[Flicka Flame]

Well that was certainly intense!

Speaking of, thoughts on that vote and rock draw?

Only 7 of you left. Not much room left to hide now. Only 4 is the majority now, how do you make sure you're in the majority with such little wiggle room?

At the moment, how good are your odds of not only getting to the end but also getting the votes you need to win? More specifically, who on the jury's votes do you think you will be getting and whose do you think you will not be getting?

Who is the biggest threat right now to win and how do you make sure he/she doesn't get to the end and beat you?

What is your ideal final 3 right now? Who do you want to be sitting next to to better ensure that you win?

Are there definitive sides right now? Or is it a free for all to the end?

Remember, there's only so much game left to get to final tribal council, make sure you're doing what you need to in order to get there before time runs out. Good luck.

[Kim]

WELP that just happened! Honestly, I can't say I was surprised it happened. It was pretty obvious that everyone thought we were this tight group of 4 (Simone, Patrick, Cole, and I) and that we needed to be broken up at some point. I'm surprised they didn't come after us earlier, but oh well next best case scenario for them I suppose.

I'm gonna be a straight shooter right here right now; this might actually have been a beneficial thing for me. As of now, I've made moves and positioned myself pretty well; however, I have not really done much to make myself stand out against the crowd. If I made it to the end with say Patrick and Simone with no huge challenges, it would not have been fun (and remember, that's why I signed up to play). This way, at least I get to fight my way to the end tooth and nail and maybe even release a little inner Julie along the way.

I always knew Cole was playing for himself. From the moment we merged when I voted him, I knew that he was not someone who would just sit still. Remember, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Well I kept Cole very close and in the end, it almost made me go home. It's a risky strategy, but one that I love initiating. He deserved to go home from that rock draw. Literally, he was the decider of his own fate by doing that. It's literally so poetic and it shows even luck can have a karma kick to it.

I honestly do not think that this could have worked out better. Sure, I may not make it to the end now, but if I do, I will definitely have a case to make to the jury. For one, now I can say that I never betrayed Ryan, Roark, or Matt and they all came after me first. I know Ryan and I get along swellingly and I know he would vote for me in the end if I somehow made it there. Oh, I should probably mention that Christina and I talked after the vote and discussed moving forward in the game together. She could flat out be bullshitting me, but right now, I believe it's my best option to work with Christina and battle it out in the end like real players. Is it likely I will lose? Very possibly, but if I am going to lose to any of these dumb trolls, I'd want it to be Christina since I feel she is the only one who may deserve it more than me. I believe she mentioned herself, Simone, and I as the Final 3 and I do believe this would be a great scenario. The three biggest threats in the end battling it out. There Jeff now you can't complain about goats who don't do anything.

Assuming I made it to the end, I think I would have a much better case than I did before this since now I am in an underdog position and juries love underdogs. If that is the final 3, here is how I believe each juror would vote:

Jonas - Definitely Christina, I think he's still mad that I betrayed him, but she did too so there may be a case for me (might just vote Simone since he never had a connection with her)

Ryan - Would vote me I have no doubt about it. We connnect so well and has said multiple times how he respects me.

Leif - If he shows up, will vote either myself or Christina. It's a toss-up.

Chrissy - Most likely Christina since I think she is cheering for her as the number one underdog right now; however, we did connect well so who knows.

Ali - Honestly, as close as her and Christina were, I think there could be a case for her voting me if I play it right. However, it is very likely she just votes for Christina since she didn't betray her.

Julie - Is hardcore cheering for Christna right now, but I think if I start becoming an outwardly sassy underdog on the forums and in tribal, I could turn her over to my side.

Cole - I believe he would vote me. I made him feel guilty for not wanting to go to rocks for me and I think he would do it as a sign of good gesture.

Patrick - If I tell Patrick before he goes home that people are voting him and then don't throw a vote his way, I think he will most likely vote for me. However, if I betray him, I have no doubt he would vote for Simone over me.so I will have to make sure he knows I didn't vote for him and he was going home either way.

