I am new to recording and I have some questions:

[Future Proof]

KoS's recommendation looks to be rock-solid for you at this stage. It sounds like you're just kind of feeling around at the moment and that Emu will probably prop you up until you either lose interest, or you get the recording bug like many do and absolutely have to have hi-quality gear for hi-quality productions. At first I was kind of put off that the Emu doesn't have phantom power but on the flip-side, there are some fantastic mics out there that don't need phantom power at all. The Shure SM57/58s are amazing mics (and only $100) and you can get quite a few good condensor mics that have their own transformers. The Rode K2 is an example of such a mic, and it's an amazing piece of equipment.

Good luck there Caprice, let us know how it goes.