Welcome to the Madhouse of GSC, it's actually a UK based forum (hence there being so many of us here!) but we always extend a very warm welcome to our ex-colonial cousins from across the Big Pond!
As you already appreciate the humo(u)r, you'll fit right in and hopefully won't be too frightened...
Feel free to ask anything you want to know, you'll always find somebody to give you a sensible and useful reply (while the rest of us chip in with comments and jokes from the sidelines) - the only stupid question is the one you don't ask, and in the end we're all just a load of old (mostly!) blokes playing with toy trains...
As Phil says above, it's always nicer to call folks by a name rather than just a forum handle, but in the end it's up to you.
Enjoy your time on here... it can be addictive!
Jon.