81st Annual Academy Awards

I liked the Oscars this year. Dresses were fab and I loved how uncomfortable Jennifer Aniston looked on stage, how they cut to a shot of a gloating, vampiric Angelina Joli during her schtick with Jack Black -- so remarkably cheesy! Best Oscar acceptance goes to Kunio Kato for Sank you, domo ari gatto Mr. Roboto.

Do think the Academy needs a new category: Best Artistic Achievement In a Nazi Movie Released At Christmas...

Why Prospective Counterfeiters Shouldn't Waste $ On Photoshop

I just made an interesting discovery! You cannot open a scanned .jpg of money with Photoshop!

I am making a shadow box for Max's 22nd birthday because I can't afford to give him a big hunk of cash (which is what he really wants! I would too.) The shadow box commemorates a road trip together when he was about 11. We were driving up the back end of Carmel Valley Road, deep country, very very beautiful. We came to the top of the pass and I laughed and said, "In thirty years this will all be one big housing development."

"Bet you it won't," said Max.

"Bet you it will," I said. "And furthermore in ten years you won't remember this conversation."

"Bet you I will."

"Bet you you won't."

"Put your money where your mouth is, Mom!"

"Okay, Max. Ten big ones!"

So on his 21st birthday he called me and said, "By the way, you owe me ten bucks."

So what this shadowbox is is a bunch of watercolors of Carmel Valley Road and one of him and a scanned image of a ten dollar bill. Except Photoshop won't open the scanned image! Instead it sends me to this website.

Fortunately Corel Painter opens scanned money just fine.