Survivor: Worlds Apart Season Finale Blog Party Extravaganza!

Survivor fans ready?

Well, here we are at season's end. And, guess what? I don't care for ANY of them! I find this is the most wholly unlikeable cast ever on the show! How's them apples?

If anyone, I'd have to cheer on the castaway who was my random blog pool pick -- Carolyn. She's played a strategic game as well as winning challenges. She's no spring chicken when it comes to the overall cast, so that's mighty good. It's hard to be an older woman playing the game. Just ask me.

Er, no. Don't ask me. I haven't been, nor will I ever be, on the show. I'll just mock them from afar.

The only other one I think quasi-deserving of a win would be Mike. That doesn't mean I particularly like him. It just means he's played the game and I apparently have grown used to the hoarseness of his voice.

As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll update this entry with the major happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest news. As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to see you there with fresh fruits and vegetables ... um, make that cold beverages and calorie-laden snacky foods.

Before we get into the show, here are the latest blog pool standings from that Lovely Lifeguard Laurie:

Carolyn - Jackie, TerryinTX
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed 
Rodney - Margo 
Sierra - Jennasmom 
Will - Rbennie 

Jury
Hali 
Joe
Jenn
Shirin
Tyler 
Dan

Let's get started!

Let's see how long the reminiscing takes. No wagering, please! Ding-ding! We have a winner -- eight minutes!

Finally, they're back at camp. Although all voted for Carolyn, it's Mike who is all alone. 

Reward Challenge is a convoluted affair with tiles shuffleboard, balancing them on machetes machetes over obstacles and more. The reward is loved ones visiting. The winner's loved one goes back to camp with them. Plus, the winner will have an advantage in the next Immunity Challenge.

Mike wins Reward and the advantage! Guessing at the talk in camp, he's going to need it. 

Mike's advantage is 30 minutes to explore the maze from the next Immunity Challenge. They will all be blindfolded and have to find four medallions and the Immunity Necklace. His Mom and he screw up and his advantage seems (at this point) to be knowing what the Immunity Challenge IS, not how to complete it. 

And, the Immunity Challenge is on! Mike wins it, but I don't think it's because he had the advantage.

Carolyn has to go to her Plan B, her bond with Mike. Sierra, Mike and Carolyn agree with Rodney going before anyone, Will as a second choice. I'm good with that. 

Rodney tries to get in with Mike. He does have a point that against him in the final, Mike would win. Rodney wants to push a Sierra vote. 

Time for Tribal Council. We'll see if Mike really wants to play with players or will go with the easy win over Rodney or Will. 

Rodney votes for Sierra with a bit too much confidence.

The tally -- Sierra, Rodney, Sierra, Sierra.

Oh, my. Whoa! Both Mike and Carolyn voted Sierra! Oh, my.

Into the Immunity Challenge! Untying knots to open a gate, water slides, keys, puzzle pieces. Mike wins with Carolyn second -- Will sucked at it and Rodney sucked even worse.

Rodney is sure the final three will be Mike, Will and Rodney. Hmm.  Mike tells Carolyn he'll vote Rodney with her, the others will vote for Carolyn. He thinks it will end in a fire challenge and she can practice and win. 

Mike tells us he'd rather lose to Mama C than win over two goats.

Tribal Council time!

The tally -- Rodney, Carolyn, Carolyn, Rodney ... as Mike promised. And, sure enough, it's a fire-making challenge. Carolyn didn't do all that well when practicing, but Rodney is pretty inept at everything. I guess we'll see ... after the commercial.

Dang, neither of them have a fire after twenty minutes! They keep getting replacement flints. The jury is yawning, now 45 minutes. 53 minutes. Rodney has had flame twice, now has fire. So does Carolyn. They have to burn through the rope. CAROLYN WINS! 

Rodney is now on the jury. He's very bitter. 

Jury ...
Joe -- You've got to earn it. Bring it. Earn my vote tonight.
Hali -- Mama C, stereotypical mother role disadvantage ... how did it affect game? Played hard, fought hard.
Rodney -- Will, how did you keep it real and will you keep it real with the jury? Try to make friends. It was all I had. Mama C -- power moves. Tyler, Dan. Hooked up with Mike. Plan A and back-up plans.
Tyler -- Mike, put all on jury. What did you bring in redeeming social manner? I saw paranoia. Mike wanted to do better socially, miserably failed at making bonds. "I suck."Carolyn -- I protected you, heartbroken, gutted. Redeem yourself. Most difficult vote. Survivor makes you do things to get to this point.
Sierra -- She asks Will which trait from the other two he likes in the game.
Jenn -- Addresses the jury and goes pro-Mike.  
Dan -- Mike, Colby Donaldson proved just because you win idols, you don't win the jury. No necklace to save your ass tonight. Mike apologizes to Dan. Dan thinks it's the most genuine thing he's said since the auction. 
Shirin -- She was hoping Mike and Will would be there. Will attacked her, Mike protected her. It was a million dollar moment for her. Doesn't mean Mike has her vote. Her vote goes to the one who played the best and that's Carolyn. Mike is like a howler monkey. Carolyn is a stingray. She was on the winning vote each time. Will is the dead fish. 

Okay, Shirin wins for the jury appearances! She quotes Sue Hawk, let it be the way nature intended. I think it's the only time I've actually enjoyed her this season. She had to be working on that since going to jury.

The vote is on and we should soon whisk to Hollywood. Rodney voted Will so he has one vote. Hali voted Mike. Jenn voted Mama C. Dan looks all befuddled and slams his head. Maybe he abstains! 

The tally -- Mike, Will, Carolyn, Mike, Mike, Mike ... MIKE WINS THE SEASON! 

Mike is no longer eligible to be on next season. He had been a choice in the Second Chance listing.

Huh. Still unlikeable people at the reunion.

The Second Chance cast for the next season to be announced. 

Kelly Wiglesworth 
Kimmie Kappenburg (sp)
Jeff Varner 
Keith Nale
Peih-Gee Lawe
Ciera Eastin
Vytas Baskauskas
Terry Dietz
Andrew Savage
Abi Gomes 
Kass McQuillen
Monica Padilla
Kelley Wentworth
Shirin Oskooi
Steve Fishbach 
Woo Hwang
Tasha Fox
Jeremy Collins
Spencer Bledsoe
Joe Anglim

Heading to Cambodia.

Survivor: Worlds Apart - May 13 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready?

Mike no longer has an idol and everyone knows it. Dan still has his two vote advantage and a few people know about that thanks to Tyler (booted last week). Carolyn still has an idol and no one knows it except Tyler who's off relaxing at the Ponderosa. We still have six castaways going into tonight's penultimate episode. Next week's (Wednesday night) season finale is to be two hours followed by the hour-long reunion show. (Followed by Letterman's last show later on!)

Will they oust Mike? Perhaps blindside Dan tonight? I just don't know. As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll update this entry with the major happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest news! And, as always, please join in on the party down in the comments area. Bring snacks ... and cold beverages, please!

Before we get into the show, here are the latest blog pool standings from that Lovely Lifeguard Laurie:

Carolyn - Jackie, TerryinTX
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed 
Rodney - Margo 
Sierra - Jennasmom 
Will - Rbennie 

Jury
Hali 
Joe
Jenn
Shirin
Tyler

Let's get started!

