Survivor 35: Heroes-Healers-Hustlers - November 29 Blog Party

As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll be updating this entry with the latest happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest! The party itself is in the comments -- join in on the discussion!

Lifeguard Laurie has updated the blog pool and here ya go:

Survivors
Ashley N. - Donna NY, MikesGirl, tbc.
Ben D. - Donna in FL, Merrilee, Tammy.
Chrissy H. - Donna in Alabama, meb, SueGee, KelseyNY
Devon P. - David, Margo, Laurie, Fred aka TwoBlackAces
Joe M. - Cheryl ICNY, Krysa Gibson, Sharon C.
JP H. - Cheryl in NC, Krisen from Ohio, Shannon
Lauren R. - Brian, Jennasmom, Rochelle, Judi Sweeney
Mike Z. - Becky, Janice, Rbennie, PDX Granny
Ryan U. - Anonymouse, Glenn Allen, Nickelpeed

Jury
Desiree W.
Cole M. 

We're in for two hours tonight and two Tribal Councils. Grab yourself some beverages, snacks and a comfy spot. Nine are left. Who will be voted out tonight?

Chrissy is ecstatic because not only is Cole gone, but Mike played his idol. Mike thinks he did right playing the idol. Joe thinks it was wasted. Joe is right. Mike thinks the target on his back is much bigger than it actually is, methinks. He keeps it up and the target will grow. He thinks rather big. Hmm.

Time for the Reward Challenge. Use feet only, release rope, drop blocks in bin, stack in circle, flag in center. Seaplane tour of the Sacred Island, cheeseburgers, fries, cold beer is the reward.  

LAUREN wins Reward! Who will she bring with her? Devon! Ben. Ashley. Ryan tells Jeff he supports Lauren in her decision when Jeff asks him. I think Ryan needs some cheeseburgers. Lauren tells us she didn't pick them as Ryan says -- Devon is a big guy and needs the food, Ben has never been on a Reward -- she says it's strategical because there are cracks in the seven.

Mike's not a happy camper back at camp. He thinks because he and Joe are targets, they should spice things up some. In other words, annoy the others. Ryan tells us he's starving, but thinks that it's good to have Joe and Mike around as targets before he's one. Chrissy and Ryan think they actually need to target Ben out first.

Lauren tells her Reward crew that the seven won't last -- they need to break out early. Whoa. Both Ben and Devon tell of Ryan's idol. Lauren tells them of her two vote advantage. She thinks that Joe and Mike need to stick around for a while and Ben agrees. They make a final four pact. Under their burgers, they find letters from their loved ones. How touching indeed.

Ben found a clue with a map which claimed a clay pot is the location of a hidden idol. He's on the search. He sees it up in a tree! Yes, it's an idol. He knows that others are revolting against him and vows to us that he will tell no one about it.

Time for the first Immunity Challenge of the night. Perched on a narrow raft structure, moving up make it more narrow. Jeff offers forgoing the challenge and indulging in peanut butter and chocolate. Devon, Ben and Lauren sit out for the goodies -- even though all three just ate during Reward.

JP out first. The rest go up to the top level which is precarious. Chrissy out. Joe out. Ryan out. Mike out. ASHLEY wins Immunity!

Ryan thinks it's good that Ashley won. In a seven meeting, it's discussed that either Joe or Mike should go. Ryan was surprised about the three who sat out. Devon thinks it's mindblowing that that neither Chrissy or Ryan see they're in danger. Lauren thinks JP, Chrissy and Ryan need to be broken up and they need to flush out Ryan's idol.

Devon thinks that Ben should act like he's not with them and vote out Mike. Then they trick Mike and Joe into voting with them against Ryan, Chrissy or JP. Hmm. It's a scheme, all right. 

Mike and Joe are thrilled to play along. Gulp. Doesn't look too good for my NJ peeps -- Chrissy and Ryan!

Time for Tribal Council. Jeff will ask his Probsting questions to get them riled up. Uh-oh. Ryan's being a bit too confident. Lauren predicts a perfect storm. Jeff keeps going on about the seven. Lots of talk about trust. Time to vote. I think it will be a blindside. I hope Ryan stays.

The tally -- no idols played.

Mike, Joe, Mike, Mike, JP, JP, JP, JP, JP.

JP was voted out. Ryan is shocked. I'm glad it wasn't Ryan!

Now Joe's all cocky back at camp. Chrissy thinks the five treated the three horribly back at the camp, all snarky and such. Ryan went more for a diplomatic approach.  

Ben and Lauren think they're all that and a bag of chips. Ryan talked to Devon. Devon told Ryan that he doesn't trust Ryan over the idol thing. He tells us that Ryan's no longer a part of his plan to get to the million. 

