Post by svengali on Feb 19, 2015 22:56:23 GMT
In honor of the new Pygmy Island I feel compelled to share my story. It’s the story of how I wandered onto the original island and how wanting to be on Survivor became an unintended pseudo hobby.
When Survivor first aired I didn’t watch it. I didn’t get it and furthermore I didn’t care. I did see part of the last episode of Borneo because I was picking up a friend and he was glued to his TV. I saw the Rats and Snakes speech, but without any context it really didn’t mean anything to me. My wife and I were dating at the time and if I called her on Thursday night she’d rush me off the phone and call me back later.
Fast forward a few years, my wife and I are married and living in a small apartment. Being in retail I get home after the 8pm shows aired so I never watched with my wife. When Johnny Fairplay was telling his grandmother tale I was crossing through the room as my wife was watching.
“That guy’s lying.” I said.
“How do you know?” asked my wife.
“Because I own a business and people lie to me everyday. My bullshit meter has been finely tuned be actual reality, not reality TV.”
This exchange took place just before Fairplay admitted he was full of it. And in those few seconds I took a seat. The Pearl Islands sucked me in and All Stars after that.
Like all of us Pygmies I found the show intriguing and imagined how awesome it would be to play. In researching how to get on the show I found my way to Survivor Sucks and from there read the ramblings of a guy like me. He also had a passion for the game and he even set up a website on Comcast devoted to people trying to get on Survivor. That Comcast site was the predecessor to Pygmy Island and the guy is the Laughing Pygmy.
When the original Pygmy Island opened I joined right away, but I probably didn’t have 100 posts in all the years in existed. I visited the site often and read everything all of you said, but I felt it important to keep a level of anonymity so that I thought casting required.
Like everyone else I made videos for most casting cycles. Some I thought were pretty good, some less good. (Obviously, none good enough for the actual CA’s.) I evolved into a Super Fan of sorts. I’ve seen almost every episode since S9. I found myself watching more as training for when I’m on Survivor.
My first daughter was born and I skipped a couple casting cycles. I thought it would irresponsible to leave my wife with a new born. By the time my second daughter was born I realized my wife handles everything fine with or without me.
When Nicaragua aired I felt I missed the boat. A whole tribe of people over 40 … How did I not get a call for this? After Dr. Jill got booted and I read she was a Suckster I messaged her through Sucks to ask some questions. She messaged back that she had spoken at length on