Mike knows he won't last long without either an Immunity idol or winning Immunity each challenge. Carolyn wants to keep Mike as an ally option and focus on getting Dan out. She tells Mike about Dan's extra vote advantage.

Rewards Challenge - Two teams, race obstacles, untie knots, hatchet ropes, all leading to a puzzle. It's a helicopter tour of Nicaragua and a feast. Rodney whines more at Jeff's prompting.

Both teams are stumped on the puzzle. They're both stumped still at an hour into the puzzle. Finally Carolyn, Mike and Will win Reward. Rodney is out AGAIN. Heh. Carolyn is the one who finally realized what the puzzle clue was ... now she's on the fence about giving Rodney his turn. Nope. She keeps it for herself. Good for her! He hasn't won it!

Rodney whines and whines about Carolyn not giving him her Reward. Meanwhile, Dan finds some unknown watermelon-like fruit and wins both Rodney's and Sierra's favor. 

Tree mail hints that good hand, eye, coordination and patience will be virtues in the next Immunity Challenge. Mike is trying to scheme. He tells Sierra of Dan's advantage. But she also doesn't want to be with Mike at the end -- everyone is afraid of that. 

Immunity Challenge time. Retrieve three bags with grappling hooks. Bags contain balls. Solve a table maze. Mike WINS IMMUNITY! (And he needs it.)

Dan pushes the Carolyn must go move. Meanwhile, they're thinking it's Dan that should go.

Will Carolyn heed the warning from Mike that Will, Dan and Rodney will be voting for her to go?

It's Tribal Council time. They're not showing any of the votes.

Dan uses his advantage -- two votes.  He goes off to cast his second vote. I'd say Carolyn needs to use her idol. YES! She plays it! Dan and Rodney don't look too happy.

The tally --
Carolyn, Carolyn, Carolyn, Carolyn, Carolyn, Dan, Dan.

HA! Dan is gone!

Survivor: Worlds Apart - May 6 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready?

While I'm not finding most of the castaways this season all that likable, recent happenings should provide interesting viewing for tonight. How will the others react to Mike's very public "save Shirin with my idol" bluff? Now, of course, they all know he has an idol. Thanks to Tyler's snooping, it's also known by some that Dan has two votes at a future tribal.

As the show airs here, I'll update this post with the major happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to "see" you there!

Before we get into the show, here are the latest blog pool standings from that Rockin' Lifeguard Laurie:

Carolyn - Jackie, TerryinTX
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed 
Rodney - Margo 
Sierra - Jennasmom 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama, ORK Mommy
Will - Rbennie 

Jury
Hali 
Joe
Jenn
Shirin

Let's get started!

Mike is just a bit too smug. The others are having a big kerfuffle over the votes that were from their own camp. Dan knows Will and Tyler cast votes for him. 

Tree Mail gives them the promise of food. 

Reward Challenge time. Divided into two teams, a convoluted walk through net, catapult balls into target. The reward is that they deliver supplies to a nearby orphanage with a big barbeque. Someone must sit out as they have seven. Dan, Tyler and Rodney. Carolyn, Sierra and Mike. Will can't play. 

Mike, Sierra and Carolyn win Reward. Rodney whines that it's his birthday and he hasn't been off the island. No one falls for it. "They just turned me into the psychotic person I am," Rodney tells us. Hmm. That would imply he was previously psychotic and they just triggered him.

Carolyn bonds a bit with Mike at the orphanage ... at least it might suit her game. Rodney continues to whine back at the camp. 

Rodney tells the guys at camp he's going to act crazy and wants to go home. Then they blindside Mike who won't use his idol because Rodney is the target. Yeah, right. I'm sure that will work. @@ 

When the others return to camp to Rodney's whining they should all just write his name down. Mike sees right through it. Tyler knows that he's still a target for Mike and wonders if Carolyn will save him with her idol.  

Immunity Challenge time. Balance over water on a small perch holding onto a rope with strategically placed knots. Every five minutes, they move their hands down a knot and increase the angle. Will is out, then Dan. Sierra out, then Rodney. Mike is down. Tyler is out. Carolyn wins Immunity again!

Carolyn suggests a split vote between Mike and Tyler. It will flush out Mike's idol. Will she use the idol on Tyler? Or will Dan go in a clever ruse? Carolyn is torn between her Tyler alliance or going with Mike. In talking to Tyler, she wants Dan ... or does she? She's worried about Dan's two vote advantage.

Tribal - Dan votes Mike, Mike votes Tyler.

Mike plays his idol. 

The tally -- Mike, Mike, Mike, Mike, Tyler, Tyler.

Tyler is gonzo. 

Jeff points out that everyone wants to take the weakest to the end.

For next season, we vote on returning castaways at CBS.com. Fun, fun, fun.

Survivor: Worlds Apart - April 29 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready?

When I checked the listing for tonight's show, it mentioned something to the effect of a "confrontational Tribal Council." Huh. Really? It seems like that's the norm rather than the exception!

As the show airs here, I'll update this post with the major happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to "see" you there!

Before we get into the show, here are the latest blog pool standings from that Rockin' Lifeguard Laurie:

Carolyn - Jackie, TerryinTX
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed 
Rodney - Margo 
Shirin - NanaintheNW 
Sierra - Jennasmom 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama, ORK Mommy
Will - Rbennie 

Jury
Hali 
Joe
Jenn

Let's get started!

Dan pretends to sympathize with Shirin, then turns around and tells us how horrible he thinks she is. Pot/kettle/black in my opinion. 

Reward Challenge time -- divided into two teams, transport tribe members with planks and barrels and such across field.  The reward is a catamaran trip with burgers and pie. Woot woot. It's a schoolyard pick. Blue is Rodney, Mike, Shirin and Sierra. Red is Tyler, Dan, Will, Carolyn. Red wins!

The four remaining at camp killed off the last chicken. Rodney reminds us he hasn't won not one reward. Too bad, so sad. 

Sierra thinks they should get Tyler out, keep Shirin because no one would ever vote for her to win the million. Meanwhile, Rodney thinks he himself is the biggest threat and is sure to win. @@ 

Dan considers his group on Reward are his allies. We'll see if that sticks. 

Immunity Challenge time -- hold onto a rope handle attached to 25% of body weight, eventually weaken, drop water bucket on head. Last man and last woman both win Immunity. 

Sierra out, Tyler out, Will out, Dan out, Shirin out. Carolyn wins for the women. Rodney out. Mike wins Immunity (second time in a row) for the men.  

The plan is to take Shirin out tonight. She tells Dan they're all incredibly stupid to vote her out. What an approach! She pushes her vote Tyler out agenda. Meanwhile, Tyler snags Dan's bag to see what's inside. Tyler tells Carolyn about Dan's extra vote advantage. Tyler's worried.

Mike knows the vote is leaning towards Shirin. He tells us he could shake up the whole game by giving her his idol. Hmm. 

It's Tribal Council time once again. Back to the Will attack on Shirin during the last tribal. Shirin tries telling them that not voting out Tyler would lose them a million dollars as he's the biggest threat and she's no threat.

Mike pulls out the idol before the vote and says he'll use it on Shirin. Is it a bluff? Shirin will vote Tyler and he will randomly vote. Jeff calls it Survivor Roulette. 

He does NOT play the idol.