Devon thinks he has it in the bag with Ben being a double-agent, knowing where idols are (he doesn't know Ben has one).

Time for the Reward Challenge -- two teams of four, swim to boat, collect bags of logs, push puzzle pieces through tunnel, solve puzzle. Survivor Spa with chicken, vegie wraps, pie and fruit. 

Lauren, Mike, Ryan and Chrissy vs. Devon, Ben, Ashley and Joe. 

Joe, Ben, Devon and Ashley win! Joe thinks the tables have turned and he finally has a true alliance. I think they're just using him. But that's me.

Joe is falling for Ben's act hook, line and sinker. But that's making Ashley a bit wary of Ben gamewise. Ashley and Devon bond a bit more and Ashley thinks she's finally playing the game.

Back at camp, Ryan wants to try to convince Mike to work with him. Mike tells us he wants to stick to his plan to work with the other five. He isn't buying what Ryan is selling -- Ryan told him no so many times before. Chrissy tries to talk with Lauren. Lauren tells us she's not likely to change her mind. She reacts much like Mike to Ryan. Not looking good for my Jersey peeps!

Chrissy is worried. She wants to save her game and hopefully have the last laugh.

Immunity Challenge time rolls around again. Use a driving wheel to transport key over obstacles, puzzle pieces, word puzzle.   

CHRISSY WINS! She needs it. Hopefully, Ryan will make it through Tribal even if he has to use his idol. 

Ben tells the alliance of four that Joe needs to go. They agree. Devon schemes the play to vote out Joe. It sounds so solid that I doubt it will go down that way. Devon tells Joe that Lauren will use her advantage, they'll get Ryan to use his idol and vote out Ben. Chrissy tells Ben that she wants either Ashley or Devon out. Hmm. Lauren and Ashley are talking about voting out Ben. Oh my.

Ashley tells Devon about possibly voting out Ben. He seems conflicted. 

Time for Tribal again. This time the focus is testing alliances. Ben says he thinks he's going home tonight. He just may and he thinks it's an act! Joe says he feels comfortable and he doesn't even have an alliance. Ben claims every comfortable alliance gets blindsided. Ryan didn't go to prom. 

Tally time. Ryan plays his idol, so they did flush it out.

Ryan, Ryan, Ashley, Ashley, Joe, Joe, Joe, Joe.

Joe is voted out by his "incredibly tight alliance" as Chrissy puts it. 

Loved ones visit next week.

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - November 26, 2017

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving and a great holiday weekend (if you had one of those)! I'm thankful for all of the loyal blog readers out there -- many have also become my friends, too -- who have followed this blog year in, year out ... even when Big Brother isn't in season! Safe travels to all heading home this evening.

Since it's a Sunday morning, it's time for my off television topic reflection of the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're not interested in either, please feel free to check out my previous and newer posts I will put up after this -- they will be television related! You can find my Survivor posts at this link.

I actually had two days off from work in a row this week -- a rarity in my life. True to form as of late, I spent a lot of time napping on the first day off. The days off in a row were Wednesday and Thursday. My third day off during the holiday week was the Sunday leading into the week. 

While the two days in a row off were nice, it's not enough time to even travel up to my nearest relative in upstate New York for the holiday. I had to be to work Friday morning (and Saturday, too). So, it was a solitary, with the exception of Vincent the Cat, holiday for me. I'm used to it. I often do get invitations to join in at local friends. But I feel it's uncomfortable to intrude on family gatherings when I'm not family. I don't like eating with a crowd of strangers where I might only know one or two people. I prefer to be alone rather than to do that.

On Thanksgiving, I made myself a little feast -- turkey breast, sausage stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, asparagus and a Mrs. Smith's apple pie for dessert. Heck, the rest of the stuff was more work than I usually do, no way would I throw in a homemade pie! I had/have enough leftovers to last me through the weekend so I didn't/don't have to cook for four days after my big kitchen doings. I spent a good part of the day binge-watching The Sopranos on Amazon Prime. After all, that's a family-related show, right? Right? Heh. It's even a New Jersey family! But, I'll admit I don't know anyone in the mob in NJ. I did know some in both New York and Connecticut. But I'm not part of those families, mind you.

What else? Oh, here's a bit of urban life in New Jersey for you ...
I was waiting for the bus to get across town one evening after work. A street kind of guy pushing a bike stopped to wish me a Happy Thanksgiving. He showed me his tire was flat. Um. Okay. What do you want, dude? He showed me the glue and patches for the tire from his pocket. But then he hit me up. He only had a dime and the cheapest air is 35 cents. Oh, well. It's a quarter. I gave him one. We commiserated a bit about how air used to be free and it no longer is such. As he parted, he told me he shoplifted the glue and patches from the store down the street. ACK! I felt like an accomplice after the fact! Thankfully, my bus came shortly afterwards. I cannot fall into a life of crime in my advanced years!

