Chris, your post above contains good advice. An 8" Dob is not for everyone. And I have been into astronomy for 51 years.
Duncan, I also suggest a small refractor on an alt/az mount. Bintel have the 102mm skywatcher for around $450 if you must buy new.
You can use this from your second story for daytime views, and it will show all the bright night objects reasonably well.
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