Tyler, Shirin, Dan, Tyler, Shirin, Dan, Shirin, Shirin.

Well played, guys. I didn't think he'd waste the idol on her when he needs it. Now they know he has it.

Survivor: Worlds Apart - April 22 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready?

From the promos, it's the loved ones episode we'll be seeing tonight, plus what looks like a lot of acrimony going on betwixt the castaways. This should be interesting!


As the show airs here, I'll update this post with the major happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to "see" you there!

Before we get into the show, here are the latest blog pool standings from that Rockin' Lifeguard Laurie:

Carolyn - Jackie, TerryinTX
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC 
Jenn - Merrilee, Becky
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed 
Rodney - Margo 
Shirin - NanaintheNW 
Sierra - Jennasmom 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama, ORK Mommy
Will - Rbennie 

Jury
Hali 
Joe

Let's get started!

Rodney is trying for a "Get Mike Out" now move with Will, Tyler and Carolyn. Mike knows about this. 

It's Survivor Auction time. Will bought a note telling him that he just bought himself out of the auction, head back to camp. Eep. That was the first covered item. Now Jeff is showing fried chicken and waffles -- Shirin bought it for $300. 

Most admit they're waiting for an advantage, not food. Rodney went for food. Now Jeff is offering them love from home. Sierra offers $20 and Jeff offers the rest of them the same offer. Everyone goes in on it for that price. Then they'll worry about the advantage. Ohh ... Mike didn't do it. Now he has more money than anyone else for the advantage clue.

Now they don't trust him. Carolyn gives back her clue and Dan gets back in, too. All three had to draw rocks -- Dan has the advantage.

Meanwhile, Will found a clue waiting for him back at camp. It leads him to a private box of rations he can share or not. He decides to share.

Mike calls out the alliance against him. Rodney gets a bit over-excited in denial. Ha. 

Tears as they all read their letters from home. Mike feels guilty that he ruined the moment. Rodney wants to take advantage of that. 

Dan's advantage is that he gets an extra vote in Tribal. He has to cast it after Jeff says he'll go tally the vote. 

As I figured, they now think Will didn't share all the food he found. Mike starts the buzz over that and they all believe it. Will brings the empty box, but took his ire out on Shirin rather than Mike. 

Immunity Challenge time. Will says he's willing to take himself out of the challenge in return for the letter home. Jeff says all must agree to it. Shirin objects. Will must compete. 

Transporting six balls with huge tongs across teeter-totters. Mike wins Immunity! His only allies now are Jenn and Shirin, so he needed it.

Mike wants to get Dan in with them and blindside Carolyn. The others want to split the vote between Jenn and Shirin. Mike is blue, blue, blue-ing Dan. Carolyn is worried. She tells us she might have to use her idol.

Ohh ... Dan tells his "allies" that whatever choice he makes is his. He will make either a million dollar decision or a mistake.

Tribal Council time. Fireworks ensue. Carolyn does NOT play her idol, Dan doesn't use his clue.

Jenn, Shirin, Jenn, Shirin, Jenn, Carolyn, Shirin, Jenn, Jenn.

Jenn is voted out.

Survivor: Worlds Apart - April 15 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready?

I hope you've all filed your taxes! Remember, the original sole Survivor, Richard Hatch, tried to not file with his million. You know what that got him -- time in the hoosegow! (I've had a yearning to use the word 'hoosegow' in correct context and now I've gone and done it. I'm livin' the wild life, y'see.)

As the show airs here, I'll update this post with the major happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to "see" you there!

Before we get into the show, here are the latest blog pool standings from that Rockin' Lifeguard Laurie:

Carolyn - Jackie, TerryinTX
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC 
Hali - Zoetawny, monty924 
Jenn - Merrilee, Becky
Joe - SueGee, Chris 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed 
Rodney - Margo 
Shirin - NanaintheNW 
Sierra - Jennasmom 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama, ORK Mommy 

Will - Rbennie 

Out 
WC - So
NC - Vince - Delee 
NC - Nina - Lynn1 
BC - Lindsey - Donna in FL, David 
Max - PDX Granny, Marlo
Joaquin - Laurie, Rochelle
Kelly - Petals, Ed in Ohio
Hali - Zoetawny, monty924

Let's get started!

Dang. Joe looks like Bozo the Clown under the night vision lights. A lot of focus on Shirin in the beginning of the show. 

Reward Challenge -- Two teams of five, race in water through obstacles to platform, grapple hook to collect five rings. The winners will be taken to the "Chocolate Cafe" chock full of candy. Mike, Tyler, Shirin, Dan and Sierra win. It had been a schoolyard pick for the teams.

Jenn has "nothing out here except despair." And they killed one of "her" chickens. As Rodney mocks Mike (who's on the chocolate binge), Joe picks up on it and hopes he can use Rodney against Mike ... if he (Joe) makes it that far.

Tree Mail warns them to stay on their toes for the next challenge. Jenn, who now wants to go home, told Joe that if she wins Immunity, she'll give it to him.

Immunity is now up for grabs. Balance on your toes with a block balanced on your head under a frame. The block falls, you're out. Carolyn, then Will, out. Shirin out, Rodney out. Dan gone. Sierra out. Joe is out. Mike out. Jenn out.

Tyler wins Immunity!

Jenn vows to us that she will do something to protect Joe and "screw up their game." I hope she does. 

Shirin thinks a numbers split will be made. She and Joe will vote for Jenn. Mike, of course, wants Shirin to vote for Joe to go. Jenn wants to go home. Shirin is worried that Joe is more of a threat in the game. Joe decides to make a fake idol. He makes a pretty good one. He tells Mike (of all people) that he will give him the idol after tribal if he flips his vote. Mike thinks he just might have a different idol.

At Tribal, Mike asks Jeff to verify his idol. Jeff says only after it's used. Everyone is confused. Jenn says she wants to go home, but won't quit to do so.

Mike plays the real idol! He does it for Will.

Jenn, Joe, Jenn, Joe, Dan, Jenn, Joe, Jenn, Joe, Joe.

Sigh. Joe is now the second member of the jury.

Survivor: Worlds Apart - April 8 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready?

It sounds like Idol Fever is going to take over the castaways tonight ... and I'm not talkin' American Idol. Thankfully, my blog pool random pick person already has one. I still think it's not great that she (Carolyn) told Tyler about it, but they always seem to tell someone. Why, I don't know.

As the show airs here, I'll update this post with the major happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to "see" you there!

Before we get into the show, here are the latest blog pool standings from that Rockin' Lifeguard Laurie:

Blue - Escameca
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC
Joe - SueGee, Chris 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed 
Rodney - Margo 
Sierra - Jennasmom 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama, ORK Mommy 

Red - Nagarote
Carolyn - Jackie, TerryinTX 
Hali - Zoetawny, monty924 
Jenn - Merrilee, Becky 
Shirin - NanaintheNW 
Will - Rbennie 

Out 
WC - So
NC - Vince - Delee 
NC - Nina - Lynn1 
BC - Lindsey - Donna in FL, David 
Max - PDX Granny, Marlo
Joaquin - Laurie, Rochelle
Kelly - Petals, Ed in Ohio

Let's get started!

Rodney thinks he has Tyler, Carolyn and Will as allies against Mike. Mike calls Jenn's playing of the idol "sweet." Rodney does a lot of talking.

