I discovered pinball at the age of about 12 at the local corner store, Cleo's. They had a Stern Cosmic Princess which is a great machine to learn on - no sling shots and specs (specials) were easy to nail. This was important, since I only got 40c pocket money per week. I learnt my trade on this machine, and then a bunch of other early solid states. After I found a book in the library about the history of pinball (up to 1976) I decided to buy a machine for myself, Williams' Argosy. While still in high school I operated Black Knight and Trident, then worked for an operator while I was going thru uni. I didn't touch pinball for the next 20 years. iOS has reintroduced me to pinball and I am going to tournaments and building a collection. I've got the bug again!