I've been shooting since I was eight. Safely. Gunfire is actually somewhat comforting to me... Sudden loud noises, however, tend to make me hit the deck...
I prefer to refer to my little taste as "geek syndrome." I don't like to get all technical. I'm genius-level, but the hard part is focusing the genius.
Wayne, does the kid geek out on stuff? How smart is he? Does he learn absotively everything there is to know about something, and then bore you to death with it?
I wouldn't worry too much about safety... He'll probably be lecturing you.
Moose, are you sure your BIL is autistic? Or is he retarded? I suspect you are equating the syndrome(s) with an inability to function. Far from the case with many of us.
Let's see...
Kindergarten - special program for gifted students.
Moved to small town.
First grade - they saw that I'd been in a special program, and didn't read any further... Spent half a day in a room with a buncha kids who were drooling on themselves before I convinced the keeper to go find the principal. Got switched.
Third grade - driving teachers nuts - I'd read the text during the first week of class, and then call 'em on things when they'd screw up.
Fourth grade - got moved to private school. Them penguins don't take crap off anyone, but they'll also work you pretty hard too...
High school - penguins didn't do high school, so got to go to the public one. Took a long time before I realized that being smart was not a good thing. Got bullystomped pretty regularly. I was NOT an A student... Generally bored out of my mind. Guidance counselor kept asking me why I was taking college prep courses - didn't I want to learn a trade? Then I took the ACT and SAT tests, and broke the curve... Suddenly I was the guidance counselor's favorite person...
College - Figured that high school sucked, so it was time for a new project. I reinvented myself. Ended up living in the football dorm, and I finally got my growth... I learned how to work a room. Learned how to know EVERYONE. I organized a few truly good parties. Went through about 7-8 majors... (sigh). Got a BA in public relations. I'm a decent strategist, editor, etc., but I'm not really the guy you want leading the tour group.
Played Army in the middle of things - Public Affairs... I'm not enough of a "people person" to be "the face," but I rock with the nuts and bolts...
Right after graduation, ran my own desktop publishing outfit for five years. Then ended up going to work doing communication graphics for a consulting company at a big chemical company. And from there, ended up in the pharmaceutical end. You wouldn't believe the number of geeks in the labs... Or maybe you would. I fit in pretty well there...
Now I'm back to the self-employment thing... And trying to target the focus...