I am ready to secure another property for STR that we will do all the work ourselves being that it is 6 houses away from our main house. 

I think I am on a path to recovery, ready to check out the market tools to finally pick and market and find some deals!

Is there free time in a deal where I can get my loan ready?

Be prepared to set up a viewing ASAP and be ready and able to make an offer quickly.

He just turned 68 and is ready to be done in an active role as a self-managed landlord for all of his properties. 

Big thoughts are I'm 43 and can retire from my W2 career (Middle school principal) in 10 years, and I want my investments ready and waiting on me then.

BiggerPockets also has a calculator to analyze deals, and I highly recommend you start this as soon as possible, even if you are not ready to buy.

PS the book you read is by david greene not brian green, as a point of clarification.  

But I have started to take my real estate endeavors serious over the last year and my studies much more serious over the last 5 months and although I may not be ready, I am ready and eager to take that leap of faith and try and put what I know into affect with the right people and obtain my first property in the West Texas area via House Hacking or a buy and hold deal within the next 60-90 days. 

This way, they can diversify their investments and spread out the risk a bit.If they’re ready to jump in now, they might find some solid deals before the new year.