Hello My Friends!

So yesterday this great young steemian @prophet0 made a post about a pay it forward campaign to send one lucky person to Lisbon, Portugal this year for STEEMFest2! This is an amazing initiative and i love how this community stands tall together, its truly a beautiful sight to see. This blog post is my submission for the pay it forward campaign.

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I would like to goto STEEMFest2!

Why should i go? because i am awesome and ever since my spaceship landed here on planet SteemIT i have been extremely active helping to grow the community. I truly believe in his platform and what it is going to do for the world.

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🔹 I will learn ALOT!

From now until November i am going to be studying my ass off learning as much as i can, so if i am able to go i hope to contribute to the fest with some of my ideas. But i know just by going there i will be able to learn and gain so much knowledge from my more advanced peers. I am a backup witness for SteemIT right now and i feel it will help me a lot to be around other witnesses too, it will be a great time for me to really absorb tons and tons of info. And what i learn will inevitably be used to help grow the SteemIT community.

🔹 I work very hard, but almost no play.

Me in my office :D

People who know me will tell you one thing about me, that i am one of the hardest working people that they know. I do not work a traditional 9 to 5 job, and i haven't for about 3 years. I work from my own home office/studio. Mostly i do audio engineering, but i also make some of my money doing remote IT work and some web site design. It's not easy for me to earn a dollar because i have to work for myself to get every dollar i earn...i don't have a paycheck coming in every week, so i have to be very careful with how i spend my money.

I am also a husband and a step dad too, and taking care of a family isn't easy, especially when you work for yourself. I work so much and i hardly ever get to live in the spoils of my work, because there is always more work to do! it is frustrating, but i gotta do what i gotta do so one day i don't have to work so hard.

🔹 My efforts here on SteemIT

• Since i've made my way to SteemIT i have been extremely active, posting pretty much every day and interacting with the community on the website and the chatrooms. I really love it here! :D.

• I recently have become a backup witness for SteemIT, helping the STEEM train chug along. It took some time to get my witness node up and running, but it was a great learning process. I'm confident that things will get easier over time. If you'd like to vote for as a witness, check the bottom of this post.

• I will also be doing a comic strip for The Daily SteemIT thanks to @steemitqa for putting me down for that.

• I am back into study mode. Because of my status as a backup witness i feel i need to get more experience with server administration and programming as well.

In just 2 weeks time here i have already amassed 150 followers organically, i have pledged myself as a backup witness for the SteemIT blockchain, and i've already posted some great blog articles! I ROCK!

🔹 I truly believe in SteemIT

Before i came to SteemIT i had never heard of a blockchain technology like it, i had been out of the technology loop for some years now, but once i found the platform i immediately understood the value in what we are doing here. It is not only the monetary gains that makes SteemIT wonderful, its the community interaction, the camaraderie, and the general good vibe you get when you start to talk to the members here. Everyone here is extremely helpful...no trolls, and this is only the beginning of what we are doing with SteemIT.

🔹 My Plans for the Future

• Right now i am at the beginning stages of studying Python, in the future i hope to build applications that make use of the STEEM blockchain and other blockchain technology.

• Network Security is always something i've enjoyed, and i will be putting some effort back into this field.

• I want to expand the Rap Challenge here and continue to grow it. I have connections with some well-known guys in Hip-Hop and i could do some great things here in that regard.

• I will be a mentor and guide for other SteemIT members. I didn't really have a guide i had to figure it all out on my own so i know it might not be easy for the average person to get used to the ecosystem here.

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💰 How Much Will It Cost?

For me to goto STEEMFest2 it will cost between $1100 and $1300 for the plane ticket, and unfortunately i really don't have that kind of cash on hand. That is not including, food (i love to eat!), hotel, leisure, and any other random expenses that are bound to happen if i go on this trip. I should be able to handle my other expenses if i had some help getting there. Here a screenshot of the prices round trip from Providence to Lisbon.

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I know this is not cheap at all...but this trip is going to be an experience of a lifetime for who ever is chosen to go. I want to go because i know i will have so much to offer SteemIT in the future. It is an investment for me to go there, because all of my reasoning for wanting to go is because of my dedication to SteemIT. I want to go to learn, build, network and of course have some fun and laughs and meet new people. SteemIT will gain a lot from my presence, as i will gain experience from the presence of my peers. My whole life i've always felt like it's been my duty to give back to humanity some how, but i never understood how i would do that. I do not think it is a coincidence that i found SteemIT at a time in my life where i've been pondering these very thoughts. I've been feeling unfulfilled in some ways, and SteemIT has filled a lot of voids in my life already. I understand what this means for the world and for the common man/woman, we need this platform to grow, we need it be better and we need to get the rest of our people involved.

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🔸 If i am the one chosen to be sent to STEEMFest2 you guy's wont regret it! I am hardworking and i am dedicated to bringing more tools and vision to this platform. I have 5 months until STEEMFest2, my goal is to be continually feeding myself information, reading books and taking online courses. I want to go there with as much knowledge as i can so i can keep up with some of you guys, and maybe even add to some of the discussions :D.

🔸If i am not chosen to be sent to STEEMFest2 the agenda is still the same, i will be doing everything i have said here regardless if i goto STEEMFest2 or not. My goal in going to the Fest is to interact and network with you guys and to learn and grow in the technical field. I will need to know as much as i can if i am going to be a successful witness, seed and developer for SteemIT.

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▶️ I would like to thank @prophet0, @aggroed & @steemfestdreams for doing something like this for the community. The effort from everyone here is unreal man. Lets make the world a better place with STEEM, thanks guys!

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If you enjoy my blog, please vote for me as a witness

Goto the URL below, scroll down and type in my name rondonson and click "Vote"
https://steemit.com/~witnesses