. But unlike some friends of mine, I was quite impatient and had a problem waiting for the piece to show its form. That is when I got started in turning. From the first bowl, I saw my piece of wood come alive in a few minutes. The shape was coming out of the wood as I was turning and all that time previously spent on cutting, sanding, and finishing was reduced to almost nothing.
I still make furniture; I have built a few bedroom sets (somehow I love making beds), kitchen cabinets, and tables. But after a while I always return to my lathes.