Great info. above.... The Eagle II is one of the most popular trainers of all time- MANY pilots have cut their teeth on that thing!

If you don't mind the $$ the Realflight Simulator is great tool to learn on, and you can practice many scenarios including when the plane is COMING TOWARDS YOU! LOL

Most important is finding a club near you and an instructor who can look over you airplane, make sure the engine is running properly and hopefully talk you through all of that, then try to get them to "buddy-box" with you until you are comfortable-(Probably will not take you very long based on what I have read about you..)

I recently taught a guy who flies 737's for a livin' and his knowledge of aerodynamics and flight controls helped quite a bit... He was VERY squirrely when the plane was coming at him but quickly adapted and soloed after about 45 minutes of flight time- [X(] (Faster than most!)

I am pretty sure you will be H O O K E D after you get some "glow-flights" under your belt!