some html basics please

It seems that HTML is LAME, LAME,LAME when it comes to determining local directories. I would like to somehow: put image links relative to a base directory (if a relative URI is given) and have PAGE links relative to the current page (if a relative URI is given) What I seem to be able to do instead, is to: with NO <base href="websitehost/~my_directory/"> in the header hard code the location of the images use relative URI for pages -OR- with NO <base href="websitehost/~my_directory/"> in the header use relative location of the images hard code the URI for pages there seems no way to tell the browser to look below the base of the site for relative URI for images, but do local to the current file relative for other pages. And doing '"/someURI" makes the browser go off the site and not the base. GRRRRR. I can either get my images from a particular place on my site by hardcoding the exact UR