The story behind my avatar can be found in these three threads. They tell the tale of perhaps the most ineptly run contest in the history of the Internet, and of prizes offered whose total cash value wouldn't purchase a cup of coffee.
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=84154
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=85361
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=85863
It was fun, but the one thing I regret is that perhaps the contest hastened the cheapening of Karma that we've seen recently.