Hey guys, thank you so much for that juicy upvote! It came at a great time. This post (the project's first since HF21) is getting close to payout, and was well under the 20 STEEM point. I wasn't looking forward to losing valuable donations to that new rule, so thank you for stepping in at the right time. And of course, it's a great and worthwhile project! :D
On top of that..
I went to your profile (sorry, hadn't really met you before), and learned about the recent changes to your business model. I think it's incredibly cool that free market forces (free downvotes, leading to discouragement of buying a spot on Trending, leading to unused SP, leading to unpaid/standard curation) are allowed and able to act within the Steem ecosystem. That's a sign of health. I realize, for you, there are pros and cons to it. You're having to adjust to the market, but more good news is that you're willing and able to do so.
I'm impressed that you're doing some manual (and unpaid) curation. And lo and behold, my project has become a recipient of these changes, and that manual curation. Very classy!
This was the first point HF21 did anything for me that I could see as positive. Until now, it had been a complete disaster for me and my projects here. With this, I'm heartened, and encouraged to look for more positive changes that might be trickling down.
I really appreciate the support, and then reading how things have changed - hopefully for the better for all of us. All the best.