I Lost! I Lost! I Lost! (Gleefully)
I lost the writing contest that I entered. The winner was Orate Knight, who took the usual "Once Upon A Time" story and converted it into "philosophical rambling." Here's his winning entry:

Once upon a time, humankind lived with nature, filled with serenity and wisdom.
Knowledge brought forth the ideas of power and pride,
sending humanity towards social conformity and away from peaceful existence.
Everyone became judgmental, competitive, and jealous of their fellow man.
From an ancient wisdom sprang the seeds of divergence, beginning salvation.
The saying "The songs of our ancestors are the songs of our children" echoed in the souls of today.
We begin to care for nature as she nurtures her own once again, returning us once again to the beginning.
We look to the earth and universe to give us the answers to allow us to live happily ever after.

For comparison purposes, here's my losing entry:

Once Upon a Time, a very tall man walked into a basketball arena and inquired about employment. Because he was very tall, the general manager of the local basketball team did not dismiss him outright. "Have you ever played basketball before?" asked the general manager. The very tall man hesistantly said, "Uh, yeah, of course." The general manager handed the very tall man a basketball, and the very tall man held it between his hands and kicked it into the air. Janet Reno, who was in the bleachers, was bonked on the head by the basketball, gazed down at the very tall man, and immediately fell in love. The very tall man, who had a yen for powerful women, received Janet's passionate kisses with pleasure. And they all lived happily ever after.

As you can see, little bits of my story ended up in the Mix and Match Tale, which Tara assembled from the submitted entries:

Once upon a time, on the darkest, stormiest night of all nights following the brightest sunniest day of days, a goddess, wiccan, vampire, sex priestess ran the world, Rob began the first day of 3rd grade at a new school, the infamous dragon of sorrow set off in late spring and traveled for many months then walked into a basketball arena and inquired about employment, and a farm in arizona was secretly experimenting in animal brain enhancements.
The infamous dragon of sorrow forded rivers, crossed valleys and climbed mountains; he battled ogres and trolls, he crossed swords with dark knights, exchanged spells with a demon of despair, and finally, in a scorching battle, he defeated Maniac-chicken, Maddog-chicken, and Lunatic-chicken, and Rob, at the farm.
Because he took in the world with a wise and witty eye and breathed it back out better than it had been before, Jayleigh noticed him immediately, and a friend introduced them. Turns out, in high school, they rode the same school bus and were in Geometry class together.
"Have you ever played basketball before?" Jayleigh asked the infamous dragon of sorrow amidst much cackling, moo-ing, whinnying, barking and the occasional most fowl cursing. She wasn't a humanitarian in the commonly recognized sense, but few deny that she made many, many lives a little bit happier for her small part in them.
Jayleigh handed the infamous dragon of sorrow a basketball, and the infamous dragon of sorrow held it between his hands and kicked it into the air. Janet Reno, who was in the bleachers, was bonked on the head by the basketball, gazed down at the infamous dragon of sorrow, and immediately fell in love. The infamous dragon of sorrow, who had a yen for powerful women, received Janet's passionate kisses with pleasure.
Later, beneath an old, weathered rock, he found a tablet with a weathered, faded inscription, which read: "The key to a successful marriage is remaining enough of a child to shower raspberries upon your spouse's bare belly." *shudder at that image of Janet Reno*
They realized ultimately they are in love and want to be together always, and the most determined and defiant glare brought peace to everyone who knew they were right, after all.
These two young lovers got married in a huge stone church and three blocks from the church was the reception where the young bride and groom danced their first dance as husband and wife.
Everyone was satisfied and loved, as clones of David Duchovony and Princess Laia in bondage serve as stormtroopers keeping us all in line.
And they all lived happily ever after.

Stay tuned to TLJ's Thoughts of the Day for information about the next contest.