I am saddened to see anyone afraid to participate because they feel they need to spend well over the $40.00 limit for fear of feeling like they didn't do enough. I will echo the person who said I'll be your buddy if that's what keeps you from joining in!
I do think the first time you participate it's all new, but I encourage you to give it a try. The only time I have ever witnessed any problems is when rules were not followed. And if that happened, the participating members (and even a few others) banned together to make sure the person wronged was taken care of. As much attention as something negative brings, it's also important to recognize how amazing the 99.9% of the others are. So c'mon join in!!! We'd love to have you!!