This has been a really hard month for me. First I get crazy in the middle of the night in a hotel in Austin. I haven’t slept in days, I’m alone, it’s 30 degrees out, I’m starving and I’m out of change for the vending machines. I started to think about how I haven’t been traveling at all over the past year. I’ve noted that falling in love has this affect on me. I stop being the person that’s only home one weekend out of the month because I’m at conventions, BBQ’s, suspension events, learning/teaching conferences and I focus on being home so that I can be a supportive, attentive and caring partner at home.
I was suddenly back on the road and realizing how much I miss it and how BME suffers when I can’t be out on the road. I decided though after a lot of thought that my passport is full because I’ve traveled around the globe but that for one reason or another all of my travels were alone. The last time I went on any kind of extended trip was in 2008 when I went to the Oslo Suscon, then to BMXnet and finally to a tattoo convention in England (which I ended bailing out on!). That was 3 weeks in Europe SOLO. I submitted around 1000 photos from that trip alone and had a great time meeting people in person.
Now I’m doing it a little differently and I’m extending the amount of time that I’ll be on the road and bringing 4 people with me. I’m sure that you want to know who they are but you HAVE to understand how difficult the selection process was. First it started out with watching hundreds of videos, browsing portolios, reading blogs and writing samples and with Jen‘s help, I narrowed it down to 17 finalists. Everyone has so much to offer and all of the finalists are multi-talented. While some people shine at one particular talent more than others, they are still fully capable of doing everything else that will be required on the road.
The hardest part about choosing the 4 winners is that there are some people who aren’t getting chosen that have been helping out a ton behind the scenes. When they volunteered to help out, I told them it wouldn’t be scoring them any extra points and I had to go with my gut. The other thing that was really hard is that one of my closest friends applied for the video. Thad is an awesome photographer and a great friend but ultimately I feel like I would lean on him too much during this tour. Plus he’d let me get away with being like “I’m too tired to cope today” and I can’t have that.
Click through to find out who won!
In no particular order, the four interns that will be accompanying me on this tour are Chez, Richard, Darah and Megan.
This was a very hard decision and I have my reasons as well as where I just needed to “go with my gut”. If you are a contestant and you want more feedback on why I didn’t pick you, feel free to contact me. I wish I could have brought everyone or I could split it up into two teams so that I could bring more people but I simply can’t due to the costs involved.
Thank you go everyone who applied and for all of the hard work that everyone put in. It means a lot to me and I appreciate your support as always.
Don’t forget the sale on BMEshop is still going on until Midnight! Use the coupon code “worldtour” (without the quotes!) to get 30% off of nearly everything!
Comments
324 responses to “The BME World Tour Winners are..”
I’m wondering if the people who are saying Rachel picked non-visibly modified peole actually looked at any of the internship winners’ iam pages. I am visibly modified and while I don’t have implants or scarifications, I do have many very visible modifications including larger guage facial piercings, hand and head tattoos. to say that Rachel was discriminating against more modified intern applicants is just laughable and completely contray to what bme supports!
I’m wondering if the people who are saying Rachel picked non-visibly modified peole actually looked at any of the internship winners’ iam pages. I am visibly modified and while I don’t have implants or scarifications, I do have many very visible modifications including larger guage facial piercings, hand and head tattoos. to say that Rachel was discriminating against more modified intern applicants is just laughable and completely contray to what bme supports!
“The comment about Darah’s attractiveness was obviously said as a joke but, in light of the current tension, it was in poor taste.”
I disagree. It was not a joke. She is charming, witty and she seems fun. When I saw her video I thought that she would be someone I would like to get to know which is what I would want from someone. I did think to myself “this girl is boring.” I could watch her video over and over again. That’s an A+ in my book.
People asked me why I picked the candidates that I did. I get shit on if I answer and shit on if I don’t. This is Modblog, if it’s not controversy then it wouldn’t be modblog. We can do nothing right but at least we try!
Regardless of if there had been a poll or not, people would leave comments and their “votes” and then if I said that I wasn’t taking the comments into consideration than I would have been shat upon for even mentioning or posting the applications in the first place. We only posted a very small fraction on Modblog and were told off for how “boring” it was.
Chez: Seriously, don’t bother. Apparently I’m not even modified in some peoples eyes.
Despite the claims that we picked non-modified people, which is ridiculous as can be, there weren’t any submissions from people who were “outwardly” more modified. The only people these days that modbloggers would consider to be heavily modified are people like the lizardman etc. Neck, hand, facial tattoos apparently don’t count anymore!
It’s all absurd!
“The comment about Darah’s attractiveness was obviously said as a joke but, in light of the current tension, it was in poor taste.”
