Beginner Do's and Don'ts - Words of Wisdom

I am now a veteran photographer with 6 months under my belt (said tongue in cheek) and I thought it would be interesting to start a thread with tidbits of information that newbies could use as they begin their path into the world of photography.

I know I've spent money on things that I wish I hadn't, realized I'd want or need things I didn't think I would, things of that nature. So I'll start this with just a couple of items and let others add.

Things I did right (in my opinion)

1) When beginning to research what camera to buy I realized I didn't need cutting edge/bleeding edge so I bought a Canon T1i at a great price on Amazon because the T2i was already currently being sold and the T3i was soon to come out.

2) Bought a tripod

3) Bought filters for the lenses that came with the camera including a circular polarizing filter (on the good and bad lists)

4) Pinpointed the types of photos I want to take most often, for me it was landscape and wide angle type shots. I then researched and asked advice of the lens to get and ended up with the Tokina 12-24 which I absolutely love so far.

5) Bought protective/UV filter for the new lens (ALWAYS smart)

Things I wish I'd taken more time before doing

1) I bought a camera case that I thought would be sufficient for my needs. But during a recent vacation realizing I wanted to take my newly acquired equipment as well as my laptop, etc. I ended up with a standard camera case and a backpack for my laptop and other items. While on the vacation I did some searching and found camera backpacks with a place for a laptop and ordered one so I'd have it in the future. Advice - wait to see how much "stuff" you're going to buy before committing to a case... You'll likely need something bigger than you first thought.

2) If lenses you buy don't come with a hood make sure you buy the best one for your lens. I've bought a couple of duds or annoying versions that screw on to the lens using the threads. Wast of money.

3) I just ordered a Tamron 18-270 lens after doing extensive research and having that with my Tokina 12-24 I will likely rarely if ever use the 18-55 and 55-250 lenses that came with the camera, so all the extra little do-dads like extra lens covers, lens cap keepers, polarizing filter, etc was money unwisely spent because the more specialized lenses are bigger (72mm, 77mm, etc)

How's that for a starting point? A good idea? Has this been done before and I'm merely cluttering up the forum?

I look forward to other words of wisdom from others as I continue enjoying my new hobby.

Iggy