Third place is far better than fourth!

I'll continue to use this blog if it is convenient to do so for contest info. Otherwise I think it has served its purpose.

We're less than two hours from the completion of Family Feast 2. Last I checked our lead over 4th place had grown to nearly 5,000. Could that be right? Wow, just the other day it was down to about 2,500. Amazing.

And we've closed the gap on second place to about 2,000, but aren't going to overcome it. That's OK. We still get the picnic basket icon for third place, and we've "medaled" in both Feasts. (Notice how the team icons you win are gold, silver and bronze?)

We didn't win a second time, but I earned about 1,200 less points, and those points would translate into more than 6,000 team points when you count bonuses for completing each dish. But we had a very balanced attack at the leader board, and family members old and new put in a lot of effort. I'm impressed, humbled and appreciative. I don't expect to win these Feasts, my mental health doesn't depend upon the outcome, but you all put a smile on my face, so thanks.

So, about that prize: As noted previously, the winner gets a choice of Betty Boop, Prince or Scooby-Doo, as well as other prizes. I said there'd be a second prize if we finish in third place or better. We're going to. So we'll have a second prize.

And a third.

And a fourth.

And a fifth.

And a sixth.

And a seventh.

And an eighth.

And a ninth.

And a tenth.

Yes, I'm sending out 10 prizes. Now before you slap me on the back, keep in mind that the consolation prizes have a value of no more than $1. But perhaps they'll put a smile on your face. And if not, perhaps you can use them to put a smile on somebody else's face.

There will be a bit of a process to sending them out, but they'll get out to you all soon enough.

I already know how we will pick the winners, one through 10, and unless there's a late rally, we'll end up with 15 qualifiers. That means five of you will not win a consolation prize, unless one of the 10 winners declines his or her prize. We'll see how it goes.

Thanks everyone.

Self-serving announcement: A new episode of my podcast is now available at cantturnitoff.com.