A new beginning and a new contest.

Hello my name is Irwin. I've lived in Rhode Island since 1998. I honestly didn't know, that I'd make RI my home when I first came here for college. Yet I enjoy living here. Though often times I get wrapped up in work and forget.

@dreamingirwin was first created in 2017 on steemit. It was my first real introduction to crypto. I learned so much just from interacting on steem. It was a great experience. I began like many, writing blogs and commenting on other post. Eventually I discovered different communities. Through the different contest I partook in. I finally stumbled upon a contest hosted by @goldmoney. It was the largest prize offer I'd ever seen on steemit, and I decided to give it all I had.

Though I didn't win first place. @goldmoney was a generous host. I felt like I had won the lottery. I was so excited. This was back when bots were still a common thing. I earned something like 90 steem from the contest. It was the largest pay out I'd ever received.

The first thing I did was visit all the steemians that had supported me. I purchased bot bids on all their post. I was like a little kid with a big bill. I was a V.I.P.R. Very Important Puerto Rican. Well at least, I felt that way.

Eventually I launched the Resteem Bonanza contest.

@dreamingirwin/2018-resteem-bonanza

It was my way of giving back. I ran that contest for a while. Yet things were happening at home and in the market. That combined with learning things about certain companies in crypto. My spirits were dampened, and I drifted away from my blog. Though I returned a few times at first. Eventually I disappeared for a couple years.

For the last year now I've been feeling the urge to get back to my blogging. I missed the creativity, and the community. Sadly I had a few of my friends from steemit telling me about a possible fork. Yet I wasn't in the right place mentally at e time. Eventually I decided to research the fork, and attempt to learn about what happened in my absence.

Realizing that @dreamingirwin had transferred over to hive. I immediately searched out my keys, blew the dust off of them, and logged in. Knowing that things had changed in my absence. I decided to test the waters. I was't sure if I could recreate the habit, or become comfortable with the new culture. Technically I knew I could. I just had my doubts. I even wrote a #help post:@dreamingirwin/looking-for-some-resources-to-get-an-understanding-of-process
It's old now

I struggled for a week or so. Feeling slightly frustrated with the process. Whenever I asked for advise. I got the same response. Join a community, be consistent in writing, and interact with the community. At first it felt like mantra to me. Like yeah yeah yeah, but how does it work. Then as I sat there staring at the conversation on discord. It clicked. I reflected on my initial experience, and remembered. That was exactly what I did.

Simultaneously someone was kind enough to put a decent upvote on the post I had current. While @bashadow saw my post, and attempted to help me. The combination of those two small events, reinforced for me that I was on the right track.

As I interacted with different contest and challenges. I found a few communities that were very supportive. Like the #feelgood community, the #beer community and the #freewriters community. There feedback and support is wonderful. I also appreciate the different initiatives by so many communities and projects to help. Special thanks to @goldstreet, who seems to search through Hive looking for "good persons" to reward. It's this uplifting generosity, that makes the Hive community a force to be reckoned with.

When I first signed on to Hive I was't sure if I could revive my contest. I honestly thought that maybe contest were banned or something. Yet now I see that they're just as important as ever. It's for this reason that I've decided to bring back the Bonanza.

There are so many great challenges and contest out there, and even greater communities supporting it. That why I've decided to create the Contest Bonanza. It'll be a fun way to promote your contest entries. While helping promote the individual contest themselves.

I invite you to join The New Contest Bonanza

@dreamingirwin/introducing-the-2020-contest-bonanza