I disagree. It was not a joke. She is charming, witty and she seems fun. When I saw her video I thought that she would be someone I would like to get to know which is what I would want from someone. I did think to myself “this girl is boring.” I could watch her video over and over again. That’s an A+ in my book.
People asked me why I picked the candidates that I did. I get shit on if I answer and shit on if I don’t. This is Modblog, if it’s not controversy then it wouldn’t be modblog. We can do nothing right but at least we try!
Regardless of if there had been a poll or not, people would leave comments and their “votes” and then if I said that I wasn’t taking the comments into consideration than I would have been shat upon for even mentioning or posting the applications in the first place. We only posted a very small fraction on Modblog and were told off for how “boring” it was.
Chez: Seriously, don’t bother. Apparently I’m not even modified in some peoples eyes.
Despite the claims that we picked non-modified people, which is ridiculous as can be, there weren’t any submissions from people who were “outwardly” more modified. The only people these days that modbloggers would consider to be heavily modified are people like the lizardman etc. Neck, hand, facial tattoos apparently don’t count anymore!
It’s all absurd!
“The comment about Darah’s attractiveness was obviously said as a joke but, in light of the current tension, it was in poor taste.”
I disagree. It was not a joke. She is charming, witty and she seems fun. When I saw her video I thought that she would be someone I would like to get to know which is what I would want from someone. I did think to myself “this girl is boring.” I could watch her video over and over again. That’s an A+ in my book.
People asked me why I picked the candidates that I did. I get shit on if I answer and shit on if I don’t. This is Modblog, if it’s not controversy then it wouldn’t be modblog. We can do nothing right but at least we try!
Regardless of if there had been a poll or not, people would leave comments and their “votes” and then if I said that I wasn’t taking the comments into consideration than I would have been shat upon for even mentioning or posting the applications in the first place. We only posted a very small fraction on Modblog and were told off for how “boring” it was.
Chez: Seriously, don’t bother. Apparently I’m not even modified in some peoples eyes.
Despite the claims that we picked non-modified people, which is ridiculous as can be, there weren’t any submissions from people who were “outwardly” more modified. The only people these days that modbloggers would consider to be heavily modified are people like the lizardman etc. Neck, hand, facial tattoos apparently don’t count anymore!
It’s all absurd!
“The comment about Darah’s attractiveness was obviously said as a joke but, in light of the current tension, it was in poor taste.”
I disagree. It was not a joke. She is charming, witty and she seems fun. When I saw her video I thought that she would be someone I would like to get to know which is what I would want from someone. I did think to myself “this girl is boring.” I could watch her video over and over again. That’s an A+ in my book.
People asked me why I picked the candidates that I did. I get shit on if I answer and shit on if I don’t. This is Modblog, if it’s not controversy then it wouldn’t be modblog. We can do nothing right but at least we try!
Regardless of if there had been a poll or not, people would leave comments and their “votes” and then if I said that I wasn’t taking the comments into consideration than I would have been shat upon for even mentioning or posting the applications in the first place. We only posted a very small fraction on Modblog and were told off for how “boring” it was.
Chez: Seriously, don’t bother. Apparently I’m not even modified in some peoples eyes.
Despite the claims that we picked non-modified people, which is ridiculous as can be, there weren’t any submissions from people who were “outwardly” more modified. The only people these days that modbloggers would consider to be heavily modified are people like the lizardman etc. Neck, hand, facial tattoos apparently don’t count anymore!
It’s all absurd!
wow typical modblog drama.
I think since its Rachel’s tour she can pick whomever the hell she wants. The people who were in the top finalists should just be grateful that they had a fair chance like everyone else, and just stop being children about it. acting childish only further proves Rachel made the right choices.
The whole bias on modifications is just asinine, its a modification community, but then why should we not give anyone an opportunity to join in the community?
Its the whole “your not hardcore unless you have a heavy mods” mentality. its just stupid.
@ rachel I applaud you for doing what you thought was right and not turning it into a popularity contest. I wish the best of luck to you on your tour, and hopefully after next year when I’m 21 I can join another tour if this one goes well.
wow typical modblog drama.
I think since its Rachel’s tour she can pick whomever the hell she wants. The people who were in the top finalists should just be grateful that they had a fair chance like everyone else, and just stop being children about it. acting childish only further proves Rachel made the right choices.
The whole bias on modifications is just asinine, its a modification community, but then why should we not give anyone an opportunity to join in the community?
Its the whole “your not hardcore unless you have a heavy mods” mentality. its just stupid.
@ rachel I applaud you for doing what you thought was right and not turning it into a popularity contest. I wish the best of luck to you on your tour, and hopefully after next year when I’m 21 I can join another tour if this one goes well.
wow typical modblog drama.
