Hurray! I was eager to get going, so I hopped in the car around 10:15 PM and went in search of my first cache. Found it with no problems using my slightly-used Garmin eTrex. Got home, talked to my girlfriend and found out that she knows the people who own the property on which the cache resides! It's a small world, huh?
I'm pretty hooked. Next time, though, I'll remember to put on plenty of bug spray before I go searching!