WHO NEEDS CLASSICAL MUSIC ANYWAY? OK, let's get rid of music and arts education in the public schools and then why not cut funding to the Monterey Symphony's wonderful program that provides a full orchestra concert, once a year, for every fourth- and fifth-grader in Monterey and San Benito counties? In some cases, this is the only exposure to classical music these children will get--at all. This weekend, 12,000 local school children will be taken to Sherwood Hall for free fully staged performances of Igor Stravinsky's The Firebird. The program costs $5 per kid per year. The orchestra has already eliminated its annual Family Day concert, and orchestra members voted to forego a contracted pay increase this year to save another $35,000, but the future looks bleak. Help 'em out with a donation by calling 624-8511.

HOLLYWOOD CALLING...Three finalists have been named for this year's screenwriting contest sponsored by the Monterey County Film Commission, and we can't help but cheer on sole local contender Todd Stein of Watsonville, who penned a screenplay titled "Unbound." He's up against writers from Sunnyvale and Hawaii for the $2003 top prize. The winner will be announced May 31 during the commission's all-day Hollywood Connections Day at the Monterey Conference Center, an annual event that brings top professionals on all aspects of filmmaking to town to advise local industry hopefuls. Learn how to pitch a screenplay, find an agent or fund a project. Tickets are $129 ($25 for fulltime students). Call 646-0910 or visit www.filmmonterey.org.

STONES OF GREEN...Immortalize yourself or a loved one by buying a tile for the floor of the long-awaited Valley of the World Agricultural Wing, opening this September at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas. The new wing will chronicle the story of Salinas Valley farming, and is called Valley of the World after a famous quote from Steinbeck describing his then-unpublished novel, East of Eden. Customized sage-green tiles bearing the image of a local fruit or vegetable start at $250--strawberries, anyone? Call 775-4737.

PRIZE-WINNING JELLIES...Kudos to the Monterey Bay Aquarium for nabbing this year's American Association of Museum's award for best exhibit. Walking away with the prize is "Jellies: Living Art," a super-cool display featuring fine art and live jellyfish swimming around in psychedelic waters--the jellies, not the artwork. Don't miss it.