I was always an "I'll fix this myself" kind of kid. My brother and I built our own dock out of scrap, a raft, forts in the woods, ramps, you name it. I started working roofing and remodeling for a small family owned company when I was 17. We worked a lot of jobs and they were all shit jobs. Five layers of asphalt shingles on top of 100 year old cedar shake, new rafters needed, pitch changes. The only way to eat was to knock jobs out quickly, but we carried everything up. No fancy conveyors for us. We always ended up doing other stuff too like siding and windows.
The owner's son was my age and he got sick of it. He left to go be a welder for an iron working company. Shortly after he left his dad was diagnosed with cancer. So, I took over the company and ran our two crews, bid jobs, etc. We kept on going without them pretty well, but eventually the owner had to sell everything off.
His son recommended me when the iron company was building a high school with a gym and they won a bid to put a roof on it but had nobody that knew how. My buddy told them he didn't roof anymore and gave them my name. I took the job, but I had to walk iron for almost a year before it was time to put the roof on. I learned a lot. When that time came they gave me two crews of iron workers and I ran them putting the roof on. By the time that job was done I was 21.
Of course I never got any respect from any of those older fellas until they saw me work and realized that I actually knew my ass from a hole in the ground. Even running crews I worked right next to my guys as much as possible. I couldn't do that all the time since I also had to run to HD from time to time.
I always thought HD would be a good job, even though I would make less. I wouldn't be working as hard, that's for sure. I thought helping guys like you would be fun since I knew a bit, but in the end I realized that nobody would take me seriously because I was young and HD obviously didn't give a shit about having knowledgeable employees anyways.
I ended up leaving the field. Went to work in surgery. I'm a charge nurse now and about to turn 37. Life is weird, isn't it?