[Solved] Need Advice For Gaming PC With Special Consideration

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: No rush. Before August 2010
BUDGET RANGE: Um... mostly whatever? Cheaper is better, but the money is available to spend.
SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, Internet, Etc. Work stays on my work computer.
PARTS NOT REQUIRED: All. I've had bad experiences reusing parts from old rigs.
PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Amazon, Newegg
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA
PARTS PREFERENCES: As much Intel as possible.
OVERCLOCKING: Yes - some
SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe
MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1080 or 1920x1200
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I've built a huge computer before, and it wasn't fun. I'd like to have a mid-sized (and weight) rig this time around. I'm also totally in the dark about water cooling, so I'm not sure if I want to go with air or water.

So here's the deal. I've seen almost everyone recommend sticking with i7-920 over the i7-975/980x because you get a lot more bang for your buck. Would your opinion on that change if you could get Intel products for around half retail price? ($150 for 920, $275 for 950, $500 for 975, presumably $500 for 980)

I'll be building a rig in the next couple of months, and I've got a connection for half-priced Intel products. I don't really have any desire to go top-of-the-line, as I did that last time and didn't feel like I got my money's worth. I do however have a desire to use that discount as well as I can. To that end, I plan on getting an Intel 160gb SSD for my OS/games (in addition to a pair of 2TB drives for storage) and hopefully an Intel mobo. I haven't looked at mobo technology in a while, but as I understand there's not a lot new to look at?

So, with that in mind...
1. Would you recommend the i7-980 (at the $500 price point)? Why or why not? What alternatives?
2. What mobo should I pair with it (light overclocking and no experience with water cooling)? Is there a good Intel option?
3. Is there an easy water cooling setup that I could do? Or is it all going to require more work than I want?
3a. If I do go with water, is it going to up the weight significantly?
4. What graphics card should I pair with it? I'm okay with getting a pair of them I think, but I haven't decided whether I want to go huge monitor, dual-monitor, or 3d-monitor, so I don't know if that plays into it or not.

Thanks in advance!