I just got my curve two months ago and am not very computer minded. I tried JC's memory optimizer yesterday and I'm so proud of myself that I didn't nuke my bb. There were a couple of steps that I didn't do like modify the .axl file or removing all the vendor tags. I figured I don't need a whole mess of other themes to get around to deleting later. I only removed the pre-installed wallpapers, PTT, Help and the ATT icon theme and I freed up quite a bit of memory. I use VAD and love it when I'm driving so I left it on. As long as you print it out and follow it closley you won't have any problems.
I also did the JC memory optimizer earlier this week. I went from 17MB to 27MB by removing the AT&T theme and pre-installed wallpaper. I didn't mess around with the .axl file either.
You should really look into it hannibal. It isn't as hard as it looks.