I think since its Rachel’s tour she can pick whomever the hell she wants. The people who were in the top finalists should just be grateful that they had a fair chance like everyone else, and just stop being children about it. acting childish only further proves Rachel made the right choices.
The whole bias on modifications is just asinine, its a modification community, but then why should we not give anyone an opportunity to join in the community?
Its the whole “your not hardcore unless you have a heavy mods” mentality. its just stupid.
@ rachel I applaud you for doing what you thought was right and not turning it into a popularity contest. I wish the best of luck to you on your tour, and hopefully after next year when I’m 21 I can join another tour if this one goes well.
wow typical modblog drama.
I think since its Rachel’s tour she can pick whomever the hell she wants. The people who were in the top finalists should just be grateful that they had a fair chance like everyone else, and just stop being children about it. acting childish only further proves Rachel made the right choices.
The whole bias on modifications is just asinine, its a modification community, but then why should we not give anyone an opportunity to join in the community?
Its the whole “your not hardcore unless you have a heavy mods” mentality. its just stupid.
@ rachel I applaud you for doing what you thought was right and not turning it into a popularity contest. I wish the best of luck to you on your tour, and hopefully after next year when I’m 21 I can join another tour if this one goes well.
oh and another point of contention.
The voting was open to IAM and non-IAM alike. If the votes were to even be worth counting it should have been IAM members only. since its the IAM members who upload the pictures and essentially are the people of bme.
seems reasonable to be not to even bother with the polls as anything but a fun way to see who was the fan favorite.
oh and another point of contention.
The voting was open to IAM and non-IAM alike. If the votes were to even be worth counting it should have been IAM members only. since its the IAM members who upload the pictures and essentially are the people of bme.
seems reasonable to be not to even bother with the polls as anything but a fun way to see who was the fan favorite.
oh and another point of contention.
The voting was open to IAM and non-IAM alike. If the votes were to even be worth counting it should have been IAM members only. since its the IAM members who upload the pictures and essentially are the people of bme.
seems reasonable to be not to even bother with the polls as anything but a fun way to see who was the fan favorite.
oh and another point of contention.
The voting was open to IAM and non-IAM alike. If the votes were to even be worth counting it should have been IAM members only. since its the IAM members who upload the pictures and essentially are the people of bme.
seems reasonable to be not to even bother with the polls as anything but a fun way to see who was the fan favorite.
Rachel,
I sincerely appreciate the little blurbs you put about why you chose the people that you did. It gives me insight into why or how you saw them shine. I’m sorry if it increased any controversy, but it really helped me to feel like a part of this, as a part of the BME community. Thank-you.
Also, I apologize for anything I said about the polls. I had a *doi* moment, where I realized that not going by poll results makes the choices NOT part of a popularity contest. That makes a lot of sense.
And finally, I was at first very confused by your comments about staying away from a stereotypical BME-esque team, so I really appreciate that you elaborated. I understand better now, and even agree that this may be a smart decision so that BME may evolve.
I’m really sorry for all of the drama or stress that this may have brought into your life, especially for any that I could be personally responsible for.
Thank-you, and best of luck with everything.
Rachel,
I sincerely appreciate the little blurbs you put about why you chose the people that you did. It gives me insight into why or how you saw them shine. I’m sorry if it increased any controversy, but it really helped me to feel like a part of this, as a part of the BME community. Thank-you.
Also, I apologize for anything I said about the polls. I had a *doi* moment, where I realized that not going by poll results makes the choices NOT part of a popularity contest. That makes a lot of sense.
And finally, I was at first very confused by your comments about staying away from a stereotypical BME-esque team, so I really appreciate that you elaborated. I understand better now, and even agree that this may be a smart decision so that BME may evolve.
I’m really sorry for all of the drama or stress that this may have brought into your life, especially for any that I could be personally responsible for.
Thank-you, and best of luck with everything.
Rachel,
I sincerely appreciate the little blurbs you put about why you chose the people that you did. It gives me insight into why or how you saw them shine. I’m sorry if it increased any controversy, but it really helped me to feel like a part of this, as a part of the BME community. Thank-you.
Also, I apologize for anything I said about the polls. I had a *doi* moment, where I realized that not going by poll results makes the choices NOT part of a popularity contest. That makes a lot of sense.
And finally, I was at first very confused by your comments about staying away from a stereotypical BME-esque team, so I really appreciate that you elaborated. I understand better now, and even agree that this may be a smart decision so that BME may evolve.
I’m really sorry for all of the drama or stress that this may have brought into your life, especially for any that I could be personally responsible for.
Thank-you, and best of luck with everything.
Rachel,
I sincerely appreciate the little blurbs you put about why you chose the people that you did. It gives me insight into why or how you saw them shine. I’m sorry if it increased any controversy, but it really helped me to feel like a part of this, as a part of the BME community. Thank-you.
