Just to close up this thread.
Thanks a lot for all your opinions. I ended up picking up a cheap generic chromo bike from a riding partner that was looking at selling. He bought it last year to see if he liked riding and is ready to invest in a good bike now. Cheap relatively new bike for me for much less than anything I have found so far and it is yellow.
Traditional geometry and thin tubes with a plush ride won out over the langster. Decided not to go fixed as I have a ton of hills/crappy roads by my house and the frame has vert dropouts.
I am going to throw some spacers and a tensioner on and save money for a nicer bike once summer comes around.