My goal to learn SilverLight has taken a backseat to a great opportunity I was given to learn SharePoint (MOSS 2007 really). There's a lot of parts to it, so it's easy to get lost. Fortunately for me, I am learning "on the job" with another consultant that has a ton of experience with MOSS development. My other saving grace is that custom development is ASP.NET-based, so it plays very well with the ASP.NET I already have. Plus, I've also have experience creating webparts, one of the basic building blocks of custom MOSS development - which MOSS actually make a little easier to use in my opinion.
So far, I've been very pleased with the work we've been able to accomplish in a short amount of time on the project we're working on, and I look forward to being able to share what I've learned down the road. In the meantime, I am still in "learning mode"; so I plan on attending SharePoint Saturday that will happen in Atlanta on April 18, 2009 so that I can get as much exposure as I can. Right now, they're looking for speakers; but since I already know a few developer friends that will be presenting, I think I'll just be an attendee this time and maybe consider presenting at another code camp or something.
Bottom line ... those of you that haven't made the jump to SharePoint and MOSS development out of "fear of the unknown", I am here to say that it's not as scary as you think and I encourage you to give it a try and/or attend a conference to see what it's all about.