Compound Miter Saws

I have drills, a miter saw, and circular saw; that’s it for my power tools. Aside from those tools, I have hammers, screw drivers, pliers, etc.
I have noticed that I am becoming very interested in woodworking and have done a few projects, but I want to continue to advance and perhaps someday be a furniture builder in my free time.
Which tools or power tools are absolutely essential to do your average woodworking project? Also, how can I learn more about these things? Is it just me, or is this the best past time ever?

We bought our house in October of 2008. We were aware that there was an issue with the foundation but the source of the problem was fixed, the walls were waterproofed via waterproofing paint (and we’ve never had a problem with leaking), and steel beams were placed along the walls of the basement and embedded in new concrete. Our inspector said that the work done on installing the steel beams was excellent and he saw no structure problems and cleared us for closing. The inspector was someone we knew so we knew he was telling us the truth.
With that being said, I have noticed a horizontal crack about 9 feet in length. It’s small and I can’t even fit a dime in it, but I’m wondering if this is a major problem or just the house settling from Winter to Spring. I “patched” up 3 test areas with joint compound and wrote the date by each of them so that I can see if the compound cracks and how quickly. Will this work for testing?
Also, even with the steel beams (a total of about 20) along the basement walls, is it possible to have a structure problem that could result into a major problem? I know that every basement gets cracks (horizontal and/or vertical), but I’m wondering if this is something that we should be majorly concerned about.
I’ll continue to keep an eye on it and monitor it, but just asking for thoughts of professionals or those who have experienced this. Thank you to those of you who respond with quality answers!

I have two wall outlets in my garage that are old and not grounded. The outlet for my garage door opener is grounded, and the opener is the only thing on a 20 amp circuit. Can I run a power strip (or two) off the garage door opener outlet? I will be the only one working in the shop so tools will only be used one at a time. Will a strip with a built in circuit breaker keep me from overloading the house circuit? I am looking to do a little woodworking but don’t have the funds to do multiple outlets off of a sub panel. Any advice would be appreciated!

I’m working on a project for Christmas that requires the use of a few power tools – namely, a table saw and drill with some large bits. I don’t own any of these tools. I don’t need them for very long, only a few minutes, so I don’t want to rent them for a full day or anything if I don’t have to.
Do places exist where you can go in, bring your lumber (or whatever), and use the tools for a fee? Will places like Lowes or Home Depot do this for you if you purchase raw materials from them?

I’ve never attempted drywall repair before, but we are currently closing on our first home and it needs some large (6″ x 6″) holes patched in the walls. My concern is keeping the repair job level with the rest of the wall. I intent to use a keyhole saw to cut out a square, put in some backing boards, and screw a new piece of drywall down into the hole. Then I was going to use mesh and compound, then sand to round out the seams. We will then be repainting the entire room.
Here is my concern, knowing NOTHING about drywall repair:
How is it not going to bulge away from the rest of the wall? I imagine that putting tape over the wall, then drywall compound would mean that, even after sanding, won’t the tape’s thickness make it come off the wall a little bit. Do I sand down the paint over the area where the tape is going to overlap the existing drywall?