Really glad to hear you're having fun. I totally agree that the depth of FFXIV is one of the things that makes the game so enjoyable.

Also, I had a big, long description on how to do mining. As usual, the folks around here who are smarter than me have done it better. I don't know if you've seen it, but here's a link to a "Let's Play" series by Seraphis Thrallwyn. The latest entry has a YouTube video on mining. It's probably easier to see someone do it than to read about my text wall on how to do it.