My first encounter with electricity was when I was 7 and I took my first battery operated toy apart. Prior to that, I thought touching any wire, even unconnected, would electrocute me.
My first encounter with 120V was when I was 8. I had a small physics set that required a 9 volt battery for the motor. My dad never bought the battery, so I hooked the alligator clips to the prongs on a fan cord. The motor wasn't connected at the time. I went to go get some kool-aid and plugged the fan in so my mom wouldn't yell at me for havin the fan unplugged. Secons later, I heard POW! and saw a blue flash. [Linked Image] I ran to my bed and cried, because I thought I'd be grounded. Turns out my dad didnt ground me. He explained what voltage and AC were.
When I was 11, I was indirectly shocked by lightning. It hit a pole about a half mile away. A spark jumped from the radiator to my knee and I fell over (I was watching the storm out the window)
My first experience with home wiring was at my dad's friend's house. Her husband, an electrical engineer with a masters, put grounded single pole switches in instead of 3 ways. She asked me to come check it because everytime she'd try to turn the light on, the breaker would shut off. He hooked one of the hots to the ground screw. Good thing the box was grounded as I was leaning against a radiator, and if it wasn't, the breaker wouldn't trip and I would have got quite a jolt.
I am now 19, an electrical engineering student at community college (Formerly at Penn State until my grades slipped and I lost financial aid). I mostly work with electronics and microprocessors. Hpwever, I live with a friend and I am rewiring his house. (I know, DIY! However, I have been doing it to code because I am well aware of the danger, and I have my neighbor, a retired electrician, take a look at everything. I don't want my work in the photo violations forum. The person who wired the house 25 years ago is now the inspector for Pittsburgh or Allegheny County or something. According to my neighbor and my own observations, there were many violations. His work was charity work, as he is my friend's uncle. However, he just wanted in and out as fast as possible. This last part was a bit off topic, but I didn't want chewed out for being a DIY [Linked Image].)