How can I learn web design without out going to school? Not web development but learn to design websites. What are great resources like websites, books, etc. Also what would I need to learn and why?

http://Lynda.com has some great lessons on design aesthetics. And the tools to implement these (html/css/javascript) have tons of tutorials on tons of different blogs.  The number 1 thing you need to remember is to learn it as you need it and try it as you learn it.  There's too much to learn it all at once.  Also a great way to begin is to start looking for free themes and templates that you like, then start changing them little by little to look exactly how you want.