I'm thankful that the guy upstairs went away for the holiday weekend. The quiet is nice. He's had his loud visitors there for the past few weeks and I meant to call the landlord about his extremely loud stereo on Monday this past week, but I forgot. 

Onto the photos for this week. I don't have a lot of them for you and many were taken with the cell phone rather than the camera. The moon shot was the camera. I can't get the cell phone to focus on that.  

Okay, train station. I'm here.

Train be on time. A friend often drives me in these days when our work schedules mesh. However, she had a four day weekend. I didn't. Taking the train on random days the past few weeks has made me late to work twice even though I should have an "early cushion" with the departures. I'm not happy about that. I always plan to be early and NJT makes me late. I'm always at the train station early to catch my train. The least they could do is run vaguely on time!

Friday's moon

You know I can't resist shooting the moon. Had I been out about four hours later, some meteors streaked through the New Jersey skies.

Chotola Pigeon Gathering

Pigeons often line the roof at the front of the Chotola Apartment Building on North Avenue in Plainfield. When I feel I have little photo inspiration while across the street waiting for my train, I turn to them. I often wonder what the building was like in its heyday or what the apartments look like inside. But I wouldn't want to live there even though it's so close to the train. I prefer to live where I don't have to worry about the denizens of the night ... even in the daytime.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

Survivor 35: Heroes-Healers-Hustlers - November 22 Blog Party

As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll be updating this entry with the latest happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest! The party itself is in the comments -- join in on the discussion!

Oh my! It looks like Ryan spills the idol beans this week! I thought he'd know better than to blab.

Lifeguard Laurie has updated the blog pool and here ya go:

Merge!!
Ashley N. - Donna NY, MikesGirl, tbc.
Ben D. - Donna in FL, Merrilee, Tammy.
Chrissy H. - Donna in Alabama, meb, SueGee, KelseyNY
Cole M. - Dolores in Hollywood FL, Marthalight, Stormy  
Devon P. - David, Margo, Laurie, Fred aka TwoBlackAces
Joe M. - Cheryl ICNY, Krysa Gibson, Sharon C.
JP H. - Cheryl in NC, Krisen from Ohio, Shannon
Lauren R. - Brian, Jennasmom, Rochelle, Judi Sweeney
Mike Z. - Becky, Janice, Rbennie, PDX Granny
Ryan U. - Anonymouse, Glenn Allen, Nickelpeed

Flame Extinguished
Katrina R. - Pool People moved to a different teams.
Simone N. - 4nancie, Nana in the NW, weenabe
Patrick B. - Beachbound Gmom, Jackie, Petals, Sara Welty
Alan B. - Ed in Ohio, monty 924, Terry is a Texan
Roark L. - Auntie Leigh, Indiana Jane, Pam
Ali E. - Dr_Celine, Monnie8, Tennistoe
Jessica J. - ChicMc, Silk, Sharon N.

Jury
Desiree W. - Delee, Mario Lee, Skyriverblue, Buzzmaam

Survivor fans ready? Ten are left. Who will be voted out tonight?

Mike feels as left out as ever -- he voted the way he should, didn't know Desi would be going home. He's decided that he needs to throw shade on the Healers to stay in the game longer. 

Lauren will have two votes at the next Tribal Council. The others don't seem to realize a vote was missing. Ben is the only one who knows about her advantage.

Oops. Ryan tells Devon he has an idol. He thinks he really had to tell him because "Devon will never tell anybody." 

Time for the Rewards Challenge -- two teams, swim out, retrieve keys, score baskets. Luxury yacht touring the Fijian Islands with alcohol and food. They drew for teams. 

Mike, Joe, JP, Chrissy and Cole win. Joe, as much as I dislike him, did fantastic making the baskets. 

Oh geez. Now Ryan tells Ben about his idol. He thinks truth is power in the game. Ben is thrilled because now he knows Cole doesn't have the idol. He wants to stick with the seven, which includes Ryan at this time, but will be wary that Ryan is determined to win.

No one seemed to find a clue during the reward cruise. And Joe is still searching for another idol. He knows he's a target. He continues to offend Ashley and Chrissy. The way to win friends and influence people, huh? He told them they're the perfect goats and he's not there to make friends. Well, the latter is pretty obvious, I'd say. 

Ben wants to work with Devon. He wants his trust. He tells Devon that Ryan has an idol. Devon thought he was the only one Ryan told (because Ryan told him that). Now he wants to work with Ben and not so much with Ryan. 

Immunity Challenge time! Bars resting on their shoulders forcing them into a squatting position. Go too low or too high and the urn will pop off, put out a fire and they're out. Jeff refers to it as a new Survivor torture device.