Also, I apologize for anything I said about the polls. I had a *doi* moment, where I realized that not going by poll results makes the choices NOT part of a popularity contest. That makes a lot of sense.
And finally, I was at first very confused by your comments about staying away from a stereotypical BME-esque team, so I really appreciate that you elaborated. I understand better now, and even agree that this may be a smart decision so that BME may evolve.
I’m really sorry for all of the drama or stress that this may have brought into your life, especially for any that I could be personally responsible for.
Thank-you, and best of luck with everything.
P.S. – Technically, you do not have to hold yourself accountable to the BME community. This is YOUR project, and we’re just along for the ride.
That makes it matter all the more that you take the time to try and be fair, to try and explain, to try and keep us involved.
I just want you to know that I really appreciate that, and I’m sure I’m not the only one. Thanks Rachel.
P.S. – Technically, you do not have to hold yourself accountable to the BME community. This is YOUR project, and we’re just along for the ride.
That makes it matter all the more that you take the time to try and be fair, to try and explain, to try and keep us involved.
I just want you to know that I really appreciate that, and I’m sure I’m not the only one. Thanks Rachel.
P.S. – Technically, you do not have to hold yourself accountable to the BME community. This is YOUR project, and we’re just along for the ride.
That makes it matter all the more that you take the time to try and be fair, to try and explain, to try and keep us involved.
I just want you to know that I really appreciate that, and I’m sure I’m not the only one. Thanks Rachel.
P.S. – Technically, you do not have to hold yourself accountable to the BME community. This is YOUR project, and we’re just along for the ride.
That makes it matter all the more that you take the time to try and be fair, to try and explain, to try and keep us involved.
I just want you to know that I really appreciate that, and I’m sure I’m not the only one. Thanks Rachel.
I object to #66 from nikk.
I check this site daily (which is why it should be updated daily… please lol?) and have been a follower since I discovered it years ago. I am less worthy of watching those videos and voting because I have only submitted one photo? Am I not a “[person] of BME”?
Sorry Rachel for perpetuating the “typical modblog drama,” but I felt inclined to reply.
I object to #66 from nikk.
I check this site daily (which is why it should be updated daily… please lol?) and have been a follower since I discovered it years ago. I am less worthy of watching those videos and voting because I have only submitted one photo? Am I not a “[person] of BME”?
Sorry Rachel for perpetuating the “typical modblog drama,” but I felt inclined to reply.
I object to #66 from nikk.
I check this site daily (which is why it should be updated daily… please lol?) and have been a follower since I discovered it years ago. I am less worthy of watching those videos and voting because I have only submitted one photo? Am I not a “[person] of BME”?
Sorry Rachel for perpetuating the “typical modblog drama,” but I felt inclined to reply.
I object to #66 from nikk.
I check this site daily (which is why it should be updated daily… please lol?) and have been a follower since I discovered it years ago. I am less worthy of watching those videos and voting because I have only submitted one photo? Am I not a “[person] of BME”?
Sorry Rachel for perpetuating the “typical modblog drama,” but I felt inclined to reply.
@antipinkpunk. While being a regular reader is great, I’m certainly glad your a part of the community even in your own way. When I say non-IAM members I am referring to the people who just stumble upon BME on a page such as stumbleupon or digg.
I cant tell you the number of times I’ve seen some half brained idiot comment on a scarification piece about “how sick that is, and how its offensive to people with self abuse problems”
Multiple times some christian zealot has made posts in the past proclaiming that everyone of us is damned to perdition. That is what I mean when I say non-IAM.
@antipinkpunk. While being a regular reader is great, I’m certainly glad your a part of the community even in your own way. When I say non-IAM members I am referring to the people who just stumble upon BME on a page such as stumbleupon or digg.
I cant tell you the number of times I’ve seen some half brained idiot comment on a scarification piece about “how sick that is, and how its offensive to people with self abuse problems”
Multiple times some christian zealot has made posts in the past proclaiming that everyone of us is damned to perdition. That is what I mean when I say non-IAM.
@antipinkpunk. While being a regular reader is great, I’m certainly glad your a part of the community even in your own way. When I say non-IAM members I am referring to the people who just stumble upon BME on a page such as stumbleupon or digg.
I cant tell you the number of times I’ve seen some half brained idiot comment on a scarification piece about “how sick that is, and how its offensive to people with self abuse problems”
Multiple times some christian zealot has made posts in the past proclaiming that everyone of us is damned to perdition. That is what I mean when I say non-IAM.
@antipinkpunk. While being a regular reader is great, I’m certainly glad your a part of the community even in your own way. When I say non-IAM members I am referring to the people who just stumble upon BME on a page such as stumbleupon or digg.