Onto the Reward Challenge. Walk across balance beams, retrieve puzzle pieces, three vie for the win. The Reward is a zipline trip and pizza picnic. Joe, Mike and Hali go for the puzzle solving part. Joe wins Reward! He picks three people to join him -- Tyler, Will, Carolyn. One more -- Shirin. (Eek.)

Carolyn unknowingly got an idol clue in her soda. She gave Joe the rest of her soda -- he had seen the note in it. Tyler saw Joe get the clue. The plot thickens. Joe gets Tyler to follow him in the night. Mike follows the both of them.

Oh my gosh! Joe goes missing and Mike freaks! 

Mike tries to convince the others that Joe has the idol. Ew, Mike eats termites while he searches for the idol. And ... then he finds the hidden idol!

Immunity Challenge is ON! They have to race to move a puzzle piece through three slide mazes, then solve a slide puzzle. Heh. Rodney is still on the first slide maze while just about all the others are solving the puzzle. Dan thought he had it. He didn't. Twice. 

JOE wins Immunity once again! (And he needs it, too.)

Shirin and Hali's names are being thrown about. The girls want Dan out. 

Tribal Council time. Probsting questions indeed. 

The Tally -- No idols played:

Dan, Hali, Dan, Hali, Dan, Hali, Dan, Hali, Hali, Hali.

Hali is voted out. It should have been Rodney, methinks.

Survivor: Worlds Apart - April 1 Blog Party

No party tonight. I'm giving up on Survivor.

April Fool's!
Heehee.

Survivor fans ready?

Judging from the promo for tonight's show, it looks like the individual game might be on. If so, that's probably a good thing because it's not a fair fight if physical challenges pit the present two tribes together. All the alpha males are on one tribe! Had they not thrown the challenge last week, they would have won once again.

As the show airs here, I'll update this post with the major happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to "see" you there!

Before we get into the show, here are the latest blog pool standings from that Rockin' Lifeguard Laurie:

Blue - Escameca
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC
Joe - SueGee, Chris 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed 
Rodney - Margo 
Sierra - Jennasmom 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama, ORK Mommy 

Red - Nagarote
Carolyn - Jackie, TerryinTX 
Hali - Zoetawny, monty924 
Jenn - Merrilee, Becky 
Kelly - Petals, Ed in Ohio 
Shirin - NanaintheNW 
Will - Rbennie 

Out 
WC - So
NC - Vince - Delee 
NC - Nina - Lynn1 
BC - Lindsey - Donna in FL, David 
Max - PDX Granny, Marlo
Joaquin - Laurie, Rochelle 

Let's get started!

Rodney isn't a happy camper and perhaps even less so when Mike tries to reel him back in.

Tree mail hints at the merge.

Yes, the merge and its related feast is on. Tyler is relieved as he was Joaquin's buddy. Carolyn tells us that, although she has a strong bond with Tyler, no one is going to know about it. I'm liking my pool pick so far this season. She found an idol without a clue and has been flying under the radar a bit while making quietly strategic moves.

They find the camp is basically gone and they have to start from scratch again.

Mike and Kelly renew their bonds. It looks like the five remaining Blue Collars might be a power to be reckoned with. The No Collars want to hook up with the White Collars. Rodney wants to get recruits against those who "disrespected him" by voting out Joaquin.

Dan got stung by a jellyfish. Poor baby.

Mike comes up with the tribe name of Merica. @@

Okay, time for the first individual immunity challenge! It's endurance, hanging onto a pole. Dan's out first. Now Will is out. Then Tyler. Sierra out. Then Shirin, then Kelly. Mike falls. Rodney asks Momma C (Carolyn) if she has it. Now Rodney out. Jenn got stung by a bee in the um ... upper thigh. Hali is out. Now it's raining. Jenn is out. They've been up about an hour. It's down to Joe and Carolyn.

Carolyn falls. Joe wins Immunity!

Mike thinks Jenn or Hali should be the targets. He thinks Will will be swayed by Rodney. Will thinks the first vote will show loyalty. That's their plan. Shirin thinks the old BC hate each other, but vote as a block. The WC players are in the middle. The NC want to target Kelly.

Tribal Council. Shirin denies being a swing vote after Jeff mentioned that the numbers make old WC swing votes.

The tally -- Jenn plays her idol.

Hali, Jenn, Jenn, Jenn, Jenn, Jenn, Jenn, Jenn, Kelly, Kelly, Kelly.

Kelly is voted out. Rodney's reaction, although blurred, is almost as good as his reaction when Joaquin was voted out.

Survivor: Worlds Apart - March 25 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready?

It's post-merge into two tribes with a really uneven playing field tonight. I can't believe how the one tribe is all guys except for one and the other one is mostly female. Yeah, that second tribe did vote out Max, a rare guy, but he's not such a great loss. I personally would have gone for Shirin out first due to the annoyance factor. However, I wasn't there.

I'll update this post with the major happenings as the show airs here East Coast time tonight. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to see you there!

Here's the latest on the blog pool from the Lovely Lifeguard Laurie:

Blue - Escameca
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC 
Joaquin - Laurie, Rochelle 
Joe - SueGee, Chris 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed 
Rodney - Margo 
Sierra - Jennasmom 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama, ORK Mommy 

Red - Nagarote
Carolyn - Jackie TerryinTX 
Hali - Zoetawny, monty924 
Jenn - Merrilee, Becky 
Kelly - Petals, Ed in Ohio 
Shirin - NanaintheNW 
Will - Rbennie 

Out 
So
Vince - Delee NC Nina Lynn1 
Lindsey - Donna in FL, David 
Max - PDX Granny, Marlo

On with the shenanigans! Er, show. On with the show! 

Aw, Shirin feels like she's all alone. "Is it me?" Yes. Yes, it is.

The Joaquin/Rodney bromance is getting its start. 

Reward Challenge time -- race up a tower through obstacles, launch sandbags to hit six targets out in the field. They're playing for a trip to a turtle sanctuary to watch turtles migrate and lay eggs. They're also to have a feast. No. Not turtle soup. Dan sits out. 

OMG! Nagarote wins Reward! Now, that was unexpected! 

Uh-oh. Sierra wants to link up Joaquin. Actually, it's the other way around. Rodney and Sierra both think they need Joaquin and Tyler to get ahead, though.

Rodney tells Mike that he has Joaquin like a puppetmaster and they have to throw the challenge to get Joe out. Meanwhile, Mike isn't against throwing challenges because it would keep his ally Kelly safe on the other tribe.

The Immunity Challenge is memorizing objects in a certain order. Carolyn blew Rodney out of the water in the first round. Hali also does well. If Will gets it, they can win in this round. Joe beats him. Shirin vs. Dan now. That ties it up. Either tribe can win now. Mike vs. Kelly ... hmm. Both are wrong. Mike threw it. They go again. He tells her he's giving it to her. Mike is wrong, so is Kelly. Down to five items. The blatant throw finally works. Nagarote wins. Kind of sort of.

Too much talk about Joe going home. So, I kind of doubt he will. 

Both sides are after Sierra for the vote.

Tribal Council brings out honesty from Sierra. Lots of talk of trust or the lack thereof. A teaser with the Sierra vote -- she's shown writing JO ..

Joe, Joaquin, Joe, Joaquin, Joe, Joaquin, Joaquin.