Ashley out first. Mike out. JP out. Deon, then Joe out. Ben out. Chrissy out. Ryan out. It's down to Cole and Lauren. Cole out!

Lauren wins Immunity! 

Ben thinks they need to vote four Cole, three Mike. But Ashley wants Joe out. They want to do the split in case of an idol. Ashley wants to convince others that they need to vote Joe out. It seems that most of the seven think Joe rather than Cole or Mike.

Tribal Council has Probsting questions -- Joe admits the Healers are the targets. Joe, Mike and Cole are all in danger. Mike whispered to Joe to trust him in the beginning. Um. Well. Then he goes on about Joe being their pariah and they're showing poor moral character. Mike claims it's not just numbers, but relationships building a "new society."

Ben tells Mike he's safe. But Mike doesn't trust him. He's planning on playing his idol ... and maybe not for himself. Even Chrissy wants Joe out. Ben doesn't see himself as a dictator or steamrolling the others. But he sort of kind of is if you ask them! 

The tally ...
Mike plays his idol for himself.

Ben, Mike, Mike, Cole, Cole, Cole, Cole, Cole.

Cole is out. 

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - November 19, 2017

Good morning! Since it's a Sunday morning, it's time for my off television topic reflection of the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're not interested in either, please feel free to check out my previous and newer posts I will put up after this -- they will be television related! You can find my Survivor posts at this link.

Just another week here. Work, more work, home a bit to eat, sleep and pay attention to a cat. At least I can look forward to a four-day work week ahead. I'll even have two days off in a row, a rarity for me. I get so tired of people asking me how my weekend was or telling me to have a good weekend when I don't really have any idea what a weekend is. While I will have the two days in a row this week, it will be Wednesday and Thanksgiving Thursday. I have to work on Friday and Saturday. With no family really near me in the area, it will be a little feast for Vincent the Cat and me. At least I will be able to relax some. I'm used to spending the holidays alone. Work is hectic through the holiday season and I treasure any time off; holidays give me paid extra days off. I like that. Often the one day off at a time just doesn't do it. I'm chronically exhausted.

I really don't have a heck of a lot else for you this week. Not even photo-wise. But here you go ... clicking on an image will bring up the larger version. Some are from my camera, others are cell phone.

Autumn remains

I love these bushes in the fall -- so intricately colorful! Bridgewater, NJ.

Watching the pigeons on the Chotola

I took this shot with my cell phone and really should have edited it to make it a bit more level. I was waiting for my train and bored. North Avenue, Plainfield.

Seagrass run amok

They'll probably be chopping it down soon. Outside of the TD Bank Ball Park in Bridgewater, NJ.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

Survivor 35: Heroes-Healers-Hustlers - November 15 Blog Party

As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll be updating this entry with the latest happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest! The party itself is in the comments -- join in on the discussion!

It looks like there might be a brouhaha afoot for tonight's episode! That sort of thing can change the dynamics some!


Lifeguard Laurie has updated the blog pool and here ya go:

Merge!!
Ashley N. - Donna NY, MikesGirl, tbc.
Ben D. - Donna in FL, Merrilee, Tammy.
Chrissy H. - Donna in Alabama, meb, SueGee, KelseyNY
Cole M. - Dolores in Hollywood FL, Marthalight, Stormy
Desiree W. - Delee, Mario Lee, Skyriverblue, Buzzmaam
Devon P. - David, Margo, Laurie, Fred aka TwoBlackAces
Joe M. - Cheryl ICNY, Krysa Gibson, Sharon C.
JP H. - Cheryl in NC, Krisen from Ohio, Shannon
Lauren R. - Brian, Jennasmom, Rochelle, Judi Sweeney
Mike Z. - Becky, Janice, Rbennie, PDX Granny
Ryan U. - Anonymouse, Glenn Allen, Nickelpeed

Flame Extinguished
Katrina R. - Pool People moved to a different teams.
Simone N. - 4nancie, Nana in the NW, weenabe
Patrick B. - Beachbound Gmom, Jackie, Petals, Sara Welty
Alan B. - Ed in Ohio, monty 924, Terry is a Texan
Roark L. - Auntie Leigh, Indiana Jane, Pam
Ali E. - Dr_Celine, Monnie8, Tennistoe
Jessica J. - ChicMc, Silk, Sharon N.

Survivor fans ready? Eleven are left. Who will be voted out tonight?

Joe appreciates the smart play in getting Jessica out. He didn't see it coming at all. Ohh ... Lauren finds the clue in with the nails that no one else saw at all. It's an advantage. She can secretly not vote at the next tribal council. Then she can vote twice in another one. It involves a rather complicated blank parchment ordeal and fake voting. She's a bit concerned about getting caught. 

