Why should I bother considering writing your name down here?
You should consider writing my name down to win by realizing there's more than one way to skin a cat, and there's more than one way to win the game of Survivor. You said it yourself, David played a riskier game, and I played a less risky game. I had everyone looking at me as someone that they could turn to and work with, yet David did not do that. Your ouster came from a place of desperation, stating that you wanted to make a move, namely because it was becoming painfully obvious or was already completely obvious as to what was happening at that point, and so for that you were able to secure yourself a few more rounds. In doing that though, you had become a threatening player, and someone that was going to be able to use that say, where I'm sitting now, as a reason to win the game. You should consider me to win the game because I was doing my best to secure my position round after round, and successfully did that. I did not receive a single vote to leave this game the entire time, which should speak volumes. No one ever thought that I was the person that needed to leave the game, and whenever it even WAS discussed, the pudding never proved it was something that was doable or the best thing to do, although David burned bridges and did not manage closely enough his personal relationships all for the sake of taking risks to be able to own up to at the end. There is the concept of risk and reward, but even in taking those risks, you are also risking that you won't be rewarded. I took quiet risks, but none that had me especially in hot water. The one moment I did have my neck in hot water, I was able to win the immunity challenge and secure myself a spot in the final 3. I had an excellent sense of who to talk to and when, and through that awareness of the game, was able to realize that the BEST way for me to make it to the end to even have the chance to win was to play from a quietly powerful position, instead of trying to be a powerhouse of a strategic player, the way that David is claiming to be right now.
Does a self proclaimed puppet like yourself deserve any votes from us?
My proclamation of me being a puppet was done in an extremely intentional way, and in a way, that is me taking a risk. I took a risk by dragging my own name through the mud so that I could end up here at the end, and it paid off. If I played more aggressively and more strategically and went specifically for David or Sharn at any point other than when I did, it could have completely backfired and meant that I'm sitting on the jury and Sharn is sitting here where I am, more than likely taking the entire game home. I had to play like a puppet, but I was a completely sentient, hyper vigilant puppet. I used masterful ways of knowing how to socialize in these games and diminished my own threat level to make sure I made it to the end. You can't win the game if you don't make it to the end of the game. I did what I had to do to make sure that happened. David did not put himself in a position where he could have played this way, because he'd made way too big of a name for himself and made enemies along the way. He was consistently being looked at as someone that needed to go. The difference between the game that I played and what a typical "goat" would play, is that a goat really is just strung along for the ride and is happy to be here, but I was not just strung along. I proved that I was a strong social player, strong in challenges, and was not someone that had dropped to an invisible status. I was always in the mix and did not just sit back. I acted as a puppet, but I was not one.
What active choices did *you* make to further your own position in the game, instead of just relying on someone else to take the fall every day?
I've spoken on this already, but I made the active choice to vote in the minority with Kylie to further my own position in the game. This is something that David did not have the gall to do, and was instead willing to put his game on the line for the sake of voting in the majority during the Tessa vote. Voting for Tessa ultimately did benefit me, although I knew that Tegan was close to her and did not want to do that. I was still able to keep a strong relationship with Tegan even after that happened, and also a strong relationship with the Imanpa 4 + Sarah. I voted for Mat after Ben had won immunity at the Final 6 because it was becoming evident that the foundation that we had went far into the game on had crumbled and no longer existed. I specifically used Kylie and Mat as some of my closest allies in the same way that David did, but played a critical hand in each of them going in the way that David didn't. Also, I think every tribal council that exists is you relying on someone else to take the fall.
Let's suppose a hypothetical twist where you got to pick one of us jurors to join you as a finalist, making the other 10 vote among an F3. Who would you pick, and why?
I would pick Michelle. Michelle, as I've mentioned, (and I'm only picking Michelle because I more closely worked with her for a longer period of time and was particularly blindsided during her boot - my ideal F3 would have been Michelle, Tegan, and me) was the person that I was wanting to go all the way to the end with. I would have taken Michelle to prove my loyalty in this game and that it was my own decisive loyalty to her that we both ended up in the finals and not a combination of me + 2 Imanpas or Sarah.
And the converse of that, let's say you won a power to nullify a jury vote entirely. Whose vote would you cross out, and why?
Call it a cop out answer, but I'm gonna say Nova's vote. I think it's clear to me that Nova would be voting for David tonight, based solely on the fact that they existed in the game for a longer amount of time and I also feel like Nova would not be able to see how strong of a game I played without getting to know me more closely. I never got a chance to get to know Nova that well whereas David had more opportunity to.
Anyway, I hope you realize that my game wasn't devoid of risk, but that even if there was less risk involved than David, that it should be considered if that's really what you want to base your vote on. I played a very intelligent and socially driven game.
Thanks, Baden!