I cant tell you the number of times I’ve seen some half brained idiot comment on a scarification piece about “how sick that is, and how its offensive to people with self abuse problems”
Multiple times some christian zealot has made posts in the past proclaiming that everyone of us is damned to perdition. That is what I mean when I say non-IAM.
i haven’t been involved in this event, but after hearing about the contest and reading this, it’s neat, and i hope you guys have a fun time, but rachel set this up to be majorly dramatic. she was at respectable until she turned six-years-old with “well too bad you’re fussing because i was secretly gonna take you anyway, but now i’m not gonna.”
rachel — next time you have to do something that involves other people, think about how it’s going to be perceived. the last-round vote was built up to seem like the final decision-maker. even if that wasn’t your intention, that’s how it looked, and it had a rather nasty effect, and i feel like you’re insulting the community if you continue being stubborn about your past decisions.
(just an outsider’s opinion)
i haven’t been involved in this event, but after hearing about the contest and reading this, it’s neat, and i hope you guys have a fun time, but rachel set this up to be majorly dramatic. she was at respectable until she turned six-years-old with “well too bad you’re fussing because i was secretly gonna take you anyway, but now i’m not gonna.”
rachel — next time you have to do something that involves other people, think about how it’s going to be perceived. the last-round vote was built up to seem like the final decision-maker. even if that wasn’t your intention, that’s how it looked, and it had a rather nasty effect, and i feel like you’re insulting the community if you continue being stubborn about your past decisions.
(just an outsider’s opinion)
i haven’t been involved in this event, but after hearing about the contest and reading this, it’s neat, and i hope you guys have a fun time, but rachel set this up to be majorly dramatic. she was at respectable until she turned six-years-old with “well too bad you’re fussing because i was secretly gonna take you anyway, but now i’m not gonna.”
rachel — next time you have to do something that involves other people, think about how it’s going to be perceived. the last-round vote was built up to seem like the final decision-maker. even if that wasn’t your intention, that’s how it looked, and it had a rather nasty effect, and i feel like you’re insulting the community if you continue being stubborn about your past decisions.
(just an outsider’s opinion)
i haven’t been involved in this event, but after hearing about the contest and reading this, it’s neat, and i hope you guys have a fun time, but rachel set this up to be majorly dramatic. she was at respectable until she turned six-years-old with “well too bad you’re fussing because i was secretly gonna take you anyway, but now i’m not gonna.”
rachel — next time you have to do something that involves other people, think about how it’s going to be perceived. the last-round vote was built up to seem like the final decision-maker. even if that wasn’t your intention, that’s how it looked, and it had a rather nasty effect, and i feel like you’re insulting the community if you continue being stubborn about your past decisions.
(just an outsider’s opinion)
#70/nikk:
I highly doubt those are the kind of people who would want to watch videos and then vote for a tour of a website they don’t support. Those people are just internet trolls who pop up wherever they feel they can voice an opinion, no matter how poorly founded that opinion might be.
Regardless, I think all this drama simply shows one thing: as creator or contestant, be prepared for controversy if you make a job application process public….. or just don’t have it public at all. People on both sides took this much too personally. (The fact that “sides” even developed out of this is kind of sad)
#70/nikk:
I highly doubt those are the kind of people who would want to watch videos and then vote for a tour of a website they don’t support. Those people are just internet trolls who pop up wherever they feel they can voice an opinion, no matter how poorly founded that opinion might be.
Regardless, I think all this drama simply shows one thing: as creator or contestant, be prepared for controversy if you make a job application process public….. or just don’t have it public at all. People on both sides took this much too personally. (The fact that “sides” even developed out of this is kind of sad)
#70/nikk:
I highly doubt those are the kind of people who would want to watch videos and then vote for a tour of a website they don’t support. Those people are just internet trolls who pop up wherever they feel they can voice an opinion, no matter how poorly founded that opinion might be.
Regardless, I think all this drama simply shows one thing: as creator or contestant, be prepared for controversy if you make a job application process public….. or just don’t have it public at all. People on both sides took this much too personally. (The fact that “sides” even developed out of this is kind of sad)
#70/nikk:
I highly doubt those are the kind of people who would want to watch videos and then vote for a tour of a website they don’t support. Those people are just internet trolls who pop up wherever they feel they can voice an opinion, no matter how poorly founded that opinion might be.
Regardless, I think all this drama simply shows one thing: as creator or contestant, be prepared for controversy if you make a job application process public….. or just don’t have it public at all. People on both sides took this much too personally. (The fact that “sides” even developed out of this is kind of sad)
I can understand not wanting to make this into a popularity contest in the end. That part is super professional and not what BME is about (at least the parts of BME that I frequent.. I stay out of the IAM community). My problem is that the whole competition was made out to be this public spectacle like it WAS a popularity contest. I can understand that you may have been trying to include the BME community in this for funzies or whatever by posting up all the videos you were receiving but I don’t think it should have went further than that.
