Episode 12

You have the whole weekend ahead of you, so lots of questions that I hope you can give us some serious insight into where your mind is at, closing into this final week of potential mayhem.

Is it a relief that Mia's gone? Are you satisfied with the move? How does it change the game, now?

Talk me through the four others that joined you in voting her out tonight. What are the dynamics of that group?

Do you want that group of five to go to the top? If they do, what would happen next?

Do you think anyone within that group of five will turn on you specifically, or defect to the two outsiders who voted for you tonight? Is there anyone among that five who you think needs to go before the two outsiders?

Then, let's focus on jury. Who do you ideally want to be in the end with? Why? Who do you definitely NOT want to be in the end with? Why? If you make it to the end, who do you think you'd most likely be with? Based on feasibility of them making it that for, or working with you to get there?

I want to know about the current state of your relationship with Tom. I think it's fair to say it started off strong but has been a little rocky lately? Where does the trust level between you two sit right now?

Phew! That was a close one! I am so thrilled to still be alive and kicking in this game. I can tell you that the five minutes waiting to see whether Mia would play her idol or not were quite possibly the longest of my life. I felt physically sick. After getting past that hurdle successfully, I then saw the first vote for me come up. I knew instantly that I had been lied to regarding the votes for Lisa, which wasn't a big surprise, so I thought my best chance was a tied vote. Then out of nowhere there was a fifth vote for Mia and she was sent packing with her idol tucked into her bra. What a relief.

I am glad that Mia is gone, and not only for strategic reasons. I grew so tired of people praising her and saying how she'll be a lock for All-Stars. Maybe I'm just bitter and jealous, but I don't think Mia's impressive at all. She was in serious danger on her original tribe, was lucky to have been saved by the switch, couldn't understand basic challenge instructions, was "outspoken" about nothing of substance or entertainment value, had a poor social game and a big ego. Oh, am I supposed to be impressed that you made a fake immunity idol? Bitch please. I love a fiesty female as much as the next guy, but Mia was a wannabe and I took pleasure in sending her packing.

The five votes for Mia were cast by myself, Ibrehem, Chad, Kim, and Tom. I was prepared to go to a tie-breaker, but Kim worked her magic and got Tom to vote with us. I will get to Tom later, but out of this group I am closest to Ibrehem. He's the underdog and I've joined him in a quest to take down those who think they're in charge. Chad was a critical player in the vote because everybody was vying for his allegiance. I think his decision to side with me and commit to my plan was in no small part due to how I have treated him since the second switch. Mia, Ami, and Lisa have been using Chad as part of an original Guatuso alliance, but I put in the effort to connect with him and make him feel understood and important. I have never been sure of where Kim stands. She is mysterious in her ways, and I like that. It makes it difficult to trust her though. I am hoping that they all remain loyal and that the next vote will be a simple one for a change.

The misfit foursome of Ibrehem, Chad, Kim, and I now have the majority in the final 7. The dynamics of the game have been completely flipped on their head which is all kinds of amazing. I could have stayed true to Tom/Mia/Ami, but that would have been boring and I probably would have been voted off as a jury threat along the way. Ami ever so kindly pointed out that I'm a jury threat in her vote for me, but I think that perception may have changed now that everybody knows how two-faced I can be.

It's unlikely that the four of us will make it to the end intact given how wild this post-merge has been. Ibrehem and Kim would be tough to beat in front of the jury, so I may need to cut them in favour of Lisa. I may be able to win against Lisa and Chad. Chad I can continue to work with, and Lisa I plan to keep in the game without even talking to her. She poses no threat to anybody and will probably float her way to the end even without me trying to keep the vote away from her. So considering the hypothetical final 3 of Lisa, Chad, and I, I think it would be a two-horse race. If the jury decided to vote for Lisa to win it would be hilarious and I would respect Lisa for doing what she needed to do (i.e. nothing), but I think it would more likely be a close vote between Chad and I. After all, he has screwed over many of the same people I have. I actually think this final 3 is fairly feasible.