Good. I like Joe more than I like Joaquin!

Survivor: Worlds Apart - March 18 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready?

Tonight's show is a two-hour ordeal, most likely because March Madness basketball is going to bump it for a week or two. The promos show a bad accident during a challenge, plus the inevitable "drop your buffs" which heralsd the merge. As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll be posting the major happenings in live time here on this entry. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As you all know, the real party is in the comments -- I hope to see you there!

The Lovely Lifeguard Laurie is once again running the blog pool (thank you!) Here's the latest --

Blue Collar
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC 
Kelly - Petals, Ed in Ohio 
Lindsey - Donna in FL, David 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed
Rodney - Margo 
Sierra - Jennasmom

No Collar
Hali - Zoetawny, monty924 
Jenn - Merrilee, Becky 
Joe - SueGee, Chris 
Will - Rbennie

White Collar
Carolyn - Jackie TerryinTX 
Joaquin - Laurie, Rochelle 
Max - PDX Granny, Marlo 
Shirin - NanaintheNW 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama, ORKMommy

Out! 
So
Vince - Delee
Nina - Lynn1 

Okay, it's on with the show we will go!

On NC, Will is rightfully concerned that if they go to Tribal again, he's gone. BC catches a snake for food.

Whoa ... it's right to an Reward Challenge! It's one of those with callers and blindfolded tribe members searching for stuff. First tribe gets three egg laying hens and a rooster. Second tribe gets ten eggs. From the promo, this has to be where the accident happens. They have to pull the items up to a platform. No Collar is ahead.

Kelly gets hit by the dropping platform from her tribe. Medical gets called and we're in commercial land. The medic tells her he can bandage it and she can continue the challenge. There is a lot of blood, but apparently not a major injury.

No Collar wins Reward! White Collar takes second place.

While the others eat chicken, Jenn searches around and found the idol.

Kelly ended up with six stitches.

Lindsay and Rodney are going after each other, mainly because Rodney's ideas of women are antiquated in view of Lindsay's.  Meanwhile, on WC, Shirin told the others that she slaughtered a rabbit in prep for the show. That turns Joaquin off. Max wants to sit Carolyn out of the next challenge because he doesn't want Shirin to be upset. Carolyn tries to convince the guys Max needs to go.

Immunity Challenge time! Each tribe attached to a rope, go through a course, retrieve bags, get three balls to the top of a maze to win. Shirin does indeed sit out.

No Collar wins! White Collar takes second place. Blue Collar goes to TC for the first time this season. For all his brawn and mouthiness, it was Rodney who screwed up for them during the challenge.

Lindsay tries to get Dan to agree that voting out Rodney is the move. Meanwhile, the guys and Kelly seem to have an alliance. But neither Mike nor Kelly (close) trust Rodney. It sounds like either Lindsay or Rodney will go.

Tribal Council time.

The tally --
Rodney, Lindsay, Rodney, Lindsay, Sierra, Sierra.

Three way tie. Re-vote with Mike, Dan and Kelly only.

Re-vote tally -- Lindsay, Lindsay

She's voted out, smug sexist Rodney stays. All three voted for her, though. Now, Sierra is all bummed.

Right into another challenge. Drop your buffs.

No more collars, Blue and Red tribe only.

Red - Max, Will, Hali, Jenn, Kelly, Shirin, Carolyn
Blue - Joe, Dan, Sierra, Mike, Tyler, Joaquin, Rodney

The challenge looks a bit lacrosse-ish. They launch a ball to be caught in a net.

Blue wins its first Reward Challenge!

Shirin tries to win over Kelly to join the WC members of the new tribe. On the other tribe, Tyler likens Sierra to a broken puppy. Both her old tribemates and the new ones need her. Shirin is already alienating new people. Max got stung twice by a stingray. Carolyn would love for either Max or Shirin to be blindsided.

Dan totally screws up his "apology" to Sierra, just as Mike had advised him not to do so.

Immunity Challenge time! Placing pots on a sled through obstacle course, put them on stands, one member uses a wrecking ball to kill the pots. The tribe with all the guys is not surprisingly doing much better hauling the heavy sled through the mud in the obstacle course.

Blue wins. Not a shock seeing all the muscles. Max says he's happy to go to Tribal and change the dynamic around his camp. He might have to eat his words if he's the dynamic that goes ... or his main ally Shirin gets the boot.

Max wants to blindside Will. Shirin thinks she's orchestrated everything. Meanwhile, Carolyn is thinking a totally different blindside. The others agree with her but can't decide who's more annoying -- Max or Shirin.

The tally --
Will, Will, Max, Max, Max, Max.

Bye-bye, Mr. Survivor Professor. I wanted to like him, but I just couldn't.

Survivor: Worlds Apart - March 11 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready?

As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll be posting the major happenings in live time here on this entry. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As you all know, the real party is in the comments -- I hope to see you there!

The Lovely Lifeguard Laurie is once again running the blog pool (thank you!) Here's the latest --

Blue Collar
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC 
Kelly - Petals, Ed in Ohio 
Lindsey - Donna in FL, David 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed
Rodney - Margo 
Sierra - Jennasmom

No Collar
Hali - Zoetawny, monty924 
Jenn - Merrilee, Becky 
Joe - SueGee, Chris 
Nina - Lynn1 
Will - Rbennie

White Collar
Carolyn - Jackie TerryinTX 
Joaquin - Laurie, Rochelle 
Max - PDX Granny, Marlo 
Shirin - NanaintheNW 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama, ORKMommy

Out! 
So
Vince - Delee 

Okay, it's on with the show we will go!

Nina knows she's a target and makes things worse for herself. Joe is now leery of Will because Will didn't go with the plan at the last Tribal. Over on WC, Shirin got a bit too excited about seeing howler monkey sex. The boys on BC seem to be going for testosterone issues. NC girls are surfing on driftwood and Joe's giving Nina pep talks.

Gee, looks like they're pulling at straws for filler this week.

WC is all about searching for the idol -- which Carolyn already found long ago. On BC, Mike with the forever hoarse voice is thinking he's the only one who ever does anything. Rodney is clashing with Mike. Whoa! One of the gals really called him out. Good.

Huh. The show is over half-over and the Immunity Challenge is beginning. Each tribe carries large bucket to water tower, fill it, race to their barrel while trying to keep the water from leaking out holes. Massive comfort reward -- chairs, blankets, pillows, etc. Second prize, tarp.

It's weird; Nina isn't really participating although she's participating. NC is trailing, too.

Blue Collar wins! White Collar comes in second and No Collar will go to Tribal Council.

Things are not looking good for Nina. She wants to push Will out instead. Jenn and Hali seem to be really leaning towards a Will ouster. At TC, Nina backstabs Will from the front! Heh.

The tally:
Nina, Will, Will, Nina, Nina.

Nina is gone. She'll never be able to prove she can fit in with the No Collars. That just might not be such a bad thing.

Next week is a two hour show!

Survivor: Worlds Apart - March 4 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready?

As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll be posting the major happenings in live time here on this entry. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As you all know, the real party is in the comments -- I hope to see you there!

The Lovely Lifeguard Laurie is once again running the blog pool (thank you!)  The one person who had So, booted on the premiere night, has been reassigned to another castaway. We hardly got to know So!

