I think I will go with that bold advice. Thanks for all of the thoughtful comments-- I've learned a lot, and I feel confident it'll work out. I'll surely have a ton of wedges... was't it Archimedes who said: "With enough wedges, I can move the Earth?"
Nice paraphrase
Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.
Archimedes
Doug