A big part of my opinion is just a general misconception of what this contest was about in the first place. When I heard about it, I thought that you were seeking out “the best and the brightest”, so to speak, in order to get the most bang for your buck. If I had realized that this was more of a “face of BME’s road trip” contest, I would have looked at this in a whole different light from the very beginning.
I can understand not wanting to make this into a popularity contest in the end. That part is super professional and not what BME is about (at least the parts of BME that I frequent.. I stay out of the IAM community). My problem is that the whole competition was made out to be this public spectacle like it WAS a popularity contest. I can understand that you may have been trying to include the BME community in this for funzies or whatever by posting up all the videos you were receiving but I don’t think it should have went further than that.
A big part of my opinion is just a general misconception of what this contest was about in the first place. When I heard about it, I thought that you were seeking out “the best and the brightest”, so to speak, in order to get the most bang for your buck. If I had realized that this was more of a “face of BME’s road trip” contest, I would have looked at this in a whole different light from the very beginning.
I can understand not wanting to make this into a popularity contest in the end. That part is super professional and not what BME is about (at least the parts of BME that I frequent.. I stay out of the IAM community). My problem is that the whole competition was made out to be this public spectacle like it WAS a popularity contest. I can understand that you may have been trying to include the BME community in this for funzies or whatever by posting up all the videos you were receiving but I don’t think it should have went further than that.
A big part of my opinion is just a general misconception of what this contest was about in the first place. When I heard about it, I thought that you were seeking out “the best and the brightest”, so to speak, in order to get the most bang for your buck. If I had realized that this was more of a “face of BME’s road trip” contest, I would have looked at this in a whole different light from the very beginning.
I can understand not wanting to make this into a popularity contest in the end. That part is super professional and not what BME is about (at least the parts of BME that I frequent.. I stay out of the IAM community). My problem is that the whole competition was made out to be this public spectacle like it WAS a popularity contest. I can understand that you may have been trying to include the BME community in this for funzies or whatever by posting up all the videos you were receiving but I don’t think it should have went further than that.
A big part of my opinion is just a general misconception of what this contest was about in the first place. When I heard about it, I thought that you were seeking out “the best and the brightest”, so to speak, in order to get the most bang for your buck. If I had realized that this was more of a “face of BME’s road trip” contest, I would have looked at this in a whole different light from the very beginning.
Well, I wouldn’t be surprised if Rachel decides never to do any similar project ever again, which rules out myself and any number of potentially great ambassadors for BME in particular and Body Modification in general, from possibly being a part of it. So thank you to all you egotistical/immature folks who made something that should have been a lot of fun into something that so far has been a huge pain in the arse for those organising it and those of us who have been keeping up with progress. I’ve been writhing with frustration just reading some of the inane comments that have appeared on this forum, so I expect it’s been ulcer-inducing for those making decisions and trying in vain to keep things fair.
Democracy rules, eh?
Well, I wouldn’t be surprised if Rachel decides never to do any similar project ever again, which rules out myself and any number of potentially great ambassadors for BME in particular and Body Modification in general, from possibly being a part of it. So thank you to all you egotistical/immature folks who made something that should have been a lot of fun into something that so far has been a huge pain in the arse for those organising it and those of us who have been keeping up with progress. I’ve been writhing with frustration just reading some of the inane comments that have appeared on this forum, so I expect it’s been ulcer-inducing for those making decisions and trying in vain to keep things fair.
Democracy rules, eh?
Well, I wouldn’t be surprised if Rachel decides never to do any similar project ever again, which rules out myself and any number of potentially great ambassadors for BME in particular and Body Modification in general, from possibly being a part of it. So thank you to all you egotistical/immature folks who made something that should have been a lot of fun into something that so far has been a huge pain in the arse for those organising it and those of us who have been keeping up with progress. I’ve been writhing with frustration just reading some of the inane comments that have appeared on this forum, so I expect it’s been ulcer-inducing for those making decisions and trying in vain to keep things fair.
Democracy rules, eh?
Well, I wouldn’t be surprised if Rachel decides never to do any similar project ever again, which rules out myself and any number of potentially great ambassadors for BME in particular and Body Modification in general, from possibly being a part of it. So thank you to all you egotistical/immature folks who made something that should have been a lot of fun into something that so far has been a huge pain in the arse for those organising it and those of us who have been keeping up with progress. I’ve been writhing with frustration just reading some of the inane comments that have appeared on this forum, so I expect it’s been ulcer-inducing for those making decisions and trying in vain to keep things fair.
