Did you send all your Valentine's already? If not, Hallmark has some e-cards that aren't tacky, ugly, or accompanied by annoying theme music that will embarrass you in front of all your co-workers.

Do you hate Valentine's Day with a passion? Need to send an Anti-Valentine's Day card to the creep that broke up with you last night? Don't worry, I've got you covered.

Maybe you can even throw in some candy hearts in that Anti-Valentine. Pick the ones with messages like "RETURN MY CDS" and "UP YER DOSAGE" so the numbskull will get the point loud and clear.

And then you can take solace in the fact that you're not alone in loathing this holiday.

But don't worry too much. Even if you're having a bad Valentine's Day, the rock stars still love you! Look, Fab from the Strokes made you a Valentine's Day card! Awww, thanks, Fab! It's so...um, cheery. And honest.

And Supergrass will be doing a live set on KXLU today here in Los Angeles. Don't live in L.A.? Then you can feel the love with their online stream. It starts at 2pm Pacific, so you East Coasters might have to ditch your Valentine's Day date in order to hear it. (You didn't really like him that much anyway, did you?)

Louis Cannizzaro wrote a book about how much he loves his girlfriend, appropriately titled "I Love My Girlfriend". He doesn't really have a girlfriend, though. Oh, the Valentine's irony!

And if your significant other was completely unoriginal and gave you chocolates, make him or her take you to the Natural History Museum instead for "Chocolate: The Exhibition". It opens on Sunday. Pray for free samples. The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, 900 Exposition Boulevard, 213/763-DINO. Through May 11, 2003.

And finally, a personal note: today is my last day at my current job. On Monday I start my new, wonderful, exciting, thrilling job (and I'm not even being sarcastic), so updates might be a little irregular over the next week or so. I love making this website for all of you, though, so don't worry: updates will still happen. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy putting it together!

Have a fabulous Valentine's Day, love and kisses to you all, and I'll see you next week!

More Lou Reed fun in this month's Rolling Stone. The best part?

"Are you amazed the Velvets are still a touchstone for bands like the Strokes and Interpol?

I always thought we were the greatest thing in the world -- that combination of sounds and personalities. I'd adjusted to the idea that no one else thought so. But I've always been on the outside. I'm not getting nominated for a Grammy. I'm not in the charts.

You are having the last laugh.

I'm having many a chuckle."

The idea of Lou having "many a chuckle" just brings a smile to my face.

Guess who's going on tour and skipping Los Angeles entirely? Why, it's the Red Hot Chili Peppers, of course. That's real cool, guys. I appreciate it.

As any of you regular readers know, my love for Amoeba Records grows by the day. And now you at home can share in the joy by seeing the employees' Best of 2002. And as if that wasn't enough, all those CDs are on sale through Sunday. Happy day!

The Strokes love Anna Sui. Who doesn't love Anna Sui? Check out her makeup line if you must be convinced.

All you lucky ducks that live in or around Washington DC get to go to the Margaret Bourke-White exhibit at the Phillips Collection. But what if you live too far away? No worries, you can see it online instead. Phillips Collection, 1600 21st Street NW, Washington DC, 202-387-2151. Through May 11, 2003.

Don't know what to do with those embarrassing, purchased-on-a-whim vinyl records? If you give them to this guy, he'll make you a bracelet or a lampshade. Yeah, but if he thinks he's getting his hands on my 12" Sound of Music soundtrack, he's crazy.

(Photo Credit: Julie Pavlowsky/LA Weekly)

I have this odd love/hate relationships with mullets. Every time I see one it's like, "Wow, it's a mullet!" and a second later, "Wow, it's really a mullet." Which is why this book both intrigues and horrifies me.

More David Gordon Green love, this time from the New York Times. His movie, "All the Real Girls", is opening this weekend in LA & New York, so brave the elements and go. Or make one of your friends go and tell you about it later.

The Village Voice has their 2002 Pazz & Jop awards ready to go. Same players, new play. Wilco, Beck, Flaming Lips, etc. You know the drill by now.

In preparation for Coldplay's happy happy shows at the Hollywood Bowl and Madison Square Garden, go check out the new video for "Clocks" (aka: the song I've been listening to nonstop for three days) and a live performance of "In My Place".

If you haven't gotten enough Lollapalooza over the past week, now there's photos from Monday's press conference. I hear Jane's Addiction played "Jane Says". And I missed it. Sigh.

Jack White makes his almost-daily appearance on my website to talk about the new-old country look that the White Stripes are going for. Well, okay, if it makes them happy.