Matt - Honestly, I see him voting for Christina, but I have no idea with him. Christina was close to him, but I could play the "she called you a loser" card and maybe he would sway to my side. He's a swing vote.

Roark - Also a swing vote and could go either way depending on the rest of the game. I want to say she may lean towards me, but that would just be me being biased.

So as of right now, if I had to guess, I would say I would get Patrick, Cole, and Ryan and Christina would get Ali, Jonas, Chrissy, and Julie. I think Leif, Matt, and Roark would be swing votes. All I would need would be five votes because if it's a tie, I have the utmost faith that Simone would vote for me. Obviously, all of this is just pleasant conjecturing, but if I make it to the end, I think I stand a fair chance.

Right now, I believe my best bet is to stick with Christina since we're the two biggest threats left in the game. As long as she's here, she will always have a target. She said she would use her idol on me, but I have no faith that she actually would lol so my fate lies with winning immunity. Ryan also said that he wants Christina gone, but right now, I don't trust him as far as I can throw him (which surprisingly is actually pretty far). Immunity is key for me.

Spradlin Out

[Kim]

Since I can't stop coming on the board every 10 minutes to check if something new has happened in an effort to delay the inevitable, I'm going to post a monologue about my time in this game so far.

A little less than a month ago, this game began. I came into this game not expecting much and I was just excited to be a part of something that I had loved for so long. Survivor, like many of the people here, has been a life-long passion of mine and it honestly gives me such passion and lust for life that my friends outside in the real world just do not understand. To be integrated and immersed in a world of people who share this infatuation for a reality TV show has allowed me to find those who really can empathize with something I truly love. It gives me so much self-confidence to see that I'm not this needle in a haystack and there are people who are as crazy as I am.

I started this game on a tribe that was physically strong and we dominated challenges. It was so nice to just be able to talk to people who shared so many similarities with me and not have to worry about playing a backstabbing game. Now I have played in a few ORGS before this one, but every one is such a new and fresh experience that I end up being impacted so differently every time. After the first swap, I remember being absolutely devastated that I was separated from my allies Christina, Jonas, and Leif. They were my rock, my home, my friends who I trusted even though we never had to put that trust to the test originally. Instead I got stuck with two borderline Natyaya inactives and three very active Bambarun.

I remember thinking that I was done after that swap happened and that we would go on a losing streak and I would just be another long-forgotten player left in the shadows. When we lost that first challenge, my heart literally sank to the ground and I still remember the exact feeling of peril I felt at that moment. Never did I think I would feel such raw emotion for an online game. I remember collaborating with the enemy and voting out my ally Kat. It was the worst feeling in the world to vote out someone due entirely to a mistake I personally made in the challenge. She did not deserve to leave because of me and I felt like an absolute horrible person. I've blindsided people before in games, but not once has it been a straight consequence of my mistake. I kept telling myself it was a game and that it was no harm done, but I could not shake the feeling. It was at that point that I knew deciding to play this game was one of the best decisions I've made in a very long time. Feeling such pure sadness gave me a sense of what it is like to play real Survivor. Stranded was an opportunity for me to grow and prosper in an environment I felt so at home in.

After voting Kat out, I doubted myself and whether it was the wrong decision for days. I knew it was a smart move to assimilate into the original Bambarun tribe, but I couldn't help but feel I messed up. The tribunal task was such a breath of fresh air where I could do something fun and silly and just try not to worry about the repurcussions until later. After winning the next few challenges, I began to gain back my confidence and feel that I could go far. The second swap returned me with so many of my good allies and I began to see the culmination of my social game. I was ready to go into the merge with my number one Bill and adapt to whatever came my way. However, when everyone voted out Bill at the merge twist and I ended up being one of the sole votes for Cole (albeit purposely), I started to doubt my power in this game. I craved more.