Oh my. It's right to a Reward Challenge! Race through obstacles, up a tower, slingshots. Trip to a private island, spaghetti, salad and red wine. They draw for teams, odd person out will get to go without having to compete. Joe got the white rock, sits out.

JP, Devon, Chrissy, Cole and Ryan win. Uh-oh. There's a twist. It's one big dish and they each have to eat separately - Joe decides the order. That means some may hog out and others have very little. Hmm. Weird reward. 

Joe puts himself last, Devon first because it's his birthday (and it will keep Devon on his good side). JP was second, wants all to have their fair share. Cole is going to eat as much as he wants. He finds a clue to the idol written on the plate. He tries to hide it under a napkin.  Ohh ... Chrissy finds the clue! Ryan finds it, too. He hides the entire plate (leaving food there). Cole figures out that Chrissy and Ryan know about the clue -- idol under the flag. He's determined to beat them to it.

Ryan runs off to dig it up when Cole leaves for a minute. Yikes! Ryan has it, Chrissy goes in as bait. And, as Ryan put it, pandemonium ensued. Cole ran in and jumped on Chrissy. Ben joined in. They all think Cole has the idol while Cole says Ben has it. Heh. You go, Ryan!  

Immunity Challenge time! They must stand on a narrow beam balancing a statue on a beam with a pole. Next, they move to a narrower part. Mike out first. Joe out. Devon out. Lauren out. Ryan out. Ashley out. Chrissy out. Ben out. Desi out.

It's between Cole and JP. COLE wins Immunity -- and he's the Number One target for so many!

While Cole is happy with his safety, he's worried about the Healers. Ben thinks the vote should be split -- Joe and Desi. 

Joe tells Devon and Ryan that Ben needs to go. Ben is eavesdropping in the background. Heh.  

Joe thinks he needs to blow up Ben's game to save himself. Joe claims (lies) that Ben swore on the Marine Corps three times when he didn't do such a thing. Desi is getting a bit worried. Lauren tells Ben about her secret advantage because they can't do a split vote -- it would be a tie. 

Ben goes to Mike to get on their side to vote out Joe. Mike is thinking it over.

Tribal Council. Jeff asks Joe if he feels the heat. Ben says others have his back and he has theirs. Heh. Chrissy shuts Joe right down. It's still not clear what may or may not happen. 

Lauren does use the advantage and fakes a vote.

The tally:
Ben, Lauren, Desi, Joe, Desi, Joe, Desi, Joe, Desi, Joe 

Re-vote except for Desi and Joe. Lauren fakes again.

Re-tally:
Desi, Joe, Desi, Desi, Desi, Desi.

They really should have voted Joe out. But Desi was indeed a strong player and a threat.

They didn't notice there were only ten votes the first time? Hmm.

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - November 12, 2017

Good morning! Since it's a Sunday morning, it's time for my off television topic reflection of the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're not interested in either, please feel free to check out my previous and newer posts I will put up after this -- they will be television related! You can find my Survivor posts at this link.

Brr! Baby, it's cold outside! The past few days around here have had record low temperatures. To be honest, as long as I'm dressed for it, I don't mind the cold of winter (even though it's still fall) as much as I hate the heat and humidity of the summer. With the cold, you can layer up and dress for it. With the heat and humidity, taking your clothes off, you're still all sweaty. And, in my case, I'd be all sweaty with people laughing and pointing at me before the police hauled me away! 

I bought a nice new winter jacket a couple of weeks ago. It's been some years since my last winter jacket purchase. I think it's money well spent -- this one is quite warm and fits well. And, my heat is included in my rent at my apartment and I have control of it. It's cozy in here. In the summer, I have to pay for electricity, thus pay for air conditioning.

As I get older, I don't care so much for snow or ice, though. If we could harness it just so it would fall everywhere except roads and sidewalks, I'd be a happy camper. I still find snow breathtakingly beautiful. I just don't want to fall.

I had yesterday off from work, having requested it off as a personal day long ago. It was the day of the Plainfield Public Library Photo Contest. I ended up not entering this year. The theme for the year wasn't a great one for me and the change in judging criteria turned me off last year. I don't really do photos of people posing and smiling or just candid uncropped photos with half-people at the edges which seems to be the draw of judging now. I like to be more art-related in my photos and I guess that's out now. I'll think about next year, but will see what won prizes and honorable mentions versus what was entered this year once they release it online. I was thinking of going yesterday, but spent the majority of the day sleeping it away. I needed the rest.

All that said, my photos this week aren't all that artsy! But, here they are ...

Kodachrome ... brings the nice bright colors

Um. Of fall. Although these leaves are gorgeous on their own, I found a Kodachrome filter on my Google Nik photo editor brings out the colors even more.

I find it easier to take videos with my new phone rather than the camera. Here's a train going the other way at the Plainfield Train Station while I waited for my extremely late, almost time for the next train, to arrive on Friday.

