I think she was assigned the task of staying behind to watch the fire, rather than missing the clue bus when everybody walked out of camp. Plus, there was certainly a pile of work that needed doing around camp…
Fuck this show, too! I’m sick to death of producers framing people to behave their worst and meanest so they can sell some fucking ad slots. I don’t need to see people at their ugliest to make myself feel worthy. This whole nasty-reality trend stinks. I guess everyone else must love it, because they’re multiplying like rabbits. But I’ve had it.
I think Christy, the deaf girl, will turn out to be a favorite of a lot of guys, at least she’s my favorite. She’s cute, she’s got a killer smile, and her deafness and isolation kick in my protector instincts.
I wanted to slap that Dave guy during his little post IC speech. So, your integrity made you dislike the lying about the fishing? Funny, your integrity didn’t seem to want to speak up at the time. IMO, he was just pissed off about losing, and his “integrity” didn’t want to point a finger at the two losers who kept falling off the beam.
Man, on man, 3 days in the jungle and no one has found any food? Have they even looked? I know that in other shows they have taught the contestants what foods they can scavenge, fruits, leaves, berries, insects, whatever, they probably did that here too.
As for the machetes, take it from someone who has cut down more sugar cane than I’ve ever wanted to: those things can be dangerous. Always cut backhanded, away from you. Otherwise what can happen is, you take a big swing, cut right through whatever you were aiming for, machete swings right through and into your side, leg, arm whatever. I hope they taught them how to use them, or at least gave them dull machetes.
And finally, why do people in Survivor who are given fishing line feel the need to attach that line to a stick? Here’s how it works, attach the hook to the line, bait it, throw the line in the water, and hold the line between your fingers. That way you can actually feel when something bites, and you have a chance to hook the dang thing. Every survivor it’s the same thing.
Dinsdale, you made a good point. She really could use her deafness to her advantage that way, and so could other women.
Minty, I bought most of what you said, but I think you ragged on Joanna a bit hard by saying her faith would get on people’s nerves. After all, the vast majority of people are not atheists, and a rather assertive “Jesus Freak” was one of the million dollar winners. 
One sure sign that this is going to be a good series is that this thread, about the very first show, is itself a very interesting read!
Actually, they just sucked slightly less. 
Darnit. Boy, do I feel sheepish.
I’m all for good gospel singing when you’re sitting around the fire waxing philosophical, but not when you’re trying to fish!!!
Well, yes, if you were: a) in the later part of the game when you were competing AGAINST her; and b) if winning the million bucks was more important to you than appearing to be an insensitive jerk in front of your family and a couple million people.
Although she isn’t Deaf (which seems to be your context of the word), she does seem to be deaf. The word Deaf with capital D refers to those who identify with Deaf Culture. The word deaf with an uncapitalized d most often refers to those who have a particular kind of hearing loss…namely severe to profound deafness. The term “deaf” is used especially by those who cannot hear anything significant without the aid of powerful amplification. Christy is obviously using the “small d” version of the word, and so do I when I describe myself.
So I’m deaf, but I’m not Deaf.
Hard of hearing is a more general term that can apply to many individuals with hearing loss not as severe as Christy’s or mine; I have never used this term to describe myself.
She has worn hearing aids for nearly her entire life. She’s probably figured out by now how to handle the situation when it rains.
Me? I have an umbrella, and for greater portability, I also have a water-proofed hat that works very well in protecting the hearing aids from rain. Not really a big deal for me, and I doubt that the concept of rain worries Christy all that much. I’d be more worried about accidentally falling into the Amazon.
Or she probably understood enough of what Jeff Probst was saying that it wasn’t a problem. The instructions were rather elaborate, and I don’t think she was just figuring it out as she went along. She wants to win, just as everyone else, and if I were her, I’d make damn sure I knew what the rules are in winning a particular Immunity Challenge.
Regarding the question of whether Jeff Probst explains the challenges at the time or they have them explained previously, algernon wondered:
I believe they don’t know what to expect until they get there. We may see an EDITED version of Probst explaining it, however, so it’s not quite as bing-bang-boom as it looks to us.
Also, we have to remember that this editing goes on in other places as well. We saw a lot of clips of the men talking about the women and acting macho, but how many minutes did it add up to out of the three days they were there?
Nope, I just went back and watched it on my Tivo. She didn’t know what was going on when everyone just walked away, and she just said, “jee, I guess I’ll watch the fire” and was a little hacked about it.