At first, the merge came easy to me and I connected with everyone so well. I covered my bases all around and felt I wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. However, being allies with everyone tends to yield problems when they start going at each other and you're forced to make rash decisions you don't want to make. Right away, Jonas was a threat and he was one of my close allies. However, I knew that voting him out was a good decision and he would be a threat down the line so why not get rid of him now? After that vote, Julie was pissed with me rightfully so and I began to question my choices again. Chrissy going home was something I felt was a positive for my game and I knew it was a smart decision although it ended the Cole-Chrissy feud I helped escalate from the hinky vote. After Leif got removed, the Ali vote was where there was a turn in my gameplay.

I began to set in stone where my loyalties lied (Simone/Patrick/Cole) and I finally became reinforced by the idea that getting rid of Kat really was the right choice so long ago. I now had allies who were willing to work with me no strings attached (except Cole) and maybe even go to rocks for me ;) After the Ali vote, it became apparent to others how tight of a foursome we really were and that was when the target on my back really came together since people began to realize I was close with everyone and then wonder who I was actually close to.

The Julie vote was not something I wanted to happen. I wanted Julie to stay because she was so volatile and would never be set in stone with a single alliance. However, paranoia about idols kept that from happening and out the door Julie went to my dismay. That was the point I knew people were gonna start coming for me hard especially since the challenge called me out and people called me out at tribal hard (looking at you Joaquin and Jeff).

This past vote showed me that what I knew to be true was always true. I knew Cole was a snake from the merge onward. I even called him having an idol way back when (although not the merge one). I knew Ryan had wanted me out for awhile and was scared of me and what I was capable of. I knew Roark felt her place in our alliance was limited and even though I tried my hardest to make her feel like she had a home, I knew her fear of being a goat would get to her. I knew Matt never really wanted to work with me and just wanted me gone since he'll just go with whatever saves his own butt. I knew Patrick had my back to the moon and back. I knew Christina would call me out and come back at me for betraying her at the Ali vote. However, one thing I did NOT know was that Simone would have my back through a rock draw. That surprised me and it actually made me tear up a little inside knowing I had been thinking of her as this threat I would vote out at some point when she had my back all the way. That solidifed my thoughts on wanting her to go to the end with me and vote for her if I can't make it to the end. Being such a socially savage player yet loyal at the same time is a hard pill to swallow, but Simone managed it and I respect that so much. She showed her true colors and they ARE part of every rainbow I've ever seen.

Honestly, I'm on borrowed time right now. The only reason I'm still here is because Cole messed up the rules and everyone knows it. If I somehow made it to the end, it would be a big strike against me. But at the same time, who am I to let people tell me what I do and don't deserve. Cole messed up the rules fair and square and I'm still here. Karma's a bitch and it punished Cole for a reason. It gave me another chance.

Every time I play these games I get so socially invested with everyone else and I make all these connections with people I respect and appreciate so much. However, most of the time the connections I make are not always due to me being my real self and it ends up tearing me down. I always try to assimilate to the people around me in order to get them to like me, but then I'm not even being who I truly am. For one, I'm fantastic at pretending to be a woman, but no I do not shave my legs and no I do not get manis and pedis and no I do not keep up with Kim Kardashian and her latest trends (no shade to any guy who does). It's difficult to play this game while being enveloped in one big huge lie. I'm developing relationships with people who have no idea who I really am. If I say 'girl' one more time, I might just faint. It's the nature of the game we're playing, but it's a hard pill to swallow knowing so much of what I'm saying is fake and not the real me.

So if I do go home tonight, I will be proud of the game I played and I will not be upset with myself for not making it to the end. No Jeff, this is not me giving up, this is me coming to terms ahead of time with the game I played. Trust me, I'm not ready to go home yet and I'm gonna bust my butt to stay here, but this game has already given me the motivation and renewal I needed to be who I really am again.

[Jeff Probst]

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