Now onto Tom. Tom sent me a nasty private message after the Mia vote calling me a "dumbass", saying that I have been "idiotic", and acting as if he is the only reason I am still in the game. Of course in my reply I acted very apologetic and grateful, but I wanted to point out to him that he is no longer in control, that he is acting like a pompous ass, and that this is just a game. It's true that we were close at the beginning and worked well as a duo. However, I always confessed that it was my strategy to get in good with the leader until it was time for me to step out from behind the scenes. I have lost Tom's trust (not completely, but significantly), yet I have gained the trust of at least two others in Ibrehem and Chad. As for me, I haven't completely trusted Tom since he got in tight with Mia and Ami and then expected me to be OK with voting out Jolanda and Gregg. I still really like Tom as a person and hope he will eventually see why I have done what I have done. I came here to meet some like-minded people, to have some fun, and more importantly to try my very best to win.

As a prolific clue-taker in the early game, any thoughts on chasing down the Terrabas idol? What's the risk/reward ratio on clue:disadvantage for you?

If I was able to take the clue in private, as in the pre-merge game, I wouldn't hesitate to do so. It's not the challenge disadvantage that worries me, it's the target that would be painted on my back. There are only two situations in which I will seriously consider taking the clue:
1 - If I feel like there is a very good chance of me being voted out next. I would weigh up the likelihood of me winning the particular challenge with the likelihood of me finding the idol in one day with one clue.
2 - If somebody else takes the clue. Taking the clue in this situation would reduce the potential target as it would be shared with somebody else and I could justify the move as wanting to stop the other person from finding the idol first.

So we can forget about the idol speculation at least. How much of a game-changer is this for you? Do you plan to tell anyone about it? Do you think you'll need it anytime soon?

No clues is impressive, how many attempts / much work / long did it take you to get in there?

Finding the idol is a big game-changer for me. Even if it just guarantees that I make it through tonight's vote, it gives me another day to talk to people and another chance of winning an immunity challenge. Ideally I won't need to play it tonight, but I dread the idea of being voted out like Mia with the idol in my pocket. I do not plan to tell anybody about my idol until the moment I play it at Tribal Council. Given that I found it without opting for a clue at the challenge, nobody has any reason to suspect that I have it.

It took me no longer than half an hour to find the idol. Firstly I tried all of the cantons. Then I tried a number of Costa Rican landmarks. Lake Arenal is the largest lake, and it worked!

I have to chuckle at all the clues you took for the Chorotegan one for nowt, then find this one with none :D

Hahaha, tell me about it!

I will also take this moment before I crawl into bed to heartily lol at all your PM chains.

If you get a minute, what do you think the bigger picture is right now? Gimme a snapshot of the overall dynamic and what you think the vote count and from who and where will be tonight?

Is that idol starting to weigh heavily around your neck yet??

The number of sad faces I have used in the last hour amuses me. I have even wished a couple of people good luck for the rest of the game, resigned to the fact that I'm going tonight. Without this idol I would be working a lot harder to ensure I don't get the majority of the votes. I'm almost certain I will play it tonight because here's how I see the votes:

Voting for Chad: Ibrehem, Bobby Jon
Voting for Bobby Jon: Chad, Lisa, Ami
Unsure: Tom, Kim

This is going to be fun

If that is all the case, and you and Ibe decide who goes home if your idol mops up votes that come your way (if they do), why Chad in particular if you have carté blanche on the boot?

Is that down to his threat level, your trust level, set-up for the next round or what? Why him before any other player?

Chad is too much of a threat. He's sitting comfortably in the middle of everybody and he has no issues telling one side what he hears from the other. I trust Ibrehem, but I don't want to tell him about my idol which I would need to do to justify changing our votes. There's also the fact that it's still possible Chad will get the majority of the votes, and if I'm part of that I might be slightly better off in the next round.