Plotting to overthrow humanity

Soon all will be barren

Looking out on Watchung Avenue from the eastbound platform of the Plainfield Train Station.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

Survivor 35: Heroes-Healers-Hustlers - November 8 Blog Party

As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll be updating this entry with the latest happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest! The party itself is in the comments -- join in on the discussion!

Tonight is going to be the merge -- not a moment too soon for Soko! Since I'm out of the blog pool, I'm cheering on the two NJ castaways -- Chrissy and Ryan!

Lifeguard Laurie has updated the blog pool and here ya go:

Levu Tribe
Ashley N. - Donna NY, MikesGirl, tbc. 
Desiree W. - Delee, Mario Lee, Skyriverblue, Buzzmaam 
Devon P. - David, Margo, Laurie, Fred aka TwoBlackAces 
Joe M. - Cheryl ICNY, Krysa Gibson, Sharon C.

Soko Tribe
Chrissy H. - Donna in Alabama, meb, SueGee, KelseyNY 
JP H. - Cheryl in NC, Krisen from Ohio, Shannon
Ryan U. - Anonymouse, Glenn Allen, Nickelpeed

Yawa Tribe
Jessica J. - ChicMc, Silk, Sharon N. 
Mike Z. - Becky, Janice, Rbennie, PDX Granny 
Cole M. - Dolores in Hollywood FL, Marthalight, Stormy 
Lauren R. - Brian, Jennasmom, Rochelle, Judi Sweeney 
Ben D. - Donna in FL, Merrilee, Tammy.

Flame Extinguished 
Katrina R. - Pool People moved to a different teams.
Simone N. - 4nancie, Nana in the NW, weenabe
Patrick B. - Beachbound Gmom, Jackie, Petals, Sara Welty
Alan B. - Ed in Ohio, monty 924, Terry is a Texan
Roark L. - Auntie Leigh, Indiana Jane, Pam
Ali E. - Dr_Celine, Monnie8, Tennistoe

Survivor fans ready?

Chrissy thinks she's in a secure place. Yawa thinks they're in a secure place. Ben is still leery of the Cole/Jessica relationship, though. Levu is a split tribe, broken spirits as well. They're out of food and suffering. 

And then we're right into today's ... drop your buffs! They're thrilled. They're all hungry and know this is the pivotal point for the game.

They get purple buffs and know food will come. Joe thinks he's in a great place with his hidden idol.

Uh-oh. No feast? Nope. Jeff says they have something better -- it's Outback Steakhouse (hmm ... they also do Big Brother) feast. Chrissy catches onto Joe right away. Jessica is already scheming about building up alliance numbers. Ben wants his alliance with Chrissy being on the down low. He thinks they can look forward to blindsides and tears.

They have all kinds of new tools to build a new shelter. Cole can't see any clues for another idol. But they are right nearby. Ryan gets back with his buddy Devon. He thinks an alliance with them, Lauren and Chrissy would be perfect.

Lauren isn't keen on the idea. She rats out Devon's proposal to Dr. Mike. Mike expects a war as the lines are being drawn in the sand. Devon would like to take out either Cole or Joe. I actually think they're fairly good targets. Ben still isn't sure he can trust Cole. Cole is still alienating his buddies with the exception of Jessica. Mike is a bit perturbed that Ben is thinking Cole of their Alliance of Yawa Five should go. Mike warns Cole. Oh my.

It's time for the first individual immunity challenge of the season. Stand on a narrow beam while spinning a ball in trap -- like a centrifugal force round one. They have to move down the beam which narrows as time goes on. Ryan was out almost immediately. Mike is out. 

Jessica is out. Ben is out. Whoa -- they're starting to drop like flies! Four remain. Desi, Cole, Chrissy and Ashley remain. Cole out. Chrissy out. Ashley out.

Desi wins Immunity!

Cole wants to mend fences with Ben. Ben acts receptive, but tells us differently in confessional. He tells us that if he tactically needs to work with Cole, he will. Cole talks to Joe and spills the beans. Joe will use the idol if he feels he needs it. Yipes! The Healers are going to target Chrissy because she's smart. They don't know if Ben's with them or not. Lauren wants Ben on board, but he wants Cole out.

Others are thinking of either Joe or Cole, or forcing Joe to play an idol (which they think he has). Ulp. Now Jessica's name is on the list. 

We're having many possibilities thrown at us. At least Tribal Council won't be predictable! And, now it starts ... 

No fisticuffs, but lots of talk of trust and alliances via the original and secondary tribes. Joe is irking me. Maybe he'll irk them enough, too. Joe gets up and tells them he has another idol. Now Cole is worried because he thought Joe might be a target. Ben says that battle lines have been drawn and they'll find out who is with whom.