Lib, I think I might use that first sentence of yours as my new sig. Sure beats being called the parent from hell by some dumbfuck over in IMHO! 
One thing I really like about Survivor is trying to figure how I would like to imagine handling myself in a similar scenario. Who am I fooling - I’d probably have pissed everyone else off within a day or two at most. But you really wonder if these guys give any thought into how they will appear on TV, with some of the things they say.
I recalled pneumatic-Dan saying the girl would be rank - not himself. He struck me as a little - I don’t know - odd. Seemed a little insecure. Like when he was looking from face to face while doing the 8-ball goof. Seems like he is looking at people for cues on how to react, rather than simply acting naturally.
I also am surprised no one has suggested frying up some bugs. Heck, its a good bet you (or your loved one) will have to eat worse before you’re outta there.
Regarding Christy and the challenges - she could do well enough just by following peoples’ leads and getting her body in the rright place at the right time. There are always plenty of folks willing to give orders. Not sure anyone ever got punished - at least early - for being a good follower.
Same with around camp. I second the suggestion above that she simply tap someone on the shoulder and say, “What’s up? Anything I can do?” Or lacking that, say, “I’m going to do this.” Or when left behind at the camp, fucking DO SOMETHING! Collect some damn wood, boil some water, or something. Don’t just mope around about not being included. I bet the major share of the teamates’ “rudeness” comes from ignorance, rather than meanness.
So what do you think gets tossed into the women’s box next week that someone has to “fess up” for?
This week at the start, the guys were too smug. On the previews, the now smug ladies look to get their attitudes adjusted. Oops, no shelter. Glad you boiled your drawers though.
I missed the previews for what’s coming up next week…what’s the deal with the locked box?
It should be more than that. The biggest of Christy’s dilemma is that she doesn’t know what’s going on around her, so she doesn’t even know that the opportunity to pitch in exists. Because of that, I think she would be wise to line up somebody to assume primary responsibility for keeping her informed about what’s going on, at camp and in challenges. In addition to being the most practical way of ensuring that Christy is able to contribute to the tribe, it would also be a darned good way to forge an alliance. Again, I’d suggest Deena should be that person.
Kel’s beef jerky.
On a fansite, somebody mentioned seeing an interview with Jeff where he pointed out he had talked to Christy ahead of time and arranged a signal of some sort, where if she didn’t hear what he just said, he’d repeat it so she could read his lips the second time. Keep your eyes open for him doing things like saying, “Let me repeat that,” or, “This is important, so I’ll say it again…”
Yeah, minty - I strongly agree that she should seek out an alliance. But come on - she doesn’t know what’s going on around her?!
The girl is deaf/hard of hearing. Not blind and mentally deficient as well. She saw her teamates heading off to do something. Tho she may not have know exactly what, she certainly could have tagged along to see if she could have helped. In the process she could have learned something, developed friendships, and/or be seen as contributing.
Instead, she made the decision to mope around the camp, ensuring that she would miss out on whatever transpired without her, and appearing to isolate herself. Good strategy for an early ouster.
I can’t recall anyone getting special “sympathy” consideration on previous Survivors. Not saying Christy wants any special treatment. But people who are perceived as “high maintenance” are generally booted pretty quick. Or simply carried along for a while for purely strategic purposes.
I realize this isn’t an exact correlation with Christy, but it struck me as interesting when Butch asked the guys to smell what was in the bottle and tell him if it was kerosene, because his sense of smell is gone. Speaking as somebody with no sense of smell, I think that would be an advantage, particularly late in the game…
umm, Dinsdale, she’s an outdoor activities coordinator. Think maybe she figured it was a bad idea to build a big fire and then have everybody wander off into the woods? We’ve all been saying she seems like a smart lady; let’s give her at least that much credit…
upon review, I see that the mention of the interview with Jeff was posted above by singular1, so I am, in fact, a big doof.
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Guess who was on Designer’s Challenge today!?
Tina Wesson, winner of Survivor Outback
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Hey eth - I always heard people talk about how good you smelled! Or were they just saying you smell?
Maybe she was practicing outdoors sense. But they didn’t show her making any effort to even “appear” busy around camp.
Tending a fire responsibly does not mean staring at it from 5 feet away without blinking. And that camp was a mess. It isn’t as though it should have been too hard to find some “improvement” to surprise her teammates with when they returned. All the while making sure she didn’t burn down the river.