Round # 3 Confessional

[ellen]

12/22/12

Round # 3 Questionnaire

1. Who do you trust the most on your tribe?

I would have to say that when it comes to pure trustworthiness, I get the best vibes from Ben and especially Colleen. I don't think that they would try to back stab or blindside me.

2. Who do you think is running things on your tribe?

It's funny, perception isn't always reality. The RED Alliance is definitely the decision making core of our tribe, but it's debatable on which of the three of us is the real string puller... Dominic I think feels that he's the one running the show... but honestly, the way I see it, Ryan and I that are the ones calling the actual shots.

I think that I'm probably better connected overall than Ryan but at the same time I know that Dominic feels closer to Ryan than he does to me, so it's really debatable which of us two is at the actual helm.

3. Do you think you have anything to be worried about?

I'm of the philosophy that one should never, ever feel comfortable in this game. I will go to Tribal Council always expecting the worst... it's usually the minute you start to get comfortable that things start to unravel.

4. What do you think of the secret partners twist?

I think it could be interesting to see if the twist affects game play down the stretch, especially when it comes to partners on opposite tribes.

I also think that not having a partner anymore might end up being a blessing in disguise for me going forward.

5. Are you worried about the locked door?

I'm not worried about the locked door yet, but if I don't know more about it's contents soon then I might be.

12/22/12

When we learned that Paige had been the one to go out over on Liberty, Colleen confided in me that she and Paige had been a secret pairing... Paige was her daughter.

I can definitely empathize with her situation, losing not just her partner early on, but her child as well.

Because of that, I felt compelled to share my own loss with her and I think that it's bonded us even closer together than we were before.

It just makes sense for the two of us to work together at this point. So we agreed, we're partners now, two original halves creating a new whole.

12/22/12

Dominic is definitely an alpha player in this game, and he makes little to no effort at hiding it. His performance in the challenge so far has been above phenomenal and I don't know how the Liberty people couldn't be scared shitless of him at this point; especially given his smugness about it all.

Ryan and I have been comparing notes and just strategizing about how things could hash out down the stretch and it's just clearer and clearer to us both how much of an asset Dominic is to have around.

He's arrogant, he has a big mouth and he's a complete threat to win pretty much any challenge thrown his way... it's like a cocktail for perfection, the perfect storm really... Dom could write the book on how to become a target in this game.

And believe me, I am beyond fine with him playing that way, balls-to-the-wall, guns blazing, because it distracts everyone else from me. He's the perfect shield.

[ellen]

12/23/12

Once again it came down to the wire and once again we delivered. Liberty has got to be absolutely demoralized at this point.

I'm sure it's even worse for them considering the fact that they clearly thought they had this one in the bag.

I've got to admit, that last minute stunt they tried to pull was pretty clever... but we were prepared. Chase jumped the gun a little to soon and that gave us just enough time to swoop in and steal the win.

It feels so wonderful to have a leg up on the competition. This victory was absolutely huge for us.

12/23/12

Today Tina approached me, which was a surprise, because I'd just naturally assumed until now that she hated me.

Sure, it's been obvious to everyone that she feels insecure about her position over here but I definitely didn't expect to be the one she'd approach when looking for someone to turn too.

I'm going with it though, because while I'm pretty confident and already set up quite securely with my alliances, I think that having Tina in my back pocket can't be a bad thing.

For my game, I need Tina to stick with Ellis in any sort of mix-up that might happen with the tribes and unless she feels comfortable with someone, she's going to jump ship at the first opportunity.

I'm all about keeping my options open and having backup plans for any situation that might present itself. Am I exploiting Tina's insecurity and eagerness for an alliance? Probably, but I don't see that as malicious; I see that as good, smart game-play.

12/23/12

Up until now I've been separately aligned with both Colleen and Ryan, however early this morning, all of that changed.

Out of almost no where and without asking me first, Ryan decided that it would be a great idea to proposition Colleen about a possible quartet including the three of us ladies and Ben.

I don't know whether to chalk it up to a post challenge victory high, delirium from a lack of sleep or just plain old sloppiness, but what Ryan did was reckless. It could have cost us too if I wasn't there to run damage control on Colleen the entire time.

Colleen honestly seemed a little bit taken aback by how forward Ryan was about it all; I think she might have even been a little spooked, but I know that a solid alliance is what she's been waiting for, so I weighed the pros and cons with her and I steered her to what I think is a spot that she's comfortable with.

Now Ryan or I (preferably -I-) just have to get to Ben before Colleen does, or we'll run the risk of looking extremely shady bringing him into a side alliance without his knowledge or consent.

I swear, playing this game is like a full time job!