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| Ballot Box showing preferential voting (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
"If we don't try, we never learn" is a statement that I use in a few different ways. For example, in regard to liking certain foods. I heard somewhere that you need to try a food seven times in order to appreciate it at least to the point were you can tolerate it. Once you get accustomed to hearing a particular piece of music you will not mind or will even enjoy hearing it in the future.
For me this past week was a time for trying new things. The most recent Battle of the Bands was an event for Tossing It Out with blog posts spanning four days. On Monday first Battle competitor Orion's Reign provided material for a post profiling the band. Then on Wednesday the other competing artist, Sebastian Sidi, invited me to his recording studio to provide a YouTube video interview including special advice for the Insecure Writer's Support Group.
I want to thank both artists for contributing their time in helping me to create two great blog posts. A goodly number of visitors had nice things to say about the featured artists. This week made a splash on my blog as well as some added visibility for Battle of the Bands.
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My Voting Experiment
In the recent Battle I knew that many of the artists' fans would be coming to vote for their favorite. And most of us probably have had the problem of non-bloggers not understanding how to leave comments on our blogs so I feared that a lot of potential votes would be lost. That being the case I decided to add a poll widget to make it easier to leave votes. This resulted in some wild voting.
In the comment section from the beginning to the time of the tally on Thursday night Orion's Reign held a consistent lead over Sebastian Sidi who remained a solid second.
Final tally in comment section:
Orion's Reign 23
Sebastian Sidi 16
At the Poll:
My experiment was using the polling system. The first widget I added apparently maxed out at 30 votes which stopped voting early on with Orion's Reign with 16 votes and Sebastian Sidi at 14. When I learned of the malfunction a few hours in the first round had been lost. I recovered with a no vote limit widget from another poll provider. This poll worked very well throughout the week with Sebastian's votes leading by double over Orion's Reign.
It was starting to appear that I would have an awkward situation of one artist winning in comments with the other having a big win on the poll. By midday of Thursday the count for Sebastian was 85 and Orion's Reign with 45. Then something happened after that--votes started pouring in for Orion's Reign.
To see results of second poll click here.
Final Tally from Both Polls
Orion's Reign 178
Sebastian Sidi 102
Winner by both counts is Orion's Reign, but in my eyes both these artists are big winners. The participation they both gave pushed Tossing It Out to a new level of excellence. My thanks to Michael Batistatos of Orion's Reign and Sebastian Sidi. These guys are both real pros and I look forward to big things from both of them in the future. Hope to see more of you at Tossing It Out.
Are there some things that you'd like to try but are afraid to do so? What did you like best in the previous week at Tossing It Out? What is the most difficult thing you ever had to learn?
Next Battle of the Bands will be on Sunday March 15th. Where this previous Battle was classical music interpreted by rock artists, the next one will be a twist on that theme. Be there for the fun!
Both were really good musicians. And since it was my kind of music, I enjoyed both pieces. Orion had the edge though.
ReplyDeleteThe interviews were a brilliant idea. You'll have to do it again!
Maybe I plan another one of these types of Battle of the Bands events after April. The A to Z will be big enough though I will continue to do the Battle post incorporated into the Challenge.
DeleteLee
Hi Lee. I so appreciate your special attention to 'Battle of the Bands', IWSG, your regular followers, the artists' followers and fans, with these presentations. Your make the hard work look easy. I enjoyed both, with Orion's Reign edging a bit more. I have followed up on some of the links left, and appreciate those too. Thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteI hope the artists get more traffic at their sites and even some product sales. Self-marketed music is tough in the same way that self-publishing is.
DeleteLee
This is true about music. There is very little that I don't care for. I do think some is irredeemable. Both bands were interesting.
ReplyDeleteNow food is another story. This is my theory and it may not be true. If you have a strong aversion to any food, don't eat it. You could have a food allergy or your body does not need the nutrients.
I stopped eating sugar because it makes my diabetes easier to manage. If I have a craving for sugar, I now know my diabetes is out of kilter. If I just want to snack, I find my blood sugar is low. Your body is a finely tune machine.
My food theory that I've been planning to post about and a theory I've heard espoused by some researchers is that some food allergies have resulted from people not trying things to the point their body will reject it. I've never had a food allergy that I'm aware of and I eat anything and everything if it's presented to me.
DeleteLee
Great idea to make the vote easy for non-bloggers.
ReplyDeleteThat many non-bloggers don't normally show up, but guests can bring in fans and it's good to accommodate them.
DeleteLee
P.S. _ Have to admit, I don't want to train myself to like anything. I'd much rather like it at first taste, first listen, etc.
ReplyDelete"Training" sounds a bit too rigorous. I'd prefer "acclimate", "get used to", or "learn".
DeleteLee
I always wish that I'd learned how to play drums but I wasn't allowed, and then I just got too old and busy with other things. But that said, I never learned to read music, and the most difficult thing I tried to learn was math.
ReplyDeleteNever too old! Don't set limits on yourself. Well, except maybe really physically strenuous stuff that the old body can no longer do.
DeleteLee
"Just try it" is something said so often in our house... so, so, so often. And the answer is almost always "no."
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to trying new things or at least learning about them, no is not usually the best answer. I've even watched some football and have had the rules explained to me. Maybe I have a "sports allergy".
