I've always said that I'll try any instrument with strings at least once. I mainly play guitar and have been since I was 9. My brother sort of inspired me to start playing because he always kept a guitar around and would show me cool things he learned. I remember when I got my first guitar for my birthday. It was a cheap first act with terrible action and would hardly stay in tune. That didn't stop me from playing until my fingers bled (literally) and learning some fun cowboy chord songs.

It was funny at the time because my brother inspired me to pickup the guitar, but we had entirely different tastes in music. He grew up listening to grunge and alternative rock and I only knew country, gospel and classical at that time. He scowled at me when I asked him if he knew how to play a certain country song. Nevertheless, he did teach me a lot of things to get me started. I quickly discovered that I liked a wide variety after continuing to study music and different styles. Eventually I gravitated towards blues rock and classic rock. I found that I enjoyed playing in those styles the most. There's just something magical about how you can turn an ordinary lick into an expression by changing the way you play it.

I guess the main thing that kept me playing guitar for so long (15 years and counting !) is the satisfaction I get from it. Knowing that you always have room to improve is motivating and having the ability to express what you're feeling through strings is the best form of catharsis I've found.

I've been interesting in trying more traditional instruments for a while now. I might pick up a beginner's violin kit at some point :)