Here's a pic of my Extra 300L, you can see my PT-19 behind it.
osidak is right on w/ his advice. All I can add is to find a club near you through AMA and learn on a buddy cord. Anyone can learn fast w/out crashing airplanes that way. I have a few more in the hangar. An ARF is a great way to go for a first airplane IMO. I'm a kit builder but I always have one ARF that I can just go pound pavement w/.
Where are you located?