I have used a similar forge to the one you used, and to light my coal I use a good ole' news paper, with a few coals on top, and a match or two. a little patience
as far as magnets go, I bought an arts and crafts set, something like 50 magnets for about three dollars from wal-mart. I usually put two or three on the blade, one on the each end and one in the middle. I wait for the magnets to fall off, wait a few seconds longer, pull and quench. I put three magnets so i can better make sure everything is heating evenly. I have messed up and had bad "hot spots" where only one of the three magnets fall off... everyone makes mistakes no biggie
another way that I have read how to anneal is to light a regular fire, and set the knife in the middle of it. old school but hey. I have read the same for tempering, then just let the knife air cool.
Everyone gave you good advice, and your knife looked nice, so I wont be to shocked when your next blade is a total success! keep us posted, success stories are always good, keep it up!