wanting to take up some sort of Martial Art, do not know where to start

tehmarken

Judo is good, and has some great practical application, but you can also get pretty hurt. Concussions and ear problems are pretty common (cauliflower ear).

Aikido / Hapkido (basically the korean version of aikido) focus more on locks and disabling somebody, so there's usually less impact. Hapkido incorporates Tae Kwon Do though, so it's a bit more "exciting."

I really enjoyed Hapkido when I took it, and the arm and wrist locks are very applicable in real life. You also learn the pressure points in the hands, arms, and shoulders. Personally, I like disabling somebody more than hurting them so there isn't collateral damage.

Draco_Auric

The chances of getting hurt in Judo aren't that high, and if you are worried about cauliflower ear just get an ear guard.

Also actually learning to fight will always carry some risk of getting hurt. Primarily because training in a realistic way involves some degree of uncertainty which means there is a potential for accidents.

I'm not a fan of pressure points either as a committed attacker can often ignore them for long enough to hurt you, and they plain don't work on a percentage of the population.

Indica1

Here are some kickboxing schools around you. They both appear to have fight teams and instructors who are/were professional fighters. For learning how to actually hurt somebody, this is the way to go.

http://www.francokickboxing.com

http://www.kelleesama.com/