Early last year, I had the enjoyable task of spending several hours in the company of Scarlett Johansson. I held it together. I didn't request a photo together, or an autograph...or even a funny soundbite to use as my voicemail greeting. That being said, if I ever found myself in a room with Bill Watterson, I would probably start shrieking or sob uncontrollably or wrap the man—scared and bewildered—up in a hug so tight that security would forcibly remove me from the premises. I have every last Calvin & Hobbes book. Some date back nearly two decades and were purchased from elementary-school book fairs. I don't read them very often, but I will never dump them in the thrift-store pile. They're precious to me. When someone brings this much laughter into your life, this much delight, you show deference. So I will always keep my books close. Here are five of the things I love about Mr. Watterson's famous strip.

My big combined December birthday/Christmas present from my wife and kids this year was an XBox 360, complete with Live account and games. For two weeks, while the rest of the house slept, I played Fallout 3, saving the residents of a post-apocalyptic Washington D.C. from super mutants, feral ghouls, human slavers and fascist genetic purists posing as American patriots. But since then, Gears of War II has hardly been touched and Bioshock remains unopened in its case. Sadly this isn't due to any new-found willpower or productivity (the Christmas tree is coming down soon, I promise!). Instead, I've discovered that I've been carrying around a fantastic gaming console all along—my iPhone. Sure, some of the free games are mildly entertaining (especially Topple). But the first app that I plopped $5 for, Reign of Kings, has me completely addicted. Here are five great war game iPhone apps for less than a Lincoln:

The Paste staff is slowly trickling back into the office after our holiday trips, and I think I can safely speak for everyone when I say that, if we're not completely happy to be home, then at least we're thrilled to be off the roads for a bit. Not that Atlanta traffic is much better, but hey, better the snarled, congested, crazy-making concrete devil you know, right? In tribute to coming home from the holidays, and in celebration of all the travels 2009 will bring, here are nine great songs about roads. Listen to them all on the last page, and leave your own favorites in the comments.

After watching Slumdog Millionaire the other evening (which I enjoyed a good bit, though not as much as seemingly everyone else in the world), I got to thinking about all the great films coming our way in the new year and decided a list was in order. With a little aid from IMDb's coming soon pages, I've selected the five I'm most excited about. Enjoy, complete with trailers where applicable:

Happy New Year! I hope you had a fun night with friends and family and slept in late this morning. New Year's Day is always kinda bittersweet for me--probably because I love eating collards and peas and thinking about the year ahead, but I hate taking down my Christmas decorations. Which always results in not preserving the garland bows and having to make new ones the next year.

In the current issue of Paste, which is our super-amazing year-end blowout issue featuring our top albums and movies and so forth, we also have a full-page guide to throwing a New Year’s party. Helmed by industrious fashionista and associate editor Kate Kiefer, with minor help from yours truly, the page includes a playlist of soul and funk jams to play as the clock marches on toward midnight.

[Above: My nephews Isaac (8 years old, left) and Seán (6 years old, mind temporarily blown, right) on Christmas morning after opening their very own Nintendo Wiiiiiiiiii!]

Since October 27 this year, we've published a new list every day on PasteMagazine.com—everything from the "10 Best NES Games of All Time" and the "40 Best TV Theme Songs" to the "Top Five Not-So-Thinly-Veiled Sexual References to the Male Genitalia in Classic Blues and R&B." So we know how hard it is to execute a good one. As the year ends, we take a look at some other great lists. Call it the 2008 Meta-List. We hope this is the best List of Best Lists that you come across. Or that it at least makes the Top 10.



10. The Fader's Top Seven Hotels Thanked By Axl Rose In The Chinese Democracy Liner Notes

7. Trump Hotel
6. Four Seasons
5. Ritz Hotel
4. The Palms
3. Hard Rock Hotel
2. Grand Hyatt all over the world
1. Mandarin Oriental in London

This one needed no commentary, so I've reprinted it in full, only pointing out that you should go to The Fader's Listmania 2008 to also read their Top Three Appearances by a Puppet in a Music Video. Though I will point out that the video of Kermit the Frog singing LCD Soundsystem's "New York, I Love You, But You're Bringing Me Down" should be on there.

[Above: Of Montreal gets its weird on at the Tabernacle.]

My granny-hermit tendencies really showed themselves this year, and I found myself going to fewer live shows than I did in the salad days of aught-seven. (Oh, to be 23 again!) Still, I seem to have managed quality over quantity: There weren't all that many to parse through, but my favorite shows of the year sure were great.