jonderrs, you're starting out in a great hobby, which can consume large amounts of your free time. Welcome!
The advice above is very valuable, and I'm sure you'll get lots more inputs over the next few days right here.
Before you have your license, the Baofeng radio you have will do just fine in listening to what's going on in your area. You have likely figured out already that you don't need a license to listen... Using this site and perhaps other free online sources, get every repeater in your area into the radio memories, and perhaps some of the common FM Simplex frequencies (146.52 and 446.0 are good to start with). You'll quickly get familiar with the activity near you. Once you have a 'better' radio in hand, don't throw the Baofeng away, it never hurts to have a spare around. A light coating of dust is known to have no ill effects to Baofeng radios, though.
I tell people preparing to get their first ham license (or those that just got one) that there's more to ham radio than most people think.
Not just repeaters.
Not just handheld radios.
Not just analog voice radio on VHF and UHF bands.
Not just 'EMCOMM' (Emergency Communications).
Not 'just' anything. Ham radio is a huge world within which you have an almost infinite variety of activities to choose from. You have to start somewhere, of course. Check out ham radio clubs. Depending on how large a town you live in, you might find there are several ham radio clubs and some may be more appealing to you than others. You should encounter folks who are willing to tell you anything & everything you want to know, and may even be willing to demonstrate capabilities you weren't already aware of.
If you're a techie type, you may find there are always opportunities to help out with maintenance work at repeaters, or just to help some local ham put up a new antenna.
If you fancy yourself as more of an 'operator' there are plenty of chances to learn emergency or traffic-handling skills. Or find frequencies where casual conversation is evidently the norm and maybe become one of the bunch.
It may be too soon for you to decide what particular ham radio activity interests you most, but soon you'll start to orient yourself toward what catches your fancy. Remember, you can always change your mind later, and adding to your list of interests is highly encouraged!
I won't say any more. You have questions, you can ask them here, and expect plenty of inputs to help you out.
