Amazon Returns; Random Shots of Beauty

One important administrative note before today's post: if you read this blog directly on the webpage (as opposed to e-mail or some kind of feed service), you may have noticed that I've returned my Amazon.com banner ad to its former spot at top right.

The whole tax battle between Amazon and the state of California is far from settled, but something of a cease fire has been called while the two sides negotiate and the courts and lawmakers try to figure out some kind of compromise. So after heartlessly firing 10,000 of us a few months ago, Amazon has now decided to invite its California affiliates back. (I know, I know ... I probably have some self-esteem issues here - but that's a separate point.)

I've mentioned before that I don't do any real fundraising for this website, but affiliate sales certainly make the whole "labor of love" concept a bit more justifiable. There's a rundown of my affiliate partners on my support page, but suffice it to say that if you click through my website to shop at Amazon (at least for the next 12 months or so), I'd be extremely grateful. Help me help you, and all that.

Thus endeth the fall pledge drive. On to regular programming ...

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They say every picture tells a story ... but what if those stories are told in a way that's hard to understand?

In my opinion, that doesn't make them any less compelling. Exhibit A is these pictographs from the inside of a cave at Lava Beds National Monument; I have no idea what the story means - but the mere fact that someone was on this exact same spot trying to tell it is pretty darn cool.

I have a story of my own about these rocks - almost certainly less dramatic than that of the original authors - which I'll tell next week sometime.



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