I HEART...

Joss Whedon - Well, I always heart him but lately it's for the one/two punch of Serenity and the visual companion. I got both for Christmas and read the book, which contains the script and background info, right before watching the movie on DVD (Jill and I saw it in the theater when it came out). It's a really good movie and if it's the last we ever get of the "Firefly" universe...I'm happy.

TV shows on DVD - My son and I finally finished The Simpsons Season 7. I realized that I didn't see a number of those eps when they originally aired because I saw bits that were cut out in syndication. They were cooking that year with the appearance of Homer's mom, a spring break road trip by Bart and his friends, the very cool look at all the characters in "22 Short Films About Springfield," and so much more. Then I spent the past week watching Veronica Mars Season 1 as fast as I possibly could. It's easily one of the best shows on TV, with that perfect mix of humor and drama with interesting stories intercut with emotional stories all wrapped up in an overarching secret murder investigation. I cried a couple times watching the last episode. Now I can't wait until they start rerunning season 2 eps (or the DVD comes out).

New music (or new to me) - I mentioned the Jenny Lewis (with the Watson Twins) album in passing but I'd like to reiterate how good it is. She's got that great voice and the album frames it very well with a country feel. Got around to getting The Long Winters EP, Ultimatum, from last year. Good stuff, especially the title tracks. The new Minus Five is solid, as is The Go-Betweens live DVD/CD.

Books - The new Max Barry novel, Company, is pretty good. It's another satire of the business world from him but it takes things to an exteme level and the character work is stronger than in his previous novel (Jennifer Government).