Hello, everybody. We'll get to the Oscar nominations in a bit, but we begin the first blog of 2013 with the flu outbreak that has crippled 45 states including Alaska. So far, more than 2,250 have been hospitalized with 20 children dead according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Northeast, still licking their wounds from Superstorm Sandy, is the hardest hit as record numbers of emergency room visits have been reported with Boston declared a public health emergency. Its mayor, Thomas Merino, says that it's the worst flu season his city has seen in four years with the Swine Flu scare. Is there an end in sight as we're already into the first few weeks of the year? Unless if it becomes an epidemic, I believe so.

There is another fever that'll be gripping us soon, but of the non-fatal kind: Oscar fever, as nominations for the 85th Annual Academy Awards were announced by host Seth MacFarlane and Emma Stone Thursday morning. Now for decades, they were used to be presented in formal fashion by the Academy president and a recent winner or nominee. Not anymore, as that tradition was broken; no more lectern or that fanfare we've been familiar with for the last 15 years, but yes riffing on the nominees.

"Lincoln" dominates the field with 12 including nominations Supporting Acting (Tommy Lee Jones and Sally Field), Best Actor (Daniel Day-Lewis), Director (Steven Spielberg), and Best Picture of 2012; the latter's other eight contenders are Amour, Argo, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Django Unchained (which I saw on New Year's Eve), Les Miserables, Life of Pi, Silver Linings Playbook, and Zero Dark Thirty.

Jessica Chastain is already the early favorite for Best Actor, which also includes Jennifer Lawrence, Emmanuelle Riva, Quvenzhane Wallis, and Naomi Watts. If not Chastain, Oscar history could be made with either 85-year-old Riva or 9-year-old Wallis as the oldest or youngest winner ever. As for Best Actor, Lewis or Denzel Washington want to make it three; but don't rule out Bradley Cooper, 2009 Oscars host Hugh Jackman, and Joaquin Phoenix.

The Supporting Acting field, with one exception, is loaded with familiar names. Supporting Actor alone has five former winners: Alan Arkin, Robert De Niro, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Tommy Lee Jones, and Christoph Waltz. Only De Niro and Hoffman already own Best Actor, while the other three went up on stage before to collect Supp. Actor. Supporting Actress features two-time winner Sally Field and 1997 Best Actress Helen Hunt, plus Amy Adams, Anne Hathaway, and the third newcomer along with Riva and Wallis: Jacki Weaver.

While these names I've mentioned were jumping for joy knowing that there is only one month to go, there were some who are depressed. I'm talking about Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty), Marion Cotillard (Rust and Bone), Leonardo DiCaprio (Django Unchained), Tom Hooper (Les Miserables) and perhaps the biggest snub of them all: Ben Affleck (Argo). 

No Affleck, Hooper, and Bigelow could mean a huge advantage already for "Lincoln" leaving the Dolby Theatre with the top prizes, as Seth MacFarlane is not only doing the 85th Annual Academy Awards February 24 on ABC...he's also up for one himself (Original Song, "Ted")! But before that, we have the first major stop along the way: Sunday's Golden Globes, which I'll recap on Monday.

And last but not least: Alabama may have denied Notre Dame's quest for perfection Monday night with their third BCS National Championship in four years, but the real winners? Crimson Tide quarterback A.J. McCarron's girlfriend, Miss Alabama USA Katherine Webb...and Brent Musburger's hormones!

During the first quarter, with Alabama already decimating the Fighting Irish, the 73-year-old Musburger appears to have had a verbal hard-on for Webb as cameras cut to her. That would later result to a huge spike in Twitter followers ballooning to 260,000. Brent's remarks didn't sit well with ESPN, who issued an apology saying that "the commentary in this instance went too far and Brent understands that." Webb, on the other hand, told "Today's" Matt Lauer that that wasn't necessary.

But this is not the first time the legendary sportscaster would be smitten with a beauty on the sidelines. In 2005, aspiring actress, model, and TV host Jenn Sterger caught the attention of Musburger; years later, she would be in the headlines again thanks to a sexting scandal involving Brett Favre, who allegedly snapped cell phone pictures of his penis to Sterger.

Now, it's Katherine Webb, and heed my words: This ain't the last we'll be seeing of her. If only Brent said his trademark "You are looking LIVE!!..." So long and stay strong.