I seem to have hit a lucky streak recently. In the past few months, I’ve seen Beyond the Rhetoric hit a couple of milestones, I’ve landed a few more freelance writing gigs, and I’ve won more than my fair share of blog contests.

For example, I got a Shoemoney t-shirt from Derek Semmler, an OCIA.net shirt from Shawn Knight, and some cool gear from Zac Johnson. And, based on recent events, there’s no end to this lucky streak in sight.

Just this morning, I received an email from Abdalla Ahmed of Sweethacks.com informing me that I was the winner of his blog contest. The prize is a cool fifty bucks via PayPal. Honestly, I don’t even remember entering the contest, but who am I to complain?

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But wait, there’s more. While shooting the video to announce the new hockey blogSlapShotSquad.com — I received the prize I won from Leo Chiang. As you recall, I entered that contest to help Leo fight breast cancer. What I won was a Cryptic Studios t-shirt, a DVD Collector’s Edition City of Villians PC game, and an autographed picture of Darla Briggs.

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There are reasons why too much positive thinking is bad. I entered these contests with no expectation of winning; I actually fully expected to lose. As a result, the winnings were very pleasant surprises, making them that much sweeter. Thanks again to Abdalla Ahmed and Leo Chiang for hosting some awesome contests.

Maybe it’s time I host another contest on Beyond the Rhetoric… what should I give away?