Democracy rules, eh?
Kyle: Unless of course you read the entry where it says that the votes DON’T determine the winner. Calling me a 6 year old for saying that I won’t be taking a second team because they way they have been behaving is silly.
One side wants more community involvement. I tell them what I’m doing and why I’m taking a one day business trip to have a meeting over major sponsorship that could 100% change the face of the tour and then the other side says “oh gnoes! Keep the behind the scenes stuff to yourself”. It gets really really old. I get flack if I don’t take the time to personally respond and flack if I do. I still choose to be involved in the day to day of the community as much as I can, while trying to keep the site updated and going. It’s not easy to keep everything up to date while I’m also spending hours traveling and dealing with fund raising for the site. I’m lucky to be in the position I’m in and that’s why I don’t take a moment of the headache for granted because without it, there wouldn’t be the benefits like being able to hold a contest like this in the first place.
Miss Mess: I don’t get your post. Why wouldn’t I choose “the best and the brightest” to be the “faces of BME” during the tour? Those two are not mutually exclusive. I would be stupid not to take the full advantage of the tour and the choice of applicants that I had.
This isn’t a popularity contest regardless of what people are constantly trying to turn it into it. If it was then, it’d be like any other site that lets people win by basing everything they do on what gets the most hits/votes instead of the skills and talents of the individuals. That’s why, despite the lack of people reading what I actually posted, the ability to get votes for yourself was taken into account as were the comments about the applicants but it wasn’t the sole determining factor. The WORK the applicants put forth WAS the determining factor in addition to their over all talents and skills.
I had hundreds of applicants to pick from and I picked the team that I feel will do the best job possible. Hands down. Congrats again to Chez, Megan, Darah and Richard. I feel lucky to be able to take them out on the road. I feel they’re the most talented and mature group I could have selected to spend 3 months in close quarters with.
All of the drama aside, I told the participants to be ready to have the spotlight on them and to be “hated on” just for “winning”. We’re going to make the best out of this trip/tour that we can and hope to meet as many BME members along the way as possible.
I’ll start getting a more concrete schedule up in the next couple of weeks and start getting local volunteers who can help us organize “meets”. We’ll probably end up planning one country at a time for specific meet ups since we have the trip already broken down into countries/zones.
A HUGE THANK YOU goes out to everyone who has been helping me organize this behind the scenes. They’re the back bone of this tour and they deserve thanks.
Kyle: Unless of course you read the entry where it says that the votes DON’T determine the winner. Calling me a 6 year old for saying that I won’t be taking a second team because they way they have been behaving is silly.
One side wants more community involvement. I tell them what I’m doing and why I’m taking a one day business trip to have a meeting over major sponsorship that could 100% change the face of the tour and then the other side says “oh gnoes! Keep the behind the scenes stuff to yourself”. It gets really really old. I get flack if I don’t take the time to personally respond and flack if I do. I still choose to be involved in the day to day of the community as much as I can, while trying to keep the site updated and going. It’s not easy to keep everything up to date while I’m also spending hours traveling and dealing with fund raising for the site. I’m lucky to be in the position I’m in and that’s why I don’t take a moment of the headache for granted because without it, there wouldn’t be the benefits like being able to hold a contest like this in the first place.
Miss Mess: I don’t get your post. Why wouldn’t I choose “the best and the brightest” to be the “faces of BME” during the tour? Those two are not mutually exclusive. I would be stupid not to take the full advantage of the tour and the choice of applicants that I had.
This isn’t a popularity contest regardless of what people are constantly trying to turn it into it. If it was then, it’d be like any other site that lets people win by basing everything they do on what gets the most hits/votes instead of the skills and talents of the individuals. That’s why, despite the lack of people reading what I actually posted, the ability to get votes for yourself was taken into account as were the comments about the applicants but it wasn’t the sole determining factor. The WORK the applicants put forth WAS the determining factor in addition to their over all talents and skills.
I had hundreds of applicants to pick from and I picked the team that I feel will do the best job possible. Hands down. Congrats again to Chez, Megan, Darah and Richard. I feel lucky to be able to take them out on the road. I feel they’re the most talented and mature group I could have selected to spend 3 months in close quarters with.
All of the drama aside, I told the participants to be ready to have the spotlight on them and to be “hated on” just for “winning”. We’re going to make the best out of this trip/tour that we can and hope to meet as many BME members along the way as possible.
I’ll start getting a more concrete schedule up in the next couple of weeks and start getting local volunteers who can help us organize “meets”. We’ll probably end up planning one country at a time for specific meet ups since we have the trip already broken down into countries/zones.
A HUGE THANK YOU goes out to everyone who has been helping me organize this behind the scenes. They’re the back bone of this tour and they deserve thanks.
