I'm mentally burning the ships behind me so there is no turning back on this (Think and grow rich reference).

i think to establish enough golden gooses for passive income so you can live part time in like Chiang Mai or a gig in China and be fully present, is the goal...maybe "trim" back some single doors if you feel market is too high,,..hold most....give to manager.. mentally detach......dont do anything rash

If you can't find someone to help you manage your personal spending, get your health habits under control, and stand between you and your own self-destructive tendencies...this life gets weird.

Issue is that she's elderly, has many health issues including cancer, lacks financially, etc. so it puts me in a hard ethical decision since she's also basically on her death bed. 

He is very motivated to sell, as he is single, older, has health issues, and told me he wants to get something small and manageable, even though he will miss his cows.  

You can expand to other avenues for diversification after you are successful enough and feel ready mentally and financially.A nice plan you should be able to start with is taking advantage of finding your own first home. 

My landlord became my friend early on and when his age and failing health made it impossible for him to handle his properties any more he talked his daughters into selling it to me via a land contract.

I just watched the webinar for newbies and I can relate to the description of the mentality that the typical beginning investor has. 

To create a beautiful, prosperous and happy life, the foundation needs to be strong in our mental health and relationships. 

As a landlord with a large number of tenants that depend on me making the proper business decisions to maintain the health of my business I do not make emotion based decisions.