Braze that fork boy!
Though I had been riding balloon tire bikes since being a kid, my first "lightweight" was some English 3-speed my stepfather and I rebuilt on the kitchen floor so I could get to my girlfriends house. I think I was about 13 or 14, so that would of been around '64. I remember I put some drop handlebars on it to be really cool.
A year or 2 later we resurected a Louison Bobet 10-speed with Nervex lugs that I repainted a lovely dark green lacquer. It was immediately stolen locked up at school of course, so I went back to the 3-speed for awhile. Eventually I bought a brand new Gitane (I really wanted a Raleigh Super Course, but they were unavailable) for $90. and it was then I learned you get what you pay for with bikes, because it was an incredible hunk of FRENCH junk.
I rode that into college, eventually selling it for $90. to buy a friend's 60s Carlton frame because he had just gotten an old Cinelli frame, which I slowly built up all NR.
Like all good bikes, the Carlton was eventually stolen too.
Chuck, I'm coming to your house!