Welcome from So. Cal.
I grew up in WA from 1962 to 1972 - then came to So. CA when my DH was in the Navy and we decided to stay. I started sewing when I was 8 - my best friend had a child's Singer but my mother made me learn on her Singer 15-91. She thought it was better to learn on a real machine than have bad habits from using a toy. (And I only sewed my left index finger once... and that didn't even bother me since I loved sewing so much, I just sat there and my mom moved the needle so I could get my finger out. She was more upset than I was.) I sewed all the way thru High School and stopped when my 1973 Singer portable spent more time in the shop than being used. Then it was just easier and cheaper to buy clothes than make them.
Then some time in 1978 or 79 I discovered quilting and the rest is history. The templates were made with cardboard and rotary cutters hadn't been a thing yet.