It's time to vote. 

Joe plays his idol for himself.

The tally:
Chrissy, Jessica, Chrissy, Jessica, Chrissy, Jessica, Chrissy, Jessica, Chrissy, Jessica, Jessica, Jessica.

Phew! I want Chrissy to stay. But, as a game observer, I don't know if Jessica would be the best to send packing right now. But they sent her packing anyway.

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - November 5, 2017

Good morning! Since it's a Sunday morning, it's time for my off television topic reflection of the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're not interested in either, please feel free to check out my previous and newer posts I will put up after this -- they will be television related! You can find my Survivor posts at this link.

This past week included Halloween. I kept to my record of never having kids come to my door since I've lived in this building -- 18 years! Now, there are indeed too many kids living here for it being mostly one-bedroom apartments with supposedly a limit of two tenants in them. But the kids do know me and, even though I speak to them about playing in the hallway, they seem to like me and trust me anyway. (Just my luck!) Yet, no one trick or treats within the building. Oh, well. Each year I buy candy I like just in case someone comes by. All the more KitKat bars for me this year!

Other than Halloween and work, not much is going on in my life right now. Same old, same old. I'll be happy once we vote on Tuesday no matter who wins what -- I'm sick of all of the election junk mail in my mailbox! Although, I must say, I'm happy that there will be a new governor for New Jersey. I never cared for Chris Christie. He always comes across as a rather obnoxious bully to me. Perhaps he's not such, but I always get that feeling whenever I see him.

After our non-ending heavy rain and wind at the beginning of the week, we have had pretty nice weather. When you compare it to Hurricane (Superstorm) Sandy of five years ago or the seven-inch snowstorm the year before that, the weather has been gorgeous! The kids had a bit chilly Halloween, but it was sunny and clear and the power was on. We had a few really warm days this week, but now we're heading into more seasonal temperatures. That's fine by me. I do like a chill in the air. 

Onto the photos I took this past week -- clicking on an image will open a larger version ...

Heading to work

My NJ Transit train arrives at the Plainfield Train Station on Saturday morning.

Gotta love it!

I stopped into my local bodega on my way home from work on Halloween evening. These three also stopped in there. They had gone all out on their costumes -- I found it refreshing that young teens are still into the fun of the day! If their parents happen to see this, you've raised some friendly and polite children. I'm thinking they probably felt too old for the Trunk or Treat at City Hall, but made their own Halloween a happening.

The Beaver Moon

It actually went full sometime during Friday night. I took this shot last night (Saturday). I'll trap the moon with my camera, but I won't go out trapping beavers.

Flags, Flakes and Bikes

Saturday morning, before cars took over Watchung Avenue, a herd of bicyclists took over the street. All in all, there were a good dozen of more bikers racing through. Oh. And I guess it's Christmas season now. Way too early! Plainfield.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

Survivor 35: Heroes-Healers-Hustlers - November 1st Blog Party

As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll be updating this entry with the latest happenings. Refresh the page to get the latest! The party itself is in the comments -- join in on the discussion!

Lifeguard Laurie has updated the blog pool and here ya go:

Levu Tribe
Ashley N. - Donna NY, MikesGirl, tbc. 
Desiree W. - Delee, Mario Lee, Skyriverblue, Buzzmaam 
Devon P. - David, Margo, Laurie, Fred aka TwoBlackAces 
Joe M. - Cheryl ICNY, Krysa Gibson, Sharon C.

Soko Tribe
Ali E. - Dr_Celine, Monnie8, Tennistoe 
Chrissy H. - Donna in Alabama, meb, SueGee, KelseyNY 
JP H. - Cheryl in NC, Krisen from Ohio, Shannon
Ryan U. - Anonymouse, Glenn Allen, Nickelpeed

Yawa Tribe
Jessica J. - ChicMc, Silk, Sharon N. 
Mike Z. - Becky, Janice, Rbennie, PDX Granny 
Cole M. - Dolores in Hollywood FL, Marthalight, Stormy 
Lauren R. - Brian, Jennasmom, Rochelle, Judi Sweeney 
Ben D. - Donna in FL, Merrilee, Tammy.

Flame Extinguished 
Katrina R. - Pool People moved to a different teams.
Simone N. - 4nancie, Nana in the NW, weenabe
Patrick B. - Beachbound Gmom, Jackie, Petals, Sara Welty
Alan B. - Ed in Ohio, monty 924, Terry is a Texan
Roark L. - Auntie Leigh, Indiana Jane, Pam

Survivor fans ready?

As we could have expected, Ali is mad at Ryan for voting out Roark, with violins playing sad music in the background as she lights into him. Chrissy is thrilled, though. Ryan is thinking that he now has an enemy in the game, something he cannot afford to have.

