I started with a commodore 64 and basic, moved to a Tandy with basic. Maybe 1980? I was fascinated and took all the basic programming classes in Junior High and High School. Majored in Math in college and took all the programming classes they offered, all the guys in the class were spending 20-30 completely the Pascal coding assignments at one point and it was just so easy for me. I loved it! In those days I was the only girl in the class, but I grew up on a construction site working for my dad. I was in my zone! Programming was a big puzzle and still is, and yelling at the code when it doesn't do what I want is a bonus... because that just means I need to figure out what I am actually telling it to do. I stay a programmer because I love the challenge!