Kyle: Unless of course you read the entry where it says that the votes DON’T determine the winner. Calling me a 6 year old for saying that I won’t be taking a second team because they way they have been behaving is silly.
One side wants more community involvement. I tell them what I’m doing and why I’m taking a one day business trip to have a meeting over major sponsorship that could 100% change the face of the tour and then the other side says “oh gnoes! Keep the behind the scenes stuff to yourself”. It gets really really old. I get flack if I don’t take the time to personally respond and flack if I do. I still choose to be involved in the day to day of the community as much as I can, while trying to keep the site updated and going. It’s not easy to keep everything up to date while I’m also spending hours traveling and dealing with fund raising for the site. I’m lucky to be in the position I’m in and that’s why I don’t take a moment of the headache for granted because without it, there wouldn’t be the benefits like being able to hold a contest like this in the first place.
Miss Mess: I don’t get your post. Why wouldn’t I choose “the best and the brightest” to be the “faces of BME” during the tour? Those two are not mutually exclusive. I would be stupid not to take the full advantage of the tour and the choice of applicants that I had.
This isn’t a popularity contest regardless of what people are constantly trying to turn it into it. If it was then, it’d be like any other site that lets people win by basing everything they do on what gets the most hits/votes instead of the skills and talents of the individuals. That’s why, despite the lack of people reading what I actually posted, the ability to get votes for yourself was taken into account as were the comments about the applicants but it wasn’t the sole determining factor. The WORK the applicants put forth WAS the determining factor in addition to their over all talents and skills.
I had hundreds of applicants to pick from and I picked the team that I feel will do the best job possible. Hands down. Congrats again to Chez, Megan, Darah and Richard. I feel lucky to be able to take them out on the road. I feel they’re the most talented and mature group I could have selected to spend 3 months in close quarters with.
All of the drama aside, I told the participants to be ready to have the spotlight on them and to be “hated on” just for “winning”. We’re going to make the best out of this trip/tour that we can and hope to meet as many BME members along the way as possible.
I’ll start getting a more concrete schedule up in the next couple of weeks and start getting local volunteers who can help us organize “meets”. We’ll probably end up planning one country at a time for specific meet ups since we have the trip already broken down into countries/zones.
A HUGE THANK YOU goes out to everyone who has been helping me organize this behind the scenes. They’re the back bone of this tour and they deserve thanks.
Kyle: Unless of course you read the entry where it says that the votes DON’T determine the winner. Calling me a 6 year old for saying that I won’t be taking a second team because they way they have been behaving is silly.
One side wants more community involvement. I tell them what I’m doing and why I’m taking a one day business trip to have a meeting over major sponsorship that could 100% change the face of the tour and then the other side says “oh gnoes! Keep the behind the scenes stuff to yourself”. It gets really really old. I get flack if I don’t take the time to personally respond and flack if I do. I still choose to be involved in the day to day of the community as much as I can, while trying to keep the site updated and going. It’s not easy to keep everything up to date while I’m also spending hours traveling and dealing with fund raising for the site. I’m lucky to be in the position I’m in and that’s why I don’t take a moment of the headache for granted because without it, there wouldn’t be the benefits like being able to hold a contest like this in the first place.
Miss Mess: I don’t get your post. Why wouldn’t I choose “the best and the brightest” to be the “faces of BME” during the tour? Those two are not mutually exclusive. I would be stupid not to take the full advantage of the tour and the choice of applicants that I had.
This isn’t a popularity contest regardless of what people are constantly trying to turn it into it. If it was then, it’d be like any other site that lets people win by basing everything they do on what gets the most hits/votes instead of the skills and talents of the individuals. That’s why, despite the lack of people reading what I actually posted, the ability to get votes for yourself was taken into account as were the comments about the applicants but it wasn’t the sole determining factor. The WORK the applicants put forth WAS the determining factor in addition to their over all talents and skills.
I had hundreds of applicants to pick from and I picked the team that I feel will do the best job possible. Hands down. Congrats again to Chez, Megan, Darah and Richard. I feel lucky to be able to take them out on the road. I feel they’re the most talented and mature group I could have selected to spend 3 months in close quarters with.
All of the drama aside, I told the participants to be ready to have the spotlight on them and to be “hated on” just for “winning”. We’re going to make the best out of this trip/tour that we can and hope to meet as many BME members along the way as possible.
I’ll start getting a more concrete schedule up in the next couple of weeks and start getting local volunteers who can help us organize “meets”. We’ll probably end up planning one country at a time for specific meet ups since we have the trip already broken down into countries/zones.
A HUGE THANK YOU goes out to everyone who has been helping me organize this behind the scenes. They’re the back bone of this tour and they deserve thanks.