I can't figure it out....very new to PS and I have no clue what a wacom tablet is. Help? TIA

Google returns about 986,000 results if you search for wacom tablet
http://www.google.com/search?q=wacom+tablet

This Wikipedia article will tell you a little bit more about the gizmo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digitizing_tablet

And some more here:
http://www.sosnewbie.com/en/resources/manual-to-choice-your-first-graphics-tablet/

Long story short:
It’s a device used mainly to paint with a computer, but it’s also useful to draw, photo retouching or even to design. Imagine that instead of a mouse you use a pencil in a tablet that perceives movement; the big advantage is that it has sensitivity to pressure, the more you press, the thicker the trace will be.