Newsweek has a lovely article and online gallery regarding the Matisse/Picasso exhibit that's starting Thursday at MoMA. One highlight: "'Matisse Picasso' is unrelentingly didactic from the moment you check your coat, and you can get so caught up in the painting vs. painting matchups that the exhibition starts to feel like 'Survivor: The South of France'." Heh.

If you're one of those super-impatient people (like me) and can't wait for the 200th issue of Q to land on your doorstep, check out their interview with Mister Jackie White, where he discusses upholstery and Nicole Kidman without missing a beat. (Thanks once again, Triple Tremelo!)

I'm all excited to read "When the Messenger is Hot" by Elizabeth Crane, so of course I'm jealous that she's doing two New York events this week. February 13th at the West Village Barnes & Noble and February 16th at KGB on 4th Street. Will someone go and tell me how it is? Please? Barnes & Noble, 396 Avenue of the Americas (at 8th Street), 212/674-8780, 7:30. KGB, 85 E. 4th St. (between Bowery and Second Avenue), 212/505-3360.

Question of the Day: As brought to us by Catchdubs. "If Oedipus had a bachelor-style reality TV show on Fox, would it be called Joe Mama?" Oh, Catchdubs, you make us laugh, you make us cry, but most importantly, you make us think.

So by now we all know about the Oscar nominations. Pretty paint-by-numbers, if you ask me. (Am I the only person who thought "Gangs of New York" was only ho-hum? What's with the Academy love for it?)

But yay for Pedro Almod�var's Best Director nomination! If you haven't seen "Talk to Her" yet, please go. Like, right now.

I was a little--okay, a lot--disappointed to not see any nominations for Alexander Payne, the writer/director behind "About Schmidt". So I might have to fly to New York and console myself at the Alexander Payne Film Festival at MoMA on February 27-28. C'mon, how can you pass up an opportunity to see "Election" on the big screen? You can't, of course. MoMA Film at the Gramercy Theatre, 127 East 23 Street (at Lexington Avenue), 212/777-4900

You might want to start hitting the New York museums and galleries because it looks like major arts budget cuts are looming in Manhattan. That is just the most depressing thing I've read all day.

Almost as depressing is Mary McNamara's lament for the Los Angeles dive bar. At least we still have Chez Jay's in Santa Monica, knock wood.

Have you read David Schickler's short story "Fourth Angry Mouse"? Oh, you must, you absolutely must. I read it last year while at a caf� and laughed so much that the man next to me asked if I was okay. (No joke, he really did.)

If you love it and immediately need to read more of David Schickler's work, pick up his short story collection "Kissing in Manhattan" or the Dave Eggers-edited "The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2002", since the story appears in both books.

More lovely Bj�rk goodness is on its way this summer, it seems. And she's touring Europe, too. No, come to Los Angeles first! We miss you, it's been almost a year!

My good intentions have failed me again: I missed the Dorothea Lange exhibit at the Getty. This means I have to haul my ass over to MOCA for the Lucien Freud show that opened yesterday, just to make myself feel better. MOCA at California Plaza, 250 South Grand Ave., 213/626-6222

Benjamin Gibbard from Death Cab For Cutie isn't afraid to answer the hard questions, such as "What are your favorite Hall & Oates songs?" Way to take one for the team, Ben!

Have you been to Sea Level Records in Echo Park? Me neither, but that will soon change. Even better than their store is the fact that they sell concert tickets on a cash-only basis (i.e. no Ticketmaster fees!) Sea Level Records, 1716 W. Sunset Blvd., 213/989-0146

Buy your tickets there for these upcoming shows at the Troubador: Rilo Kiley, 2/16; Cat Power, 2/18; Rainer Maria, 2/22; The Von Bondies & the Dirtbombs, 2/28.

Tom Waits really likes the Ramones. Yeah, that line forms to the left, Tom.

What's with this song poem phenomenon? First the LA Weekly does a big piece, then the New York Times jumps on the bandwagon. Read and learn, I guess.

Forget Fashion Week. Right now the most cutthroat industry is book publishing, says Michael Wolff at New York Magazine. Even so, he declares that "...devoting your professional life to books, even to books that sell (even to really moronic books that sell), is for many people arguably better than spending life in a profession in which there are no books, and no talk about books, and no interest in them at all." Hallelujah and amen.

Do you ever wonder who writes all those sappy sayings in the Hallmark cards? It's these people. Good work, guys!

