Although I have no intention whatsoever of going to law school, I have always been a legalistic person - I read rules, analyze them, and quickly have a pretty good grasp of them, if not partially memorized. I have also always loved technology, gadgets, and gizmos.
One day before a JV/V game at my HS, I showed up early to play in the band (of 3 people). I asked the JV coach (also my history teacher - small school) if he needed any help setting up, and he said to sit at the scorer's table. From that game, I started learning the clock. I got a rule/casebook/mechanics manual from a friend over that summer, and went to work on the rules.
Then I started watching the game and actually understanding it.
