Big Dog= Microsoft, Underdog= Me

“Being an underdog by one point or 50, it doesn't matter. I'm glad we are an underdog. Underdogs have more that they can achieve. They have more enjoyment if they're able to climb to the mountain top.”- Jerry Glanville

I have had a blog post written for well over a month now to share with you the outcome of the Microsoft Office Winter Games Contest. I (along with the other contestants) was asked to keep mum about the results until the winner could be announced publicly and that request has been respected. But let me tell you, it has been very frustrating on my end. I found out the results Christmas Eve and each announcement date has been moved back "until next week", this week being no exception! Yesterday I received an email giving us the go ahead to share with our friends, family and supporters the news. I decided to scrap my old post and start all over again. So, here it is:

I did not win.

I know. I felt the same way.

I am so disappointed not to be heading to Vancouver in a couple of weeks. Experiencing the Olympic Games has been a secret dream that I have kept inside for as long as I can remember.  Only through this contest did I share that dream with everyone else. I do believe that I would have been able to share a unique voice (being an athlete myself) and behind the scene story that would appeal not only to athletes and fans, but would have drawn in those that are "fans in the wings".
Of course I am biased when it comes to my blog and its content, but your emails and comments of support have helped me feel that way.

One of the criteria for entering this contest was to have written a blog for at least 3 months. Well, after finger counting the months on my hand, I realized that I barely squeaked by on that ruling only having started my blog this past June! I really had no intention of ever getting a call, because frankly, I have no idea who actually reads this thing other than friends and family!

When I got the news that I was one of the five semi-finalists in this nationwide contest, I kept my cool. I didn't want to sound too giddy. I calmly took the information from the voice on the phone and asked "Did you get a lot of entries?" The answer was "Yes, actually, we did get a lot. Especially toward the end." After hanging up, something just came over me. I was 8 years old again and I started screaming and jumping up and down. My coach would have been so proud to see my jumping skills that day, because let me tell you, this girl can't jump and to see me try (plyometrics) during practice provides more than enough comic relief.

When the voting site was up and running and I saw my name and blog listed among the others, it was a "pinch me" moment. Then I started reading the other blogs and I thought, wow.  My little old blog is mixing with the big dogs- which have been around for years. Not months. Years. They were all social-site savvy. Me? I was (am!) learning as I go and I had to learn real quick to keep up. I did the best that I could.

On this particular day, it just wasn't good enough.

Thank you to those that wrote to me with encouraging "keep writing", "keep posting", "keep blogging!" "you tell a story and wrap it all up in a way that makes it enjoyable to read." I can't tell you how much it meant to receive your kind words!

And to those out there reading this little blog, thank you. Thank you for reading, thank you for voting in this contest and thank you for spreading the word to get votes!

I have felt like quite the underdog in this whole process. This whole month I questioned my writing and if this is something I should keep doing. Your support has helped me realize that I am 1 in 5 semi-finalists from a nationwide contest. That  means I must be doing something right, right?

Where one door closes, another is waiting to be opened.

An opportunity is out there, just waiting for me. I just have a little more mountain climbing to do.