The principle is a simple one. People, being what they are, want more than just a nibble of something good. Bakers know that giving away a free cookie generally leads to the sale of several cookies. Most businesses realize this and give away freebies in hopes of selling more. Something I don’t write much about (and this is related) is my artistic pursuits. I love to draw and paint. The fact is, were I able to do so I’d probably do that all day long just about every day without tiring of it. The problem is I don’t have time for drawing or painting anymore. Work demands increasing numbers of hours per day and writing is a time-intensive hobby. I dream of illustrating my own blog since I know the kinds of images I’d like to use. I just don’t have the time. So I often use Unsplash.
I discovered Unsplash in 2020, during the pandemic. A website of free photos, you can search and download and reuse them for free. And give the photographer credit. They benefit from the exposure and you get a nifty free image to use any way you like. Now it’s beginning to seem that was a free cookie. (I told you the topics were related!) Lately, when I visit Unsplash, more and more images appear with a “plus” in the upper right-hand corner. The plus images are those you pay for. If you scroll long enough you come to the free images, but only after you’ve seen the ones that look especially polished. Hey, you’ve been eating free cookies for years, don’t you think it’s time you paid your tab? Well, I don’t make any money from this blog—in fact I pay WordPress for the privilege of writing here—so I’ll settle for what’s still free.
The truly valuable things in life seem to be those under threat since the pandemic. I skulk about the nonprofit world—I’ve never been interested in making money for money’s sake. I see valuable institutions struggling to stay afloat because the free cookies are gone and nobody seems to want to pay for a dozen anymore. In fact, we’ve come to expect some things for free. And we’re not about to start paying now. I still use and support Unsplash. I give the artists exposure here (such as it is) and hope that they’re getting hired for their talents. I know that if I had the time these daily posts would come with hand-drawn art from yours truly, but I see it’s time to get to work.