MP3 players? Who's got 'em?

So... I'm thinking about spending part of my tax refund-- most of which will pay bills or go into savings-- on an MP3 player. I have no clue what to get-- one of those iPod Nano 8GB thingies that cost about $179?

Or does anyone know of something cheaper and/or better? Recommendations?

Also, how does one play it in the car? Unless we just have to use the headphones... I really am stupid, but my car has a CD player. I remember back in the day I had a cassette player in my old car and a portable CD player, and there was this little accessory that went into the cassette player that played the CDs over the speakers. Is there something similar for MP3 players? If you know about these things, please tell me and don't make fun of me. All my technology money in the past went to Nintendo, Sony, and Dell, so this is new ground for me.

In other news, I've realized that I really like Kelly Clarkson's music. Should I be ashamed or is that OK?