Sometimes I view the internet as a magical conduit. Seriously, access to even ideas is so within reach and trading just about anything from recipes, techniques, ideas, sources, etc.
Before this… taboo, secrets, hard to find much so you’d have to make it up or read deeply into what culture might have hidden in media and such.
That’s just my take.
Been on this path for 45 years, starting at around age 10. I use the word path loosely. At that young age I knew I wanted freedom in the broadest sense more than anything. Kinda went from there and things really kicked into gear in my late twenties. I will also say I have had significant stretches of time where I did little magickal work.
Magick skills to me are part of our life toolkit. We are able to use it for whatever purpose we choose. Just like we can use our thumbs to help as grasp a gun, pen, or doorknob.
There have been rituals in the course of my learning. Mostly though I have been doing elemental and nature work from an internal perspective. My few 3D teachers are departing the 3D and were not known broadly. Mostly my path has been guided by direct personal experience, experiments, and intuitive/spiritual nudges.
One of the primary obsessions I had which gave me the motivation to go deep is the desire to connect very deeply on an energetic level with a woman. Clearly I had some psychological issues which drove this desire. More fundamental was my obsession with energetic experiences I was starting to have spontaneously. Being able to trigger tingling up my spine, buzzy body, etc…
The desires though were instrumental in generating the drive to pursue my learning for what turned out to be a couple of decades. The lessons were profound, the magick repeatable and reliable, and the impact on myself and the other person quite destabilizing to the connection except with one. She I married.
I am considering becoming obsessed with retirement in the same way. Except, it’s just not happening. So no personal island in the tropics for me yet.
Current day, in addition to my regular spirit associates I have a teacher who introduced himself in my dreams sometime in the last couple of years. Reminds me of a taoist sage or something. Not sure. Nicest guy, full of kindness and compassion. Latest dream he began guiding me directly by suggesting a focus for my trance states. So I am working with his suggestions.
I love to research magickal systems and approaches, gods and goddesses, spirits, and all the rest. This isn’t necessarily about finding the “perfect” system or spirit. Finding the commonality between different approaches and how I work is something I enjoy. More than that I am feeding my imagination with new horizons and possibilities to explore.
Of course they all lead back to where I started. The differing perspectives though are fun. And I am making new friends in the spirit world.
Hail.
After reading some of your posts, I have no doubt. 
Thanks for responding to this thread. I’m not a goth myself, and I never really understood what I saw as a focus on outer appearance. I’m not judging that, mind you…I’ve also been an actor and know the value of costume to get one “in the mood.”
Ok, you came in a bit later, then. Aquino was still HP when I joined. Much later, Zeena became my mentor, and I have a lot of respect for her. I eventually left the Temple, but stayed in touch with her. Apparently, there was a huge battle of sorts and she ended up leaving and taking about 80% of the Temple with her.
I haven’t heard much about them since.
Who gave you permission to copy me? I started at about age ten and have been going about one year longer than you. None of the young Magicians here ever experienced life without the internet and before the internet Magick was fucking hard.
Al.
I hear you ol’ timer. 
If I was starting out today my biggest hurdle would probably be dealing with a case of shiny object syndrome given what’s available online now.