THIS IS SPARTA! – A 300 Celebration

Knock…Knock…Knock Is this thing on?

Phew! I finally fought through all of the technical issues to make it here (and it wasn’t pretty). You’ll have to excuse my bumbling; this is my first adventure into posting video. :)

On March 26th I reached the 200 follower landmark and decided to forgo a celebration for a couple reasons. First, I wanted to focus my attention on the interaction I had with those already watching my blog. It’s pretty easy to amass a large number of followers, just link yourself to other blogs as fast as you can point and click, and most will return the gesture. But getting them to come back, choosing to visit your site amongst the plethora of blogs to choose from, over and over again, that’s the really hard part. And it is there I wanted to focus my energy. I was determined to come up with insightful, informative, thought provoking, and most importantly, entertaining posts that continued to expose bits and pieces of myself. I’ve been moderately successful so far, but there is still quite a ways to go.

The second reason to wait until I reached 300 to have a celebration is the prize I had in mind. You see, the jury is still out on whether I possess the talent to be published in this literary business, but my wife has already demonstrated a talent many times over. Months ago, when I was brainstorming ideas for prizes, she told me she wanted to help. She has been 100% behind me in my quest to see my words on the printed page, but forced to watch on the side-lines most of the time. Eager to help out in any way she can, she offered one of her videos as a prize. Below are just a couple of samples of her talent.



As you can see, her gift is the ability to make pictures dance. She takes the photos and music that her customers provide and creates what you see above. She makes these DVD’s for sports teams, weddings, rehearsal dinners, birthdays, travel, memorials, etc etc. That is what she is offering as a prize for you. One lucky winner will be given a gift certificate for a 200 picture show (with some restrictions) using personal pictures of their own choosing. These are creations that sell for more than $250! Do you see now why this is so special?

But that’s not all! I’m also going to be giving away gift cards to Barnes & Noble. How many and in what amount, you ask? That’s the kicker…you will determine that. As of this morning I was blessed with 310 followers. The 300 celebration will run for two weeks (until May 30th). The difference between the number of followers I have then, and now, will decide the # and quantity of gift certificates. So, if I have 335 followers on May 30th, I will give away a gift card worth $25 (335-310=25). I’ll do this in $25 increments up to a maximum of $100. Your efforts in spreading the word about my celebration will translate into the value of the reward. :)

Wait a minute…isn’t that contradictory to my quality vs quantity message? I don’t see it that way…I’m asking you to point new followers in my direction…it’s my responsibility to keep them coming back.

Now for some guidelines…and this will be easy. To be included in the drawing, you must be one of the ‘Like Minded’ and comment on this post. If you’re one of the original 310, that comment will represent five chances to win…new followers just one. If a new member mentions an existing follower by name (in their original post), the recruiter will have earned yet another chance. That’s it. No blog mention, no sidebars, no Twitter or Facebook references necessary…unless of course you want to increase the amount of the gift card.

In wrapping things up, I have two huge THANK YOU’s to pass along. First to my wife, for recognizing how much this community means to me and helping make this a truly unique celebration. The second is reserved for you…the 300! I am grateful to you for allowing me to sit by your side…and cheat off your papers. For propping me up when I slouch and reeling me in when I’m full of myself. You got my back…just as I have yours.

That’s enough reading…now go write something!