thank you for the encouragement! i have been watching Leah and practicing for hours! And ya know what? Once I followed her advice to RELAX and unclench my jaw, my quilting looks MUCH better!
I have an overachiever complex, and i think I should be able to FMQ after a short time, and should be able to do feathers, etc. Huh. Reality check. My meandering and loopy loops look much better, and considering I am using bright green thread on muslin, its not too bad for a beginner!