A better moniker for this year's winner for Best Arts Twitterer, @dancehunter, might have been @artshunter. That's because Nancy Wozny, the force behind the constant stream of news, critiques, discussions and, from time to time, a little gossip, doesn't limit herself to just dance. Nor is the conversation aimed solely at dancers and choreographers. Civilians, as some of @dancehunter's followers call those of us who have never strapped on a pair of pointe shoes, are also welcome. Recent posts by Wozny included a link to a USA Today article about the action/thriller/dance film Black Swan, an announcement of the latest dancers to join the Houston Ballet and news about a free performance by the Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre in New York. Wozny has managed to do more than just disseminate short bursts of arts-related information — she's managed to create a smart, supportive, everything's-open-to-discussion meeting spot for Houston's arts aficionados.

Most times after politicians are voted into public office, they stop reaching out to the people altogether except for fund-raisers or photo-ops. Not so much with Mayor Annise Parker, who is actually one of the more accessible Houston leaders in recent memory. The mayor takes to her Twitter account to talk about what she's up to, not just regurgitate boring political stuff like most other politicos dipping their feet in the social media pool. She talks about her softball games, going on her daily walks and — yes — interesting mayor-type stuff she gets to do.

We didn't get to include her in our cover story on Twitter a few months back, but we still think everyone in Houston who's worth their social media real estate should be following @brandius. Brandi Aginagua weaves sweetly profane tales of daily life with each of her updates. She digs her husband, wine, lady friends and unicorns. Granted, you may see more tweets devoted to the more fermented and bottled of that group. There's really never a dull moment with @brandius. If you were to check her status at this moment, she'd most likely be damning people for not being as nerdy as she is.

A former food blogger for Eating...Our Words and current food blogger for 29-95.com as well as his own personal food blog, Chris Reid is also one of the best people to follow on Twitter if you're interested in food — Houston or otherwise. Reid live-Tweets adventures like barbecue crawls that take him from Acres Homes to central Texas and is usually among the first to eat at any new restaurant, allowing you to live vicariously through his excellent, well-informed descriptions and delicious Twitpics of the dishes. There isn't a person in the Houston food community he doesn't know, and he always does an admirable job of re-Tweeting, sharing news and connecting people with new friends and foodstuffs, all through Twitter.

READERS' CHOICE: Twitter.com/imneverfull

As his name indicates, Steve Shalagan lives in Katy. He also makes regular sports-related Twitter updates that are so funny, you'd think they were written by a team of sitcom writers somewhere in Los Angeles. A random sampling of some of his finest work includes gems like: "Now that the NBA season is over, Pau Gasol can finally get back to planning the big Nakatomi Plaza heist" and "Engineer develops software to filter out vuvuzela noise. Plans are already underway for a 'Chris Berman' edition based on whale sounds." Shalagan should be at the top of your To-Follow List purely because everyone needs more laughter in their lives, even if you don't know a bunt from a punt.

READERS' CHOICE: Twitter.com/richardjustice

Jeffrey Stern and his wife Yvonne seemed to have it all: a million-dollar home in Bellaire and an Aspen getaway for the long hot summers, two adorable kids and a foothold on Houston's social scene. Unfortunately, police say, attorney Stern had another accoutrement of the high life, and this one Yvonne did not share: a mistress named Michelle Cabrera Gaiser. And apparently Gaiser was no longer content to be Stern's lover: she wanted the ambulance chaser to put a ring on it, and she decided to take the bull by the horns and rub out her rival. To do so, she is alleged to have hired a series of inept assassins to kill Yvonne, and were it not for the fact that Yvonne did eventually get shot (thankfully, not fatally), the incompetence of those would-be Wee Beys and two-bit Snoops would simply be hilarious. As of this writing, Gaiser is accused of solicitation of capital murder along with two of the bungling hit men. Jeffrey Stern was also arrested on the same day as Gaiser. The lawyer was charged with unlawfully carrying a concealed weapon, but not accused in Gaiser's alleged plots. As for Yvonne Stern, she finally had enough and filed for divorce on grounds of adultery, with Gaiser named as the other woman.

Annise Parker has spent years being a quiet, middle-of-the-road Democrat in the putatively nonpartisan world of City Hall politics. This year, though, she became a worldwide celebrity. Why? Because she loves the ladies, of course. (One lady in particular for the past 20 years). This hasn't caused much stir in Houston in recent years, and was barely brought up in the mayoral race or runoff. But once she won, it was all anyone could talk about. Reporters from all over the world wanted interviews. Oh, and she's also governed well in her first year, especially with regards to Metro.

READERS' CHOICE: Bill White

It might be a stretch to call Bill Ratliff a Houstonian, but his district includes some of our northern exurbs, and you can't argue that the dude deserves a pat on the back. He's a solid Texas Republican through and through, but he — like so many other Republicans — was utterly embarrassed by the rightwing-nut zoo that the State Board of Education had become (our words, not his). He took on Don McElroy, one of the key ringleaders in that zoo, ran against him on his politicization of the SBOE and squeaked out a victory in the GOP primary.

READERS' CHOICE: Ted Poe

If you start out onto Highway 288 from Lake Jackson, you have one of the best vantage points for watching our Houston skyline come into view. From the wide-open spaces starting around the Stephen F. Austin statue, you can watch the skyscrapers steadily become more focused as you traverse expanses of trees and pasture. In the early mornings, you end up traveling with long-distance commuters, and on weekends you share the road with short-term vacationers and the random fleet of pleasure boats and weekend-warrior bikers. After you pass the Pearland exit, things get a tad grimmer as the city's grid of freeways and advertising closes in on you. But for a good 20miles, you can discover all over again what brings people into town in the first place. Naturally, that same skyline is just as sweet as seen in your rearview mirror.

Tired of wandering aimlessly around the zoo and staring at a bunch of animals that you don't know much about? Say hello to the free Houston Zoo iPhone App. The App opens up onto a live Twitter stream where fellow zoo-goers post helpful tips, such as which exhibits are air-conditioned, and then leads right into a list of all the day's special activities that'll make sure you don't miss the elephant baths, feedings or must-see keeper talks. You can make a personalized schedule of everything you want to do. There are photos and info about most of the animals and maps that show you exactly where that giraffe is located. The App employs a GPS, showing where you are at all times, and even allows you to sync up with other App-enabled zoo-goers, so if your group wants to split up for a while, you can find each other again. Direct links to Facebook and Twitter enable users to share their day with their social network.