Will it be Canon 450D or Nikon D40x for a noob like me?

My hands are itching to get a Digital SLR camera. I’ve been poking my nose around the threads and blogs of photog-hobbyists and I’ve been influenced to get either a Canon 450D or a Nikon D40x. I don’t know yet. I’m a really impulsive buyer, that’s why I really want to think about this first, and of course, I want to know which SLR is better. Is it the Canon or the Nikon? I’m a noob, so I wouldn’t know. Lol.

Here’s a graphic display, for those who have no idea what I’m talking about:

Anyway, I’m really excited. I even want to take classes, if my schedule permits me to do so. Kaso hindi eh, haha. So I figured, I’d just teach my self. I’ve always wanted to pursue photography, ngayon ko lang siya natupad kasi may means na ako. So, back to my SLR’s. I’m sort of tilting over to the Canon-ians side, but if I think about it money-wise, Nikon D40x is much cheaper right? My mom’s going to Vietnam tonight and I asked her to look for Canon SLR’s as well as Nikon, hoping that it would be cheap there. Sana. Like 50% less the price here sana, but who am I kidding right? Haha. If it were that cheap there, lahat na ng photography hobbyists would shop there. Haay. So right now, I’ve promised myself to research as many as I can about Camera’s and Photography. I just hope I find more and more sites and step by step help from the fascinating world that is the internet. If anyone can help me out or get me started, that would be great! A whole lot of thanks to you!