Coldplay is set to play the Hollywood Bowl on May 31st. Oh my goodness, that's going to be such a beautiful show.

"The Oscar Nominations Aren't Even Out Yet But I Already Disagree With Them" by Kurt Loder. Oh, Kurt, you will always be the (intentionally) funniest thing on MTV.

Hold up, this just in. The "Dude, You're Getting a Dell" guy isn't just high on life. He got busted on the Lower East Side for pot possession. If I may quote one of my old NYU dorm guards when I say, "Can't you kids just buy your drugs in the Park like everyone else?" (Thanks to Modern Age for the link)

If you trek over to Amoeba on Monday night, you can see members from all five bands at a press conference, you creepy stalker, you.

The last in a long line of unsatisfied customers, Incubus is suing Sony to be released from their recording contract. I will say this for Sony, though: their Santa Monica offices have the nicest cafeteria I have ever attended. Linen tablecloths! I guess now we know where all the money's going...

Do you like Liechtenstein? Sure, we all do! So why not rent the place out for a while!

A.M. Homes has a new book about her experiences being in Los Angeles, including her stay at the Chateau Marmont. I haven't read it yet, but if it mocks soy chai lattes and/or yoga mats, I will rip my hair out.

My lovely mother called me at nine o'clock this morning to tell me about the Buffalo Exchange, a used, vintage, and cheap clothing store on La Brea. Oh, Mommy, you are by far the coolest. Buffalo Exchange, 131 North La Brea, 323/938-8604

If, like me, your invite to the Ryan McGinley opening at the Whitney got lost in the mail, here's some pictures of what you missed. Gee, everyone looks so...happy.

And some Out & About's to start your weekend. Happy Friday, everyone.

18th & Flowers Streets, Los Angeles

Thalia Street Beach, Laguna Beach

Indian Avenue, Desert Hot Springs

Westminster Avenue, Venice

Zona Rosa Caffe, Pasadena

I'm sure a good number of us live in teeny-weeny living spaces. This man, however, has a 184-square foot apartment. And he likes it.

I have happily labeled myself as a magazine whore and this site has done nothing but further my addiction. A year of Jane for $4.97! US Weekly for $24.97! The New Yorker for $19.97?!? I could shed a tear, I really could...

Ooh, new Dandy Warhols music is on its way to us in July. Have you heard "13 Tales from Urban Bohemia"? And why not? It's fabulous! Borrow your roommate's copy if you don't believe me.

"Six Feet Under" starts back up on March 2nd. Yay for the morose morticians!

Grandiose Rock Star of the Day: This one goes out to my next-door neighbor, who decided last night at 3am was a perfect time for a hootenanny. Dude, not to be all Simon Cowell-ish, but you suck. Granted, you probably sound better in the harsh light of day, but really, go learn a trade or something. And definitely fire your girlfriend as a back-up singer. I'm sending you the bill for my new earplugs.

Are you sending flowers to your honey-muffin on Valentine's Day? Make sure you pick a good florist. Here's a tip: don't pick one that spells "bouquet" as "bokay", as my local florist does. That's a red flag right there.

(Photo Credit: Dana Gallagher/NY Times)

In the music world, it looks like Australia is the next big thing. Wasn't Sweden supposed to be the next big thing? Or maybe I'm thinking of Detroit. Or was it New York? I can't keep track anymore.

Funny I should mention New York bands. The L.A. band Dirty Little Secret is being compared to The Strokes, at least by the LA Times. I'm not quite sure where the former's "galactic keyboard work" fits into that comparison, but go see them at the Silverlake Lounge next Wednesday and find out. Silverlake Lounge, 2906 Sunset Blvd., 323/666-2407

"The guy has a mastery of song craft that you can't teach and a sunbeam of a voice that seems to waft around the room." That's the Washington Post talking about James Mercer's show last Tuesday night in DC. They also compare Rosie Thomas to Joni Mitchell. Wowsers. That's high class. (They're at the Knitting Factory in LA on Friday night, don't forget!)

David Cross update: it looks like the "Fresh Air" show will be airing tomorrow, so schedule your coffee breaks accordingly.

Free show alert! Kasey Chambers is at Amoeba tomorrow night at 5pm. (5pm? Who the hell schedules a show for 5pm?) As most of you will probably be commuting at that time, you can always try to see her at the El Rey at 7pm, but it'll set you back $25. El Rey Theatre, 5515 Wilshire Blvd., 323/936-6400

The bachelor from "The Bachelor" is a bachelor once again. It really is the most aptly-named show on television.

Hey, while you're checking out that Manolo Blahnik exhibit, try to swing by and see the White Stripes. They added a second London date, you know.

It's beer! I'm telling you, fish tacos and beer will cure the sniffles like that. Thanks to the lovely Johanna for making me go out last night--I owe you a round.

CNN is singing the praises of The Donnas this morning. Y'know, I can't sing a word of their songs, I have no idea what their names are, and yet they're strangely fascinating to me.

What the hell? "Talk To Her" and "Y Tu Mam� Tambi�n" aren't eligible for Academy Award nominations?!

The Los Angeles Times loves Clementine, the happy lil' bakery that is, sadly, located far away from my house. It's so unfair. Clementine, 1751 Ensley Avenue, 310/552-1080.

I hate wearing the shoes, but you have to admit, they're fun to ogle. Manolo Blahnik has an exhibit at the Design Museum in London. Stiletto goodness for all!

(Illustration: Manolo Blahnik)

I don't know when yet, but David Cross is going to be on NPR's "Fresh Air" sometime soon. Maybe this week? I'll crack the case and let you know. But if you're one of those impatient types, you can listen to some of his more humorous moments while you wait.

LACMA is having an Ansel Adams exhibit from now until May 11, 2003. Look, you missed the Van Gogh show several years ago, you totally flaked on the Winslow Homer brouhaha last summer, so make sure to go to this one, okay? Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., 323/857-6000.

Q is celebrating its 200th issue with interviews from Jack White, Craig Nicholls, and Dave Grohl, amongst others, of course. And they continue their long tradition of understated simplicity with a photo spread of--who else?--Courtney Love. (I can't bring myself to put the link to the photos, so go visit Catherine if you must see them.)

Remember how I told you about the White Stripes tracks on John Peel? Well, I just got around to listening to them (what can I say, I've been busy), and holy shit, they are so good.

Meg White singing "Cold Cold Night" = Peggy Lee singing "Fever". Oh yeah.

Wow, Polly Jean is seeping into the news more and more these days. Yay, I say!

If it's all cold and dreary where you live, or if you just feel that way, pop over to the Washington Post's virtual tour of the US Botanical Garden for much horticultural goodness. Aaah, pretty pretty flowers....

I thought the US Postal Service's level of coolness peaked with their Andy Warhol stamp, but I was wrong. Audrey Hepburn's is debuting on May 4th.

More Zooey Deschanel appreciation, this time from the New York Times Magazine. Who knew she bore such a striking resemblance to Lucille Ball?

If you like the New York Times' Arts & Leisure section better than the magazine, you might want to get to know Jodi Kantor, the new section editor as of March 1st. And speaking of which...

Why is it that there are no good concerts in L.A. for months, and then wham! Three in two days! A little too much leisure and not enough arts, in my opinion. Anyway, listen up, kittens...

Phantom Planet at the Roxy on February 7th & the El Rey on February 8th. You'll have to get on the guest list for the El Rey show, though--it's sold out. The Roxy, 9009 Sunset Blvd., $16. El Rey, 5515 Wilshire Blvd., $12.50

James Mercer from The Shins on February 7th at the Knitting Factory. And as if that wasn't pleasant enough, Rosie Thomas is opening. More bang for your buck! Knitting Factory, 7021 Hollywood Blvd., 323/463-0204, $10

And of course you already got tickets for Sleater-Kinney at the Henry Fonda Theatre on February 7th and 8th, right? Right? Henry Fonda Theatre, 6126 Hollywood Blvd., $14.50

Do you watch "Dawson's Creek"? Then you're so bumming right now. If it cheers you up, it'll end with a two-hour finale that will not doubt include many 25-cent words. Have your dictionary handy.

The Getty Museum in Malibu is finally reopening, but not until Fall 2005. Hey, at least it's something to look forward to, right?

Can someone please tell Courtney Love that hotel tantrums were cool in, oh, 1995? Says one Freudian eyewitness, "I think psychologists would describe her conversational manner as 'loose association.'" I think that's the polite way of saying "fucked up," no?

You know that supermodel on the cover of Vogue? She only looks hotter than you because of this guy. And Kate Winslet is none too happy with him, either.

Awww...Coldplay's Chris Martin sounds like a bundle of neuroses, God bless him, but that hasn't stopped him from penning Gwyneth-themed love ditties or covering Justin Timberlake songs in concert.