"Autumn and the Plot Against Me" is an older article from Vanity Fair. But it's still funny and relevant, in that research and fact-checking (both of which we do daily at The World Almanac) can be a tough business. In the piece, writer Nick Tosches chronicles his search for the origins of a Windows desktop background image.

Although Tosches is practiced in investigative reporting, this particular quest into the world of stock photography proves maddening as he bounces between reps at Windows, a public relations firm, and a state tourism department among other potential sources.

He expends all this effort because, as he writes,

I return to Paris, go from there to Tokyo, from there to Milan and Lake Como, then back here. I'm tired of everything, everywhere. I want only to go to Autumn.

Link: "Autumn and the Plot Against Me" (vanityfair.com)

Photo: A little bit of Autumn.