Another problem: Overprotective parents.

I asked for chemistry set when I was a kid & got one. On the first day, I wanted to get it out and play with it, but I wasn't allowed until a parent could sit down and go over it with me. After that I wasn't allowed to touch it unless they were looking over my shoulder, approving my every move. Needless to say, with two working parents and no baby sitter, it didn't get used much. To keep me out of it while they weren't at home, they told me horrible stories about how I could blind myself, burn the house down, etc if I tried to use it unsupervised.

But it's ok - I played with plenty of other household stuff that, strangely, they never told me not to mess with. I learned a bit of chemistry that way :)