Blue Collar
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC 
Kelly - Petals, Ed in Ohio 
Lindsey - Donna in FL, David 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed
Rodney - Margo 
Sierra - Jennasmom

No Collar
Hali - Zoetawny, monty924 
Jenn - Merrilee, Becky 
Joe - SueGee, Chris 
Nina - Lynn1 
Vince - Delee 
Will - Rbennie

White Collar
Carolyn - Jackie TerryinTX 
Joaquin - Laurie, Rochelle 
Max - PDX Granny, Marlo 
Shirin - NanaintheNW 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama, ORKMommy

Out! 
So

Okay, it's on with the show we will go!

Heh. Dan lost his underwear and has juryrigged his t-shirt to cover himself. I'd rather him in that than in his "manties" which looked like Speedos. Yikes, Max is calling the ghost of Richard Hatch and skinnydipping. Now Shirin is walking around bottomless. Now the No Collar gals are skinnydipping and leaving poor deaf Nina behind.

Vince definitely has issues. He's so jealous about Joe that it's ridiculous.

Immunity Challenge time. Dive, swim to platform, maneuver buoys through course, get them all in baskets. Massive fishing reward for first place. Line, lures and spear for second place. No Collar and Blue Collar in the lead. Whoa, Shirin made time for White Collar while Will blows the chance to win for No Collar. Joaquin is making hoops quickly.

White Collar wins! Blue Collar takes second place! No Collar goes to Tribal.

Will is weak. Nina is unpopular. Joe and Vince are power fighters. This should be interesting. Joe thinks Nina might have the idol. They're planning on splitting the vote. Will is thinking he, Vince and Nina can flip the vote. Then Nina puts a bug in Will's ear that Vince is worried about his health. "It's going to be a doozy."

Tribal Council time.

The tally --
Jenn, Vince, Nina, Jenn, Vince, Vince.

He's in shock. Vince is gonzo.

Survivor: Worlds Apart - Season Premiere Blog Party and Pool!

Survivor fans ready? Tonight's 90-minute season premiere will be followed up by a 90-minute season premiere for The Amazing Race 26. The TAR blog party post will show up a few minutes before that premiere. So, if you're watching both shows, refresh the blog main page at show time to join in on that party!

Here we go again. This time the gimmick, er ... twist, is that the castaways are separated by the kind of jobs they have in real life. Like every other twist separating castaways, all will be null and void once it comes to the merge. But, let's see how they do.

As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll be posting the major happenings in live time here on this entry. Refresh the page to get the latest news!

The Lovely Lifeguard Laurie is once again running the blog pool (thank you!)  Any castaway(s) booted tonight will result in the blog pool people who had them being reassigned to another castaway. Here are our random match-ups for the season:

Blue Collar
Dan - Brian, CherylinNC 
Kelly - Petals, Ed in Ohio 
Lindsey - Donna in FL, David 
Mike - meb, Nickelpeed
Rodney - Margo 
Sierra - Jennasmom

No Collar
Hali - Zoetawny, monty924 
Jenn - Merrilee, Becky 
Joe - SueGee, Chris 
Nina - Lynn1 
Vince - Delee 
Will - Rbennie

White Collar
Carolyn - Jackie TerryinTX 
Joaquin - Laurie, Rochelle 
Max - PDX Granny, Marlo 
Shirin - NanaintheNW 
So - ORKMommy 
Tyler - Donna in Alabama

Okay, it's on with the show we will go!

Jeff is introducing the tribes. All newbies, no veterans of the show and many are big fans. Yellow is WC, Blue is BC and Red is NC. Jeff wants them each to pick a leader. WC chooses Joaquin. BC picks Dan. NC picks Will. Each of them have to pick a second member. So for WC, BC has Mike, NC has Jenn. Once they get to their camps, the two "in charge" must make a big decision for their tribe. Hmm.

Deceive -- they can a small bag of beans to camp and get an idol clue
Honesty -- they can bring big bag of beans back, no clue.

Jenn/Will take the big beans, Mike/Dan the same -- their tribe is already talking about how they actually took the small bag. Joaquin wants the advantage and ally with So. They go for the small bag. So feels like she's making a deal with the devil. She just might be. Their tribe also thinks they're lying.

BC has a fire built in less than two hours.

Must Dan wear a speedo while he calls himself a fat man? He's alienated most of his tribe due to his mouth or bossiness.

Joe earns brownie points with his tribe because he has now made fire without a flint.

Oh my gosh ... Carolyn, my pool person, found an idol without a clue. Mind you, Joaquin and So did NOT share the clue nor the fact they had one. Ha! WC can't start a fire, nor build a shelter.

Immunity Challenge -- free a ladder and bring it through a series of obstacles, then choose a puzzle to solve out of three. The puzzles each address a different approach to thinking. First place winner gets reward of a fire-making kit, second place gets a flint.  Last place gets to go to Tribal.

NO COLLAR wins! Blue Collar wins second place. White Collar gets to go to Tribal and someone will go home.

So is working on getting Carolyn out even though Shirin is the one who blew the puzzle. Thankfully Carolyn has an idol and a clue that her name is being brought up. She tells Tyler (who let her know the others are talking about her going) about the idol. Now Carolyn is working to get So out.

Tribal Council time! Catfight time. Meow! So voted Carolyn and vice versa.

The tally -- Carolyn does not use the idol.

Carolyn, So, Carolyn, So, So, So.

So is voted out first of the season!

Come One, Come All! Survivor Blog Pool Now OPEN!

Survivor: Worlds Apart premieres this coming Wednesday -- February 25, 8pm ET/PT.

The lovely Lifeguard Laurie has once again volunteered to run the blog pool for the season. (Need I mention how the woman rocks?) The way the blog pool works is:

• Blog readers are randomly matched with a castaway
• They can cheer on that castaway until the castaway gets the boot or is the sole Survivor
• There is no wagering! We're playing for the bigger stuff of life here -- bragging rights!
• If you wish to be in on the pool, please sign up in comments in THIS POST ONLY. If you ask on another post, it could be inadvertently missed.
• The cut-off for getting in on the pool will be Wednesday, February 25 by NOON Pacific Time (or 3pm ET).

Survivor fans ready?

Survivor: Worlds Apart - No Collar

I've already chatted about the two other tribes -- Blue Collar (BCT) and White Collar (WCT) -- which you can find with my Worlds Apart Casting tag for the blog. I will continue my lazy tribe monickers with NCT for No Collar Tribe. CBS might be calling this tribe Nargarote, but for me ... NCT!

HALI FORD:
Hali might currently be a no collar, but she plans to be a white collar. She's 25 years old, a law student presently residing in San Francisco, California. She seems smart and even athletic. Oh ... and she knows how to clean a fish. Does she know how to make a fire? I doubt it. Sure, she might know the concept, but I don't believe she'd take the time to actually try to make one. I'm getter neither great nor terrible vibes from her bio.I am getting that if she's studying to be a lawyer, she's not quite the free spirit I expect of NCT.

Once again, she's another castaway not really from where they list her in the bio. She's a "Southern Belle" from Nashville, Tennessee. She most definitely isn't a real No Collar type. She aspires to be a public defender dedicated to helping the indigent. She does talk a good talk about the game. And, it is indeed likely that she might be able to do well in endurance challenges. She's obviously seen her tribemates, but hasn't really mixed with them before this clip was shot. I'll have to figure out the curly blond guy she wants the alliance of two with as I go along. Is she going to be able to walk the walk until the end? I don't think so. Maybe she'll prove me wrong.

