It's a new year, and here's what has caught my attention in recent days.

• If you're a movie awards junkie like me, you'll be watching the Golden Globes on Sunday. We were deprived last year because of the writers' strike, so the GG crew is ratcheting up the glam quotient this time around.
• A colleague pointed out that Fresno theatre alums Audra McDonald and Sharon Leal shared the small screen Thursday night on an episode of ABC's "Private Practice." (Um, sorry, I don't watch the show. McDonald is one of the stars, Leal did a guest spot.)
• President-elect Barack Obama wants to delay converting analog to digital TV. For folks like me who don't have cable and rely on rabbit ears, this is turning into a way-lengthy process. (Thank goodness, I already have the converter box.)
• Writer Alexander Penney has coined a new term for getting screwed: getting "Madoffed." She's another high-profile victim of Bernard Madoff's billions-of-dollars Ponzi scheme. So's show biz magnate Jeffrey Katzenberg and actors Kevin Bacon/Kyra Sedwick. Not to mention charities and worthwhile foundations. Why is Madoff allowed to be under house arrest in his expensive NYC residence rather than waiting in jail?
• And, finally, here's a disturbing story to get us all of our butts and into our nearest gyms. Happy New Year!