DeleteLee
I've heard people have to hear something 8 times before they believe it. I'm not sure it's all things - maybe things they don't want to hear. My employer paid someone to tell us this statistic. Then he said 8 times that we are only worth our last paycheck. Very nice, no?
ReplyDeleteFunny that non-bloggers need a widget.
Not nice for your boss to do that. But learning to like something also entails wanting to learn.
DeleteI wish commenting was simple for everyone so more non-bloggers would be enticed to visit and leave comments. And a lot of people are too lazy or to busy to read a post and would rather just click on a poll box.
Lee
Good you found an easier box that worked for all. As for 7 times for food, no thank you. I eat what I eat and never again. Whoever makes up these 7 times, or 30 days or whatever rules needs to be strung up for 24 hours on the 7th day of the 6th month of their 40th year alive.
ReplyDeleteBut if I look at my own experience, it might not be 7 or 8 times, but trying something more than once can get us used to something that we initially didn't like. And sometimes it's the preparation. I used to hate Lima beans until I tasted them where they were fixed very tastily.
DeleteLee
I don't think I've retried a food I didn't like so I could learn to like it, but I believe that can happen. Lots of time I hear a song I don't really care for but after I hear it a number of times I start to like it.
ReplyDeleteHardest thing I ever learned to do was raise children.
Do we ever truly learn everything there is to know about raising children? And do children ever really grow up?
DeleteLee
What a wonderful week for you Lee also for all your followers.
ReplyDeleteCan you locate Danny Boy for me.....lol
It will be "Mother's Day "here on March the 15th, so will look forward to your next BOTB.
Maybe you can help me get an interview with Daniel--he's done lots of song covers.
DeleteLee
This was so much fun this week, Arlee!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you had a great voter turnout!
Heather
Yes, I was pleased with the participation this time.
DeleteLee
>>... What is the most difficult thing you ever had to learn?
ReplyDeleteForgiving.
Still workin' on it.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
Forgiving can be mighty tough. But on the other had I think the act of forgiveness is a two party system. It's difficult to forgive someone who hasn't asked for the forgiveness and understands why it is needed. When it's one-sided then I think it's more of a matter of letting something go and trying not to think too much about it. I have a tough time with that sometimes.
DeleteLee
Well, BOIDMAN LEE, as I know you know, we are not really called to a "two party forgiveness" system. Jesus forgave his murderers from the Cross, and Stephen forgave those who were in the process of stoning him to death. In both cases, the wrongdoers were not asking for forgiveness, as they were engaged in their sins when the forgiveness came.
DeleteThat's what makes it so tough sometimes. It's not that hard for me to forgive someone after they have wronged me but have sought forgiveness out of a true, sincere remorse.
It's that forgiveness offered to a person who has not sought it and is still of the same mind they were when they committed the offense that I find difficult sometimes. That 'Higher Calling of Forgiveness' that Jesus and Stephen achieved even in the midst of the sin's commission.
Sometimes after time has passed and the wound is not so fresh I'm able to get to it. But early on, when the wound is still "bleeding", so to speak, it's quite a feat that I rarely achieve.
Like I said, I'm still workin' on this.
~ D-FensDogg
I was once loath to have anything to do with Orthodoxy, and only agreed to accompany an Orthodox friend one night when he said it would only be for more dinner, not services. That was in late February 2002, and at the end of March, I got up enough nerve and curiosity to go to a Saturday morning service. To my surprise, I didn't feel at all slighted or marginalized by having to sit behind the mechitza (divider), but really enjoyed the privacy and space. If I'd kept that pre-conceived attitude or sat in the men's section like I once said I would, it would've been a horrible experience and quite disrespectful of my new friends.
ReplyDeleteI think you approached it the right way. If our mission is to antagonize others then everyone ends up a bit uncomfortable.
DeleteLee
That was a good battle! And that's evident by the numbers. :)
ReplyDeleteThe numbers weren't bad at all!
DeleteLee
You did a fantastic job with these posts, Lee. Loved the interviews, and BOTB. Nice to see my favourite won, but they are both super talents.
ReplyDeleteThe most difficult thing I ever tried to learn was the Greek language. Unfortunately, it proved a little too daunting for this old brain. LOL I mean, there's a whole different alphabet involved! That said, a few key phrases did stick in my mind. Náse kalá! (Be well)
I'm bad about just learning the spoken language let alone having to learn a whole new written language.
DeleteThanks for participating in this Battle of the Bands week.
Lee
Highly entertaining, especially with the interviews. Do you have all your posts done and uploaded for April? Remember to keep a backup in case Blogger gets hungry and takes a bite!
ReplyDeleteHave barely started April. Getting behind as usual.
DeleteLee
Glad you go so many votes! It was great to read the interviews and how gracious they both were to give the interview. I find the hardest thing to learn is to accept when another person you care about decides not to help themselves and continue to decline in front of your eyes and there is nothing you can do. My ex's brother just passed away...he was only 61. I have never met someone who was so diligent in remaining sad and angry at what had occurred in his past. He literally drank himself to death and this is such a waste of a great life and a good person.
ReplyDeleteYeah, that's pretty rough. I feel sad about people like this. I've known a few myself.
DeleteLee
It's wonderful that you had such a huge turnout for the BOTB! Your interviews were such a fantastic idea! I still have to check out Wednesday's interview with Sebastian Sidi.
ReplyDeleteJulie