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JENN BROWN:

Okay, she's a bit more No Collar than Hali. Jenn is 22 years young, a sailing instructor currently residing in Long Beach, California. Huh. That's the second one mentioning Long Beach this season. She seems to be quite athletic, can swim and might even know woodsy kind of doings. She's been a fan of the show since the first season when she was in third grade. She's seen all the strategies. The only thing I found off-putting was her referring to the fact that she should "kill it." Okay, I get it. Confidence. Let's just see about that.

Now, she currently lives in Sonoma, California but is FROM Long Beach. I know I'm being a Picky Patty, but can't they make all these residence references uniform from bio to bio? She's without a doubt more of a free spirit than is Hali. Like many other women, she'd rather ally with men than with women. I think this girl has spunk even if her life work ambition is a bit lacking. She might be good at the game.

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JOE ANGLIM:

Here's another one that doesn't come off totally No Collar to me. Although he lists his occupation as a jewelry designer, he is a college grad and was actively involved in sports. Joe is 25 and currently residing in Scottdale, Arizona. I believe he's probably the blond guy with whom Hali wants to form an alliance of two. Another young one with long-term memories of the show and aspiring to be on it for years. His bio is really long-winded. I kinda sorta like him, but need to see his video.

Hmm. He just might do well. He has the country and athletic background as well as a love for the show. My only thing about him after watching the video is that he just might be too nice a guy to win this. While he says he'll lie to people and such, I think he just might be a bit naive and trust others a tad too much. Is he cut-throat enough to win? Again, another with my jury out until I see him in action.

***************************************************

NINA POERSCH:

I guess my personal perception of No Collar is way skewed. I think of hitchhikers or young ones traveling through Europe with backpacks. I think of people waiting tables or tending bar until the next inspiration strikes them. I think of street performers. I don't necessarily think of someone like Nina -- 51 years old from Palmdale, California. She's deaf but can hear with cochlear implants. As a result, she's an advocate for them. She's proud of her Mom, apparently from Japan, who moved here, learned English and became a citizen despite bearing the brunt of prejudice and bigotry. Then comes her downfall in her bio. She likes Tina Wesson (that's not the bad part) and wants to play the game with integrity. Uh-oh.

At least she realizes she's going to have to lie to get through the game. The problem is ... will she be a good enough liar? She thinks she might have a problem when conversations overlap. She also hopes her work around the camp will keep her in the game. In the video she mentioned being a housewife and I can only assume she has children. I'm going to peg Nina as the Camp Mommy and I'm sure they'll keep her for a while. But when it comes to staying on her own through challenges and such, I doubt she has a chance to "kill it."

***************************************************

VINCE SLY:

Now, here is true No Collar. Vince is a 32 year old coconut vendor residing in Santa Monica, California. His online bio is fairly short and just a bit full of himself reveling in his rather freewheeling lifestyle. Okay, I get it. He doesn't like stuff stuck in his teeth. He likens himself to a mix of Parvati, Coach and Fabio. Um. Well. Let's go to the video.

Cross him off as a true No Collar. This dude first off doesn't mention Santa Monica at all in the video. Instead, he has homes in San Francisco and New York City ... both places are rather prohibitive to reside in without a decent amount of income. He doesn't mention coconut vending; he's a "life coach." I'm thinking more Coach than Fabio going on here but with a better physical game than Coach. He might be one to watch unless he puts his tribe mates off with his Kung Fu moves.

**************************************************

WILL SIMS II:

Will's bio is rather short and sweet. He is listed as a YouTube sensation, age is 41 and he's from Sherman Oaks, California. Now, YouTube sensation isn't quite a long term occupation for a man that age. As I never was a Leno fan, I had to check out the YouTube video that created such a sensation. Okay, he was a bartender before his big viral video. He's married to a personal trainer. I think I like him. I'm glad to actually come across a black person in this age-diverse, but not racially diverse so much cast. But does he have a chance?

In his video, he doesn't even mention YouTube at all. He talks about his people skills and bar tending. He also does mention his wife and daughter. I think he's going to be enjoyable to watch on the show. But I don't think he really has a chance to win it all. He comes across as too nice and easygoing to win. I can't see him being a fantastic liar or a villain.

There. The cast peeks are done here. Now we just have to wait until Wednesday, February 25 to see the premiere!

Survivor: Worlds Apart - White Collar

I delved into the Blue Collar Tribe (hereafter referred to in this blog as BCT) in this previous post. I'll be tagging all my casting posts for the show with the tag Worlds Apart Casting for easy reference. I'm just thoughtful like that. Yeah. That's the ticket!

Now it's time to take a look at the White Collar Tribe -- WCT for my lackadaisical posting purposes. Sure, CBS calls them Masaya. But what do they know?

CAROLYN RIVERA:
Yes! A 52 year old corporate executive from Tampa, Florida. She's originally from Queens, NYC. Already I'm digging the age. She's been married for 36 years (which is much longer than some of her fellow castaways have been on this earth). She has three "successful kids." She likes softball and Hilary Clinton. But, what really caught my interest is that she participates in Tough Mudders. I have some friends who do that. I would never do it; I'd keel over. If she can make it through Tough Mudder events, she should be able to handle any challenge Survivor throws her way.

Definitely not a Florida accent on her, huh? After watching the video, I'm not as sure about how she will be in the social game, especially with those younger than her. I think she might come across as bossy. That said, it would be fantastic if the sole Survivor was a 52 year old woman, wouldn't it?

****************************************************

JOAQUIN SOUBERBUELLE:

Joaquin is another relative New Yorker -- from Valley Stream, which is on Long Island adjacent to NYC. He's a 27 year old marketing director. Although his online bio is rather short, I'm getting smug vibes from it. He claims he likes leading the sort of life that allows him to overindulge. Now, I've never known that kind of life myself. (Except when it comes to chocolate, that is.) He says he has little tolerance for people with no common sense. That, I like. He also claims to be smart, social and "unbelievably athletic." @@

After watching the video, I feel the need to up his chances a bit. No, I don't like him -- he's not someone who'd be on my friends list on Facebook, even. I did like that he admits he has "the attention span of a goldfish." While he admits his very smug traits and seems to realize many of them aren't always ones which make a person admirable or popular, he just might have what it takes to go far in the game. I can see him being decent in challenges and underhanded, too.

************************************************

MAX DAWSON:

Here's the guy I really want to watch. Max has a PhD and he's 37 years old currently from Topanga, California. He lists his occupation as a media consultant. But, he's an ex-professor who taught a college class about the show. That is why I'm going to have to see how he does! I like a few more things about him -- he'd love to have a black cat on the island as "you always feel better petting a cat." His favorite on the show was Jonathan Penner, a pretty wise choice. He's coming across a bit smug about his brilliance factor. I'll have to see how that plays out. He's very pale, almost a Cochran level of white.

He comes across better in the video. He seems to have grasped the "important" lies to tell -- about idols and the social game itself rather than what he does for a living. I like that he wants to do honor to the game. Mind you, he's not saying honesty to the game. He means he wants to play the game well. You can't throw honesty into that criteria. It's Survivor, after all. He'll be interesting to watch.

