I had the same issue actually. Got a bike, had Nashbar pedals. Got a pair of Speedplay Zeros on 3bay after a couple months of lurking for a cheap pair. Ended up with a second bike ($200 frame, spare and hand me down parts I'd been collecting), no pedals. I used the second bike for commuting (every day), so it needed decent pedals, but then the nicer road bike (3x rides/week) didn't have pedals. I also didn't want to buy a pair of Zeros for the second bike because the pedals would have cost me half as much as the bike.
My first solution was to take an old pair of metal bodied toe clip pedals out of the closet, and that lasted a week until my feet started getting sore. The second solution was to buy a used pair of cheap Nashbar pedals/cleats ($20) from a local cyclist, and a close enough pair of bike shoes from Craigslist ($30). I didn't like the pedals as much, but they were just fine for commuting. Upon graduating and getting a job, I purchased the second pair of pedals. Sadly I now have a tandem, so I'm back in the same dilemma, but at least it isn't ridden so often that it's a huge pain, and I still have the Nashbar pedals/shoes.