I have dealt with all of the, ahem, issues that you mention -- guys, I really hope you've all bailed by now -- David?
-- and had no problems at all. I was used to tampons before I got a Keeper, but I found the Keeper more comfortable than tampons. The one thing is, they come with a rubber stick on them for pulling the thing out. That can poke you, so you have to cut it off. Or at least, I did. After that, it was fine.
Gross? Yeah, I guess a little bit. But like you said, Del, it's pretty hard to avoid grossness altogether in that department.
On the plus side: As you said, Kelda, they're great for traveling -- if your period is coming up, you have only one little thing to pack instead of a big box. If you've already got your period, well, you're already carrying it!
You don't have to worry about always having supplies with you wherever you go. You don't have to worry about properly disposing of anything. And you save money and help the environment.