tracy wrote:
What would be a nice first boat to get to go cruising.


Tracy,

Unfortunately, your question can't be answered as asked. It's like
asking "What would be a nice first house to live in?" or "What would be
a nice first car to own?"

There are tons of books and magazines out there that will at least get
you to the point where some of the issues start to make sense and will
allow you to ask more pointed, specific questions. I'd recommend that
you read a few first, then come back and start your dialog again.
Meanwhile, continue monitoring the newsgroup. There's a lot of
non-boating/cruising BS here, but there's also a lot of good information
that gets passed around.

- Dan