I understand that this question does not strictly fit the terms but, because I've found answers to other, vaguely similar questions (http://mathoverflow.net/questions/43690/whats-a-mathematician-to-do , http://mathoverflow.net/questions/7120/too-old-for-advanced-mathematics) interesting and useful, I will give it a try. Please remove if it is inappropriate, redundant, etc.
I sometimes feel my "story" doesn't fit my desire to become a mathematician, and ask myself whether this means I should be pursuing something else. I'm interested in stories of people who started life with the (I think pretty typical) opinion that mathematics was some pretty dull multiplication-related stuff designed for people who didn't have enough creativity to tell a good joke. For me, there was a single moment when I realized the linguistic flair of mathematics proper, and was hooked ever since. I'm wondering both about the particular mathematics as well as your general point of view when the "hey, something interesting is going on here" moment hit. What was it, and were you "looking for" mathematics?
As well as reassuring others like me, maybe the information could be useful to mathematics teachers trying to excite their students (or, maybe, it will indicate that to be a hopeless goal).
Edit: I'm a bit surprised by the amount of meta-discussion my post generated. I've never wanted to infringe on the purpose of the site, so I'm sympathetic to the viewpoint that this question may do so.
Given the discussion below, I would like to clarify what I had in mind by "story".
I also am not particularly interested in the tale about "being by the fire and picking up a book and then BAM!". That is, I wouldn't particularly be interested in hearing about any particular physical place you were, but something a little more general. For instance, I know several people whose parents were mathematicians, and so for them their "story" is indeed picking up a book. On the other hand, my parents, relatives, and teachers were mostly uniformly terrified of mathematics until I began my undergraduate studies (as an art major, no less) - there were no books to pick up! My point is that "discovering" mathematics was quite different in the two cases. (And again, I'm sympathetic to the viewpoint that it may not be much of a point).
I think the above attempts to clarify "story" and "your general point of view". Now I'd like to clarify "were you looking for mathematics?". I'm curious what it was you found in mathematics when it was still an inchoate blob; for me, I was not explicitly seeking it, but afterward I realized it subsumed many things I'd been seeking for years, in other realms. I'm curious about others' experiences with that mathematics... did it pan out? Was it, eventually, what you thought it would be?
I also didn't mean the question to sound as though I'm insecure in my interest or ability in mathematics. I would simply like to hear the different backgrounds people have come from, and I do feel it might help me (and others) feel more at home. Logically, I of course agree that a mathematician's story is a mathematician's story. Culturally, however, the proposition need not carry - especially if that story is not told. So I'd like to hear other stories, because if they are in the culture, they've not been in my ears.
And now I apologize for this, eh, eulogy - but I certainly enjoyed the comments!
...Thanks again
