It's pretty much in my blood. I grew up near water. Always had a pool, and we lived very near the beach as far back as I can remember. I got my parents to get me a snorkeling set when I was 6 or 7. I tried the breathe from the hose trick, but that didn't work. Soon, however, I'd get tired of swimming in the pool. Aside from girls in bikinis, there wasn't much interesting to look at. Beach wasn't much better. Water was cloudy and there really wasn't much to look at by the beach (excluding the aforementioned GiBs). So, I'd get bored quickly, but I'd keep going back. I was drawn to the water, though the reasons were unclear to me at the time.
I remember spending lots of time at the springs (rainbow river, salt springs, etc.) While this was quite a bit more interesting than the pool beach, it really wasn't all that fascinating. So, I'm still drawn to the water, but get quickly bored when I'm in the water.
Fast forward a few years. I'm now 14. We took a vacation to Key Largo. I spent as much time as possible under the water. The time when I was above the water, I was around the water or looking at the water. My parents' booked a snorkeling trip for all of us. That pretty much did it for me. The clarity of the water, the amount of life really made it clear why I was continually drawn to the water. I was not bored at all. We went to Pennekamp Park, and I spent as much time as possible underwater. Saw a bunch of lobster, and just really had a blast. Went to several dive shops, which piqued my interest in scuba diving.
By the next summer, I convinced my parents to let me get certified. That was in 1990. Went through a few dry spells over the years, due to poor initial instruction, lack of gear/funds, but the call of the water has always returned. Now that I've got a boat, my own gear, several dive partners, I try to get out as much as possible.