Post by Heather on Jan 21, 2015 22:44:26 GMT -5
Hey jurors! I’ll try to make this
The first thing that I had to adapt to obviously was being coupled with someone. Caleb was a polarizing player in this game to say the least. Being shackled to him might have been seen as detriment to some people but I looked at it as an opportunity. Caleb was someone who, if given loyalty, was always going to be loyal to me back. He was my closest ally for the first few weeks of this game, and while that might have earned me some enemies, he was also my shield. I knew that as long as Caleb was in the game, I wasn’t going anywhere. He was always going to be targeted before me.
After Caleb’s eviction I took the opportunity presented to me in stride and I began to distance myself from the sort of reputation that he had built around us. Instead of being volatile and getting too caught up in the side wars, I formed working relationships with people outside of my alliance, namely Danielle and Ryan, and it was also around this time that I solidified my allegiance to Nicole. Shortly after this I won what I believe was one of the most important Head of Household wins of the game. By outlasting Victoria in 'Hang Ten' I was able to ensure that the momentum didn’t shift entirely to the Danielle, Matt, Ryan and Victoria side of the house. I truly believe that they could have steamrolled through to the endgame had they kept their numbers that week. Although I didn’t have a set upon target, Ryan winning the Veto worked out great for me (as it would again in future rounds) and a major target stayed in, while a more personal threat to my game (Matt) left.
Then of course the #Comeback happened, which easily could have thrown a wrench into my plans but I was honestly elated when Jerry was the one to return. Out of everyone (including Caleb) I felt that he was the most neutral person and would thus be the most flexible and the most beneficial for my game going forward. I had also been one of the only people (if not the only one) to tell Jerry the truth about his eviction the first time that he left, which spared him from being blindsided. That prior moment of honesty helped me remedy any potential damage done to my relationship with Jerry by the rest of the pre-jurors. Furthermore, I decided before results were posted that if I ended up winning the #Comeback Comp, that I would not bring Caleb back. I had moved on by that point, I’d adapted my strategy to play without him, and although Cabe would have been a number for me, my game had evolved. I really believed (and still do believe) that bringing Caleb back would have done more harm to my game than good. Jerry won anyway, but had it been me, he (Jerry) would have been my choice to return hands down (sorry Cabe! 
)
)Ryan offering a deal (a deal that I later pushed to have Nicole included in) spared me from being targeted during his first Head of Household reign playing as singles (the round that I ended up winning Veto anyway) but that truce didn’t last long since Nicole nominated Danielle and Ryan the following round. The house seemed to really unify at this point around getting Ryan out, and although he was hardcore after Nicole and me as a pair from that point on, I knew that I could work that to our advantage.
I realized around this period, as Nicole and Ryan crisscrossed competition wins, that the endgame was likely going to include Ryan whether I wanted him there or not and, once again willing to adapt, I made peace with his presence and I began to restructure my game to play around him rather than strictly against him. When Jessica and I were nominated together following Nicole’s first Veto win, I was assured that I was staying, but my intuition told me that something was amiss and I went into overdrive to ensure that Donny and Jerry saw me as a better asset to them than Jess. In spite of many factors that should have worked against me, I convinced them (mostly Jerry I believe) to change their minds and keep me.
The way I saw it, from then on, while I was ready to get Ryan out if the opportunity ever presented itself, if he was in the Final Three then it didn’t really matter as long as I knew that I could make it there too (hopefully with Nicole in tow.) I was confident that I could win the endurance portion of the last Head of Household Comp and so the worst case scenario in my mind was going to be him and I facing off in the crapshoot that is Part Three. It wasn’t the most ideal scenario, but the odds could have definitely been way worse, so I was content and I didn’t let his past domination intimidate me or psych me out. From where I’m sitting I’d say that it all worked out pretty well for me.
I know that some of you aren’t fans of mine right now and that’s okay, but I truly gave 100% of myself and played the hell out of this game. Everything that I did was with the goal of getting to this point (preferably with Nicole) and with winning in mind. I hope that even if you are upset with me that you know that nothing was ever done personally or with malicious intent and that I enjoyed you all as people and as fellow game players. I’m looking forward to answering any questions that you all have. Thank you for your consideration and good luck Nicole!
(Also sorry, this ended up being way longer than I originally intended for it to be!)
(Also sorry, this ended up being way longer than I originally intended for it to be!)