Over on Yawa, Mike caught a fish. He's beside himself. Well, until he dropped it in the fire. Ben is getting a kick out of him. Meanwhile, Ben notices that Mike shares his small fish and Cole hogs out. Cole thinks they need him as he's the only one who can bring them victories. Uh-oh, not good gameplay, it's throwing Ben, Lauren and Mike into a solid threesome.

Reward Challenge time -- Gathering poles, balance beam, buoys, slingshot two targets. Reward ten pizzas and soft drinks. Second place gets a pizza.  

Soko wins first place, Yawa wins second.

JP knows he's in a good place because his tribe is on the weak side in challenges. Ryan thinks JP's social game might be worth making him a target as he would be dangerous after the merge.

On Levu, Ashley and Devon would like to flip Ashley to their side to go against Joe. Desi isn't blindly loyal to Joe, though. She knows that he's basically using her. Even though Devon is following him, Joe finds an idol clue without Devon catching on. It's now nighttime and he's digging for it. And, now he has it. He says he'll keep it a secret and, after the merge, he'll go find a third idol.

Whoa! It's morning and Cole just passed out. Jessica and Mike are both healers, remember. They got some rice and hydrated him. They realize they do indeed need him. But Mike is a bit leery that they need to get rid of him as he'll just keep going downhill. Ben agrees with Mike that Cole is a liability.

Immunity Challenge time -- Lauren sits out. They have to work together with ropes and balance blocks to spell Immunity.

Yawa wins first place, Levu is second place. Uh-oh for Soko!

JP tells us Ali is next ... so she probably won't be. Ryan agrees with him to his face, but tells us that JP is a big danger after the merge. He wants Ali to work with him to get rid of JP. Ali agrees with Ryan and goes to Chrissy with the plan. Chrissy is agreeable about the plan. Hmm. But she feels the need to talk it over with Ryan. 

Time for Tribal Council and Jeff's Probsting questions. JP is kind of on the hot seat, but isn't defending himself. The rain and the wind starts just after JP says that this might be a wake-up call for him. Lots of talk of trust. 

JP votes for Ali. Ali votes JP. Now it's up to Ryan and Chrissy.

The tally --
Ali, JP, Ali, Ali.

Ohh ... they turned on Ali and kept JP!

The merge is next week! 

  

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - October 29, 2017

Good afternoon! Since it's a Sunday afternoon, it's time for my off television topic reflection of the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. Yeah, I know I usually post this in the morning. But I'm in a lackadaisical mood today. If you're not interested in this, please feel free to check out my previous and newer posts I will put up after this -- they will be television related! You can find my Survivor posts at this link.

We're under a flash flood watch here today with heavy rains and heavy winds expected as the day goes on. It's raining as I get this written, but it's not really stormy ... yet. I just hope it doesn't cancel or delay my expected Peapod grocery delivery order I expect between 4pm - 6pm. 

We've certainly had worse weather around here on this day in past years. Five years ago, Hurricane (or Superstorm) Sandy hit the area turning everything topsy-turvy in the area. While I'm not close enough to a shore point to worry about ocean storm surge, the wind damage in this area was bad. My power was out nearly two weeks. And, a few days after the storm, we had a three inch or so snowstorm. I had no power, no heat. I found out the meaning of not wasting daylight. We had received possible evacuation notices from the city of Plainfield before the storm -- I live near a stream called the Green Brook and it has necessitated some boat rescues across the street in the past. In a few other storms I've seen water come up about a foot or so around my building. But here with Sandy, the rains weren't the issue. It was the wind.

The year before Sandy on this date, we had a seven inch snowstorm ... with all of the trees still bearing leaves! The wet snow brought trees down throughout Plainfield which knocked out my power for three days. Gah! We need underground cables! While I remember an earthquake back around eight years ago, they would be more reliable in this area. 

So, Halloween was canceled here two years in a row -- 2011 and 2012. Looking at the forecast this upcoming week, Halloween is the only day with lots of sunshine expected. I never have trick-or-treaters here, but I always buy something (I like) just in case. But I do know they're out there. I'm glad they'll have a good day for it.

I really don't have much photo-wise this week. I worked a lot. I'm tired. But, then again, I always feel tired. Oh, well. Onto the photos I took -- clicking on an image will bring up a larger version.

Saturday night's moon

I tried taking a shot with my cell phone, which does have a quasi-decent camera. But it came out as a white blob in the sky no matter what I did. So, this is the real camera. Hmm ... all of these shots this week are the real camera. I didn't take much with the cell phone.

Birds on a wire

Probably planning on overtaking the world and destroying humanity. Yep, they do things like that. Or, at the very least, they think about it.

Color through the trees

While the trees lining my apartment building's parking lot are still either green or shedding brown dried leaves, the neighbor has color in his backyard.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**