'Mister CIA said:
I need a hobby, so I've decided to spend my fantasy football winnings early and buy a DSLR camera and immerse myself.
If you're just starting out but plan to immerse yourself into the hobby I wouldn't sweat the camera body so much.Do some research on a couple of quality lenses that meet the needs for the type of photography you want to shoot. Price out those lenses to find a pair that are within your budget at the best quality you can afford.
If possible, rent a Canon with one(or both) of those lenses for a weekend you have free to really put it through it's paces through as wide a variety of circumstances as you can muster. Another weekend, rinse and repeat the process with a Nikon combo. Get prints from the two cameras and factor in how they "felt", how intuitive they are for you to use, etc. The big decision for you now is deciding which "family" of lenses you want to invest in.
Once you've decided on a nice lens or two just get a camera body that will work with the lenses you want.
You'll want to replace the camera body every few years.... the lenses(if you purchase quality and take care of them) you will keep for a lifetime. Marry the lens(be very picky), have a once night stand with the body(whatever works for now).
If you plan on going DSLR but don't really want to spend a lot on lenses(nothing wrong with that - just the jump up on sensor size will give you a lot of advantages) then you might consider looking at Sony/Pentax/Etc. They make very good cameras at great prices but there just aren't as many lens options(and accessory options for that matter) as there is for Canon/Nikon.
Be aware there will be some screaming deals between now and February so if you purchase soon you'll undoubtedly see a deal a few months from now that seems incredible. That's just another reason to invest in the lenses, the price on them is generally less volatile than the bodies. In a year or two when you see the screaming deal on a much better body you can take advantage of it and it will take advantage of the nice lenses you've collected.