There are so many people to thank...

Well, not really. But the ones that do deserve thanks deserve big chunks of the stuff. If you're not a friend of mine on Facebook, or one of the people I called while all giddy with excitement (I can get giddy, why not?), I have won the writing competition of the Mid-Columbia Literary Festival. I'm under the impression that I've won the grand prize, which also includes first place in my category and division.

I submitted a work of fiction, and a poem, and the poem is what won. My story didn't win anything, but that's not too surprising as there's a lot left to be done with it. It'll be a book someday, but only because that's what it wants to be. Anyway, my poem. I'll put it at the end of the post, so if you want to skip past all this to read it you can. I won't be offended.

The poem itself was inspired by a girl I work with. She actually showed interest in what I wrote, and liked all of it. I told her I was going to write a poem about her, and it was going to be called You and Your Waylon Jennings. It didn't quite turn out the way I had expected, but I really liked what I had. She really liked it too, and that's really all that mattered.

Then it came time to turn in my journal for creative writing last quarter. I needed 32 journal entries, four poems at least 14 lines long, and a story at least 6 pages long. I had the entries, story, and three poems, and so I decided to toss in that one as well. When I got my journal back, the poem had a simple "Love this" written on it in red ink. I knew I'd be turning something in for the competition, so I figured why not this poem.

I turned it in on April 16, and up until a couple days ago, I thought it had a chance to win. Then I looked over the rules and saw I'd get a call or letter in late April. It having just turned May, I shrugged my shoulders and gave a sigh of "Oh, well. At least I tried." It was until I got home from school today when my mom asked if I'd heard the "great news." Being all dreary I told her I didn't know of any great news.

When she told me I just about lost it. I couldn't believe that I had won. I thought at first I'd just gotten first place in my division, but she's almost positive I won the grand prize. I'm trying my best to stay level headed, but it's just not working. I'm stopping into the coordinator's office tomorrow to verify, but with how excited she was on the phone I think I got the grand prize. She even wants me to read it in front of the audience, which I'll be more than happy to do. I'll be leaving work early to go do it, and I'm secretly hoping I'll get to say a few words too.

I'm just really happy that I won, and I'm hoping somebody :cough:Lisa:cough: will be able to record it all. I want the people I want to thank get to hear/see it :) So, without further ado, my poem...

You and Your Waylon Jennings

You and your Waylon Jennings,
crooning from your Toyota
factory standard speakers.
Is that how you hear him?
Or are you there,
inside the studio?
The crumbling black
of the padded walls
for better acoustics, not
the hysterics you must be in.
Watching it happen, laying
down the master tracks you love
so dearly. No static here,
or aged fidelity.

And that's it... I still can't believe I won. I'm happy. :)