Ring, ring.

“Hello,” a man says. “This is Anderson Cooper‘s car service.”

Well, that makes my 5:45 a.m. wake-up call worth it. It’s still before dawn, but I’m dressed and dolled up — underneath my three layers of winter wear, of course — ready to be whisked off by my awaiting town car to Anderson Live! There, I will be live tweeting today’s episode from the studio audience as the show’s “Blogger of the Day.”

By 7 a.m., I’m watching CBS morning shows in my own private dressing room — still a world away from the spacious, wardrobe-packed rooms that greet Anderson Cooper and his star guests. But I’m beyond content with my cushy seating, mini water bottles, coffee and plate of pastries.

After secretly snapping a few framed photos of Anderson with past interviewees (think Janet Jackson, Debra Messing and  Judi Dench), I’m escorted down a seemingly endless hall to hair and makeup. Blabbing and beautifying ensues before I leave feeling like the belle of the ball with carefully coiffed bouncy waves and camera-ready makeup.

A pit stop in my dressing room — for one final caffeine jolt and to collect my MacBook Air — then it’s off to the studio. As I’m ushered to my assigned seat, comedienne Dena Blizzard, better known as One Funny Mother, is warming up the crowd with some wisecracks. Producers prep the crowd, a friendly fella slaps a Celebuzz sticker on my laptop, and then it’s a countdown to the man of the hour.

A standing ovation welcomes Anderson and his returning guest host, Rosie Perez. And we’re off with the First 15, tackling the American Idol feud, the bone-chilling temperatures across the country, and even heavy topics like the Pentagon lifting a ban on women in combat. The remainder of the episode delves into the risk of online profiles, hearing first-hand the experiences of Diane O’Meara, the real-life woman who became the face of the Manti Te’o hoax, and Alicia Kozakiewicz, who was abducted by a stranger she encountered on the Internet. And it all wraps up with a healthy dose of hotness: guest Liam McIntyre of Spartacus: Vengeance fame.

If you missed my live-tweeting from this morning, here’s my top 10 highlights from my morning with the Silver Fox:

1. Is Anderson as nice as they say?
“Better than that,” insists my Romantique Limos morning driver, who dropped me at CBS studios before the sun even nudged above the New York City skyline. “I’ve been picking him up for three years now…he’s usually my first pickup of the day. And, let me tell you, he’s a nice guy. Quiet, but he’s a nice guy.” Happy to hear it, though I truly hadn’t a doubt in my mind.

2. The Big Freeze
“Everyone is talking about how cold it is, but as I remember, this is what winter is,” Anderson says matter-of-factly. “This is what happens.” Touché. While some shiver, Rosie embraces the chill. “I like to stand out in my backyard and breathe so I can see my breath.” Normal? Probably not. Adorably quirky? Absolutely.

3. They’re still Bey-lieving.
How could they not talk about the controversy on everyone’s lips? Beyoncé-gate. Despite all the hoopla surrounding her lip-sync scandal, Anderson is standing by Queen B. “I’m a big Beyoncé fan, but I don’t really care,” he says. “I don’t think it’s a big deal.” Rosie agrees it is a bunch of over-the-top brouhaha. “My whole family knows I’m obsessed with Beyoncé. When I’m in the shower, I’m her,” she confesses, singing a little line from “Crazy In Love.” Though Rosie “was like, ‘No, she didn’t,” when she first heard the news, she believes “the story has been blown out of proportion.”

4. Beware of the flu.
Anderson is “obsessed” with the flu. Don’t fear for him, though. “My flu shot kicked in yesterday…so now I feel invincible,” he says, adding that the “shot is only 60 percent effective.” Rosie, who claims she caught the flu from a supermarket cashier, swears by olive leaf extract as a holistic cure. But Anderson can’t get on board, exclaiming “it’s disgusting” after downing a dropper-full.

5. Birthday boy?
In talking flu prevention, Anderson admits he’s compulsive about washing his hands. “In the men’s room at CNN, I’m sitting there singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to myself,” he confesses (the CDC recommends humming the tune from beginning to end twice to ensure effective hand-washing.) “People are walking by like, ‘Why is Anderson singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to himself? He must be very lonely.’” Boy, would I like to be a fly on the wall in that restroom.

6. Put it to rest, dueling divas.
Though she doesn’t tune in often to American Idol since Simon Cowell left, Rosie — who is “all about women’s power” — feels fazed by the feud between judges Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj. “I think both women are guilty. It bothers me,” she says. “There’s a mature way to defend your point.” Though Anderson isn’t sure he buys “how real all the fighting is,” he pinpoints its true purpose: “It gives the show buzz, and gives people a reason to watch.” But he bemoans how all that drama steals attention from the Idol hopefuls: “No one is talking about the performers, which is really sad.” Agreed, Anderson.

7. Boogie down.
Before the show even kicked off, several unsuspecting audience members agree to show off their best breaking-it-down moves (count me out) in a dance competition to — what else? — Justin Bieber’s “Beauty and a Beat.” The grand prize: An Anderson Live! t-shirt. During commercial breaks, the dance-off continues with new bold-and-brave contestants. My favorite? The broadcast journalism professor from University of Tennessee, Sam Swan, who slowly stripped off his conservative black blazer to the applause of the in-studio students. Seems the Silver Fox will make you do funny things. I, instead, held on to my humility.

8. Doggie Doo!
“It’s pretty self-explanatory,” Anderson insists of the way-wacky kids’ toy. It goes something like this: Feed the fake pooch, squeeze its leash, squeal at the fart noises and wait for it to go…plop. Then what? Clean up! “It comes with these little shovels,” he adds. But Anderson struggles to, well, get the “doo” out. “It’s supposed to come out. We practiced with this backstage. It worked,” he says with a laugh. “Maybe the dog is constipated,” Rosie chimes in. “How hard can this toy be that I can’t make it work? Oh wait, there it is, I see it!” he excitedly exclaims, as he yanks out the playdough-like putty from the pup’s tush. One word: gross.

9. Manti Te’o
The show’s mood takes a turn for the serious with talk of the headline-hitting Manti Te’o hoax. “I had no idea. I keep up on…the times, but I don’t follow college football. I don’t follow college football players’ girlfriends,” says Diane O’Meara, whose identity was stolen in the faux girlfriend stunt. “All it would have taken was for me to Google it.” Even though she had no hand in the hoax, Diane is bearing the consequences. “I’ve shut down all my social media accounts. It’s like living in a cage,” she says somberly. “We’re searchable now. We’re encouraged to be searchable. But you have to think about..what’s being exposed. It’s very hard to protect yourself in this day and age.”

10. I. Am. Spartacus.
“I’m either having a hot flash, or you’re making me hot,” Rosie says to Liam McIntyre. But, girls, don’t get your hopes up — the hunk from Down Under is taken. The actor recently got engaged to actress/girlfriend Erin Hasan. But it was no ordinary proposal: After a year of planning, Liam had his wife-to-be whisked away at Disney World and dressed up as her favorite fairy-tale princess before presenting her with a meal of her favorite food. He — fittingly, in prince attire — then got down on one knee to pop the question. Swoon.

Nothing like a massive piece of marital bling to shut down those divorce rumors, eh, Jennifer Lopez?

The Anaconda actress, 39, has been plagued by media scuttlebutt lately that her marriage to Marc Anthony is on the fast track to a breakdown, with reports that the two have even been getting into shoving matches.

Lopez did much to fan those flames of gossip by cavorting out and about without her wedding ring on.

In particular, Lopez was photographed at the Golden Globes on January 11 with her rock conspicuously absent.  The singer-actress attempted to explain the ring’s omission by claiming it did not match her gown.

Well, look who showed up to the Latino Inaugural Ball at Union Station in Washington D.C., Sunday, flashing a ring that shined bright enough to blind everyone in the room with the next pop of a flashbulb!

Lopez denied the divorce rumors in In Touch Weekly earlier this month, telling the magazine, “Every time I’m not wearing my ring, people think I’m getting divorced. Divorce is not—and was never—an option.”

Apparently, in Washington last night, she wanted to clear up that confusion entirely.

Lopez attended the event with hubby Anthony, 40, to welcome the ascendancy of President-elect Barack Obama to the highest office in the land.

“Yes we can,” Lopez told the crowd at the event, reports the Associated Press. “We all stood together and said ‘Yes we will.’”

While on the red carpet, Anthony briefly hugged former That ’70s Show actor Wilmer Valderrama, who told the assemblage, “All of us performers, not until this election did we really understand what we could do.”

Cuban-American Ugly Betty actor Tony Plana, 53, caused a minor controversy by suggesting that Hispanics should have been given a more prominent spot in the inauguration activities.

“It’s a concern this event tonight is not an official event of the administration,” Plano noted. “It’s a little sad for me Latinos had to organize their own event.”

But mostly it was an evening of celebration. Former American Idol contestant David Archuleta, 18, kicked off the musical portion of the evening with a rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner,” followed by a set by the band War. 

Comedian George Lopez, actress Rosie Perez and Mexican singer Lila Downs were also present at the celebration.

It’s amazing there was room for all of them, what with Lopez’s humongous ring taking up all that space.

Cameron Diaz has played a lot of parts in her 36 years, but Princess Fiona in the just-opened Shrek the Musical won’t be one of them.

The There’s Something About Mary actress—who lends her voice to the Princess Fiona character in the highly lucrative Shrek movie series—attended the new play’s debut at New York’s Broadway Theater Sunday night.

When asked if she’d consider adapting her role for a live performance, Diaz—who was joined by such famous colleagues as Ben Stiller, Phylicia Rashad, Ugly Betty‘s America Ferrera and Michael Urie, Joan Rivers and Rosie Perez—was relentlessly negative on the matter.

“No. Absolutely not,” the actress shot back, according to OK! Magazine. “What they do up there… is, to me, impossible. It’s wonderful, though. They’ve done such a great job. They worked really hard, and it really pays off…It’s hilarious. There are so many laughs.”

The David Lindsay-Abaire-penned, Jason Moore-directed play stars Sutton Foster, 33, as Princess Fiona and Brian d’Arcy James, 40, as the big green title ogre, and mixes humorous pop-culture references with musical numbers. Check out a video preview of the stage production below:

Looks like a hit, but it’s understandable that Cameron declined to participate. For one thing, she really, really doesn’t need the money.

Aside from that, she already has her hands full when she’s not cranking out movies.