$36? Ok. So maybe it was the guilt. Or perhaps I just needed to find something new to write about. Or possibly I just was curious to see what happens. I haven't contributed to Tony's car fund, never made a donation on his blog and I didn't buy his inaugural busblog book. Yet I read his site regularly.
So when he started what seems to his annual "link auction" I thought to myself, "once again, there goes Tony with a unique idea". Now I know Tony is not immune to employing traffic building tactics for his blog. Hell, his Anna Kournikova photo essay catapulted him to fame and gave his weblog hosting service indigestion. I mean come on. Nude pictures of famously pretty women are guaranteed to mark a spike in traffic. Me? I get pretty good traffic. Nothing like Tony. He admits at times that he needs more, though. But remember, nothing he writes is true. For me, I'm not a traffic whore, per se. I want people to come here to read, think and spend time. Meet new friends. Hook up with old ones. Not simply to look at pretty picture -- of women. Though my recent provocative strip tease photo essay was linked around the blogosphere and caused my traffic and ranking to climb dramatically. But nothing like Tony. Don't get me wrong. Tony's other photo essays don't all rely on shots of sexy women. Some are quite good and insightful.
Curiously, I checked his link auction the other night. I wondered. How much would someone pay to be linked on his blog? At the time I think the high bid was around $30. So I punched in a bid. I mean the last time I saw Tony we compared notes on the Slippery Shrimp at Yang Chow in Chinatown (slide show movie). I figure the next time we'd be dining together I'd buy the wine. And it certainly would exceed the $36 level of this link auction. So what the hell. I never thought I'd be the winning bidder. But it happened. I did.
But let's think about this. How many of Tony's visitors will find anything as provocative or titillating in the Digital Tavern as they may find on Busblog? I mean I don't typically post pictures of sexy and seductive women. I'm not a huge sports fan and I don't like to write about it. I rarely watch TV, and my photo essays tend to go like this(5mb download so be patient).
But that's beside the point. Maybe Tony's readers would like my essays or posts on McDonald's, ClearChannel,even European Football and Hungarian girls or where to have sex in Romania? Truly, there's something for everyone here. Even if they don't find something here, I'll rest a little easier knowing I've made my contribution to Tony and his excellent and most creative blog. Thanks and keep it up -- rather -- keep at it Tony!
2:29:08 PM permalink | | trackback disabled due to spam
Lieutenant Smash from the front lines in Iraq sends this letter to Jacques Chirac (thanks InstaPundit for the pointer). Perhaps we could pull a fund together to send Jacques a case of California wine to go with it.
1:18:52 AM permalink | | trackback disabled due to spam
Have you ever been to Tony Pierce's busblog? I've blogrolled him (the links in the left column titled "Read These") for nearly six months. Why? Because Tony is creative. He writes in a conversational nearly stream of consciousness tone. But its not only his writing that's creative, it's his thinking and ideas. Provocative photos. And interesting fund raising.
But the trouble with Tony is he's been riding the bus to get around LA - which by the way takes creativity just to figure out the LA bus system - a city where your car is king. But could his bus riding may be the foundation of his creative expression?
We'll see. Because Tony wants a car. That's why sometime last year after realizing a brisk spike in visitors to his blog that Tony figured he's ask for donations. I think he called it the Tony Pierce car fund. Great idea. But it looks like his rate of return on his quest would take more than 3 years to yield enough dollars to buy a car. Let's make a mental note to check his blog out after he's had a new set of wheels for awhile.
There's no question. Tony's creativity and work has made me smile, wonder and even wander in the past. True, he admits nothing he writes is true. But I wonder. He's received letters from George Bush and Tiger Woods. He's hung out with the prettiest girls in LA. HE even got the shit beat out of him by a young girl's father in a Las Vegas motel room. He even has good taste in music -- even if only under guise of a third party poltical statement. You just never know with Tony.
Visiting Tony's site every day I kinda feel like the guy passing a panhandler on the street while avoiding eye contact at all cost. Clutching my loose change with purpose. No. Tony's not a panhandler. But you gotta admire his ambition. And his ambition does not solely relate to his efforts in getting a stipend or tip from people who enjoy a daily does of Tony. Nope. it goes way beyond. Tony has long desired a position as a writer at the LA Times. And he's not afraid to admit it. Problem is, they haven't called him in for an interview. Yet in his defiance of the LA Times' lack of sense, Tony admits that even a job at the paper might not offer him the opportunity to do what he loves -- to write freely. So he does just that every day. On his weblog. After all, isn't that what 'blogs' are all about? His rewards might not be as financially attractive writing for busblog as they might be with The Times. But what's the price of freedom anyway?
Good for Tony asking readers to pony a little for Tony.
It's not like he's asking for something for nothing. Tony delivers. Every day. Tony even published a book last winter celebrating the first anniversary of his busblog. Made up largely of a collection of his first year posts, he published it himself. For those faint of reading long weblog posts, Tony's book is your cure for the tactile feeling you only can get cuddling up on the coach reading or simply an alternative to run of the mill "on the can" reading.
So take a ride over to Tony's busblog. If you like what you read perhaps you would contribute to his car fund. Or, maybe even buy his book. All else, you could make a donation. Maybe I'll join you. Pony for Tony?
1:17:28 AM permalink | | trackback disabled due to spam
Have you ever been to Tony Pierce's 
Visiting Tony's site every day I kinda feel like the guy passing a panhandler on the street while avoiding eye contact at all cost. Clutching my loose change with purpose. No. Tony's not a panhandler. But you gotta admire his ambition. And his ambition does not solely relate to his efforts in getting a stipend or tip from people who enjoy a daily does of Tony. Nope. it goes way beyond. Tony has long desired a position as a writer at the LA Times. And he's not afraid to admit it. Problem is, they haven't 
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