This comic was inspired by a post that I cannot find [redacted rant about how much tumblr's search function is the closest there is tho pure evil]. So you know, if anyone has that post hand it I will actually make you a silly litltle doodle.
Mont Saint Michel, Francia
One of the prettiest places I’ve ever been.
When my (paternal) grandfather's unit made it to France, he bribed the soldiers stationed outside Mont Saint Michel with cartons of cigarettes to let him inside.
Over sixty years later, he would still talk about it.
To underline the coolness here, Mont Saint Michel had been evacuated, so once he bought his way down the causeway, he had the entire place to himself. That day may have cost him a few packs of Lucky Strikes, but as an experience it was priceless.
“At Steve Jackson Games, we are actively assessing what this means for our products, our pricing, and our future plans. We do know that we can’t absorb this kind of cost increase without raising prices. We’ve done our best over the past few years to shield players and retailers from the full brunt of rising freight costs and other increases, but this new tax changes the equation entirely. Here are the numbers: A product we might have manufactured in China for $3.00 last year could now cost $4.62 before we even ship it across the ocean. Add freight, warehousing, fulfillment, and distribution margins, and that once-$25 game quickly becomes a $40 product. That’s not a luxury upcharge; it’s survival math. Some people ask, “Why not manufacture in the U.S.?” I wish we could. But the infrastructure to support full-scale boardgame production – specialty dice making, die-cutting, custom plastic and wood components – doesn’t meaningfully exist here yet. I’ve gotten quotes. I’ve talked to factories. Even when the willingness is there, the equipment, labor, and timelines simply aren’t. […] We want to be transparent with our community. This is real: Prices are going up. We’re still determining how much and where. If you’re frustrated, you’re not alone. We are too. And if you want to help, write to your elected officials. Ask them how these new policies help American creators and small businesses. Because right now, it feels like they don’t. We’ll keep making games. But we’ll be honest when the road gets harder, because we know you care about where your games come from – and about the people who make them.”
I saw their email today, from this company founded in 1980 in the period of explosive industry growth that is my main period of interest for this blog. Reblogging here since this is a straightforward explanation of why some of your favorite companies may raise prices dramatically, limit their output, or close up shop soon.
This one's personal.
1920 - ‘California Gum’ painted for American Chicle Company by C. Coles Phillips 1920 by carlylehold
Panne Velvet Evening Dress with Rhinestones, c.1920s.
Shadoplay Vol. 5, No. 4, June 1935
Book of Kells
Check out scans of any of the pages of the Book of Kells here, from Trinity College Dublin.
Fish River Canyon, in southern Namibia, is the largest canyon in Africa. It features a gigantic ravine that is about 100 miles (160 km) long, up to 17 miles (27 km) wide, and almost 1,800 feet (550 m) deep in certain places. The Fish River — the longest in Namibia — flows intermittently, usually flooding in late summer; the rest of the year it becomes a chain of long narrow pools.
-27.589293°, 17.597587°
Source imagery: Maxar
1967 Kraft Candy advertisement