*************************************************

SHIRIN OSKOOI:

Shirin is a 31 year old Yahoo executive living in San Francisco, California. She's an ex-Google employee who apparently played a big part in making Google calendar the #1 online calendar. She's happy to be able to help her mother financially. She likes Larry David because he's a "hilarious weirdo" and RuPaul. She doesn't like quitters and morons. She will be good at the nasty food challenge and plans to play the "ultimate social game." I don't know. I'm actually kind of liking her touch of crazy, yet dedication to her work and family. Has she won me over?

I think she might be someone I actually LIKE on the show. Mind you, that doesn't necessarily equate to me thinking she will win it all. Other than the food challenge and perhaps puzzle solving, she might have problems with the physical parts of the challenges. No, she's not out of shape. However, she just isn't screaming POWERHOUSE to me. I hope she can work out the moodiness from the lack of sleep. I'd like to see her do well. She's been a huge fan of the show for years.

*************************************************

SO KIM:

So, I wish everyone had such easy to spell short names! So is a divorced 31 year old retail buyer currently living in Long Beach, California. (Or do you live ON Long Beach? I'm so confused ... but I digress.) If she were one of the guys, I think I'd say she seems full of herself in her online bio. Instead, for some reason, she comes across as confident. Maybe it's some weird sexist agenda in my head. She thinks she's a mix of Ozzy, Cochran and Parvati. Now, if she is ... just call her the winner now! She says she wants to make big moves and not play it safe. Huh. That's admirable, but it's been the downfall of many.

She doesn't seem as cocksure in her video. I also notice that she claims to be living and working in New York City, contrary to the online bio. Her strategy is to use her intellect, but show the smiling face to the others. She might have a problem when the food deprivation kicks in big time. My personal jury is out on her at this time.

*************************************************

TYLER FREDRICKSON:

Tyler is a 33 year old ex-talent agency assistant currently living in Los Angeles, California. Reading his bio, I'm a bit speechless. It's odd. He claims to like dressing as a bearded hobo and scaring children as others won't do it. He said "Ha!" when asked about his favorite sport. He claims to be a flirt. He doesn't look too athletic in the photo for the bio, yet claims to have played on seven professional football teams. On the pro side, he's never missed an episode of the show and survived the political cut-throat environment of a talent agency. Oh. But he's not there anymore. He says he has two masters degrees. Maybe the video will clear this up --

Go figure. His video has him living in Pasadena. Plus, he admits to being roughly a secretary at the talent agency. He mentions being an NFL player at one time, but I've never heard of him. Of course, that means nothing as I'm not a fan of the game. I still have no clue how he'll play the game. He seems like he might be able to do well both socially and in challenges. He could be a wild card.

Your thoughts?

Survivor: Worlds Apart -- Blue Collar

With the tribes broken into three, it makes my decisions on the casting posts much easier -- I'll go by tribe! The Blue Collar Tribe, while in my mind is BCT, is called Escameca.

DAN FOLEY:
Dan is 47 years old and very married. In his online bio, he mentions his wife more than a few times. He's listed as a postal worker, but he's also a landlord and he's a technician at the post office. Definitely a fan of the show, he thinks he should be good at all comps except perhaps for ones involving running. He also thinks he should be good at the social game as he can "schmooze."

Dan has been trying to get on the show since the second season! Y'know ... I think I like this guy. The downside might be his age although I love older people cast on reality competition shows! But if he comes against some young athletic alpha dude with Survivor smarts, he just might be toast.

************************************************

 

KELLY REMINGTON:
Compared to Dan, Kelly's online bio is really short. She's 44 years old, a state trooper from Grand Island, NY. For those who only think NYC when it comes to New York, Grand Island is actually an island abutted by the Niagara River, not far from Niagara Falls. Hmm ... her bio lists "commitment" as her biggest pet peeve. Well, apparently she committed to be a state trooper, that's not an easy undertaking. Hopefully, she'll commit to being the sole Survivor! One of the things she wishes she could bring is a camera. Oh! I like that!

That video doesn't tell us too much more about her. One thing I picked up on is that she seems a very young 44. She seems pretty upbeat, too. I personally hope she can escape the "Mom" stigma which seems to follow any female castaway over 40.

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LINDSEY CASCADDAN:

Okay, Lindsey is more of the ilk we often see on Survivor. Pretty, 24 years old and a hairdresser. She lists dating as her favorite sport. Um-hmm. She knows she's pretty. She uses extraneous exclamation points in her bio!!! "I’m the most strategic, stubborn and athletic girl I know! I’m resourceful, I’m vicious and I think I do very well under pressure!" Okay! You can talk the talk but can you walk the walk, Lindsey?

The video reveals that she's a single mom. So what. Half the world seems to be single moms these days. Have her come back to me when the kids are adults and we'll see how things go. One thing I picked up on in the video is that she says nothing should make her quit. Wha ...? Why would quitting even come into the conversation? I peg her for not being a worker at the game and for possibly being a quitter. So there. We'll see.

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MIKE HOLLOWAY:

Mike is 38, an oil driller from North Richland Hills, Texas. He sacrificed with a lot of ramen noodle nights to pay his house off in two and a half years. Good for him. What is it with this disc golf stuff? Dan Foley also mentioned it. I have no clue what it is. I'll have to Google it. He's a punctuality and proper spelling fan. I like that in a man! His favorites are Cochran, Ozzy and Boston Rob. Decent choices. Huh. He mentions quitting too -- as in "I'll die before I quit!" But, with him, I don't think there's any possibility.

Oh my gosh. He sounds like he's talking with a throat full of gravel. Maybe he's been breathing in too much drilling debris. In a way, I want to cheer him on. But I have some kind of nagging feeling that, for some reason, he might rub some of his fellow castaways the wrong way unless he can really turn on the country charm.

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RODNEY LAVOIE, JR. :

Rodney is 24 years old, a general contractor out of Boston. His online bio is fairly short, but quite full of himself. I get that he's a big football fan still living his high school football glory days. That's fine. Maybe when he hits 30, new dreams will take the place of his high school jock days. He mentions his bachelor's degree as almost an afterthought. While he's probably going to be strong athletically, we've seen so many young dudes like him before. Onto the video ...

No surprises there. He's very cocksure and full of himself. While he isn't bad-looking, he's no Tom Brady (his apparent idol). I really don't have too much more to say about him other than I love to see young blowhards fall hard. I can only hope! Maybe he'll come across differently during the game. I reserve the right to change my mind about him. But, you've got my first impression!

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SIERRA DAWN THOMAS:

Sierra is another pretty blonde rather young'un, but seems different to me. She's a cowgirl! She's 27 years old, a "barrel racer" from Roy, Utah. What's a barrel racer? I don't know. It's something to do with rodeo, not an area of expertise for me. She's a national champion at it, though. Dang ... she's 6'1" tall! She's going to dwarf some of the men! She's very country with fishing, hunting and hiking. She's also into sports other than rodeo. She's a big fan of chocolate milk and Parvati Shallow. 

Hmm ... the only drawback I can see from the video is she might be a bit too trusting although she mentions she can't be. I think she'll be good in comps, probably a good worker. She seems smart. But, with her life being so "good people" based, will she be cut-throat enough for the win? I don't know. I do think she's got a lot more game than the other blonde gal on BCT.

Your thoughts on this tribe?