Shortly after Laurence Simon unveiled the improvements to his site, he started rattling the donation cup and washing windows at intersections. I've never been a big fan of cyber begging myself, but I understand that for some people it's a useful way to recoup their costs, or perhaps even earn a living. If you are a fan of ATS, and wish to donate, feel free. Perhaps I'll drop him a few bucks myself.

Personally, I don't think I'll ever put up a tip jar or even a wish list. I don't really mind it when people do, I just figure I couldn't get enough money out of it to make it worth the hassle. Besides, if people give me financial support, I'd feel obliged to maintain certain standards, and I have an abject fear of commitment. That is the same fear of commitment that kept me from filing for unemployment benefits. In addition to not wanting to live off of my fellow taxpayers, I didn't like the strings that came attached to the money they were offering.

As for survivability, I figure this weblog has stood the test of time. Despite being unemployed for over four months, and relocating several times over the past few years, I've managed to keep the thing running in pretty much tip top shape. I even upgraded my webhost when things started to slow down with the old provider.

Basically, I don't do this for the money, the glory, or even the traffic. In fact, I don't really know why I do it, although I do know I do it more for myself than for my readers.

I hope this doesn't make me sound like a 'smug schmuck' or a snob. Again, I don't have a problem with cyber begging, I just don't think it is very characteristic of me. Hell, I don't even like to use coupons. But then again, I'm a single guy with very few commitments. My splurging on my website doesn't mean less birthday gifts for my kids, or less money for college. If you can put up a website to generate some cash, pay for your breast implants, or pay for college than I say go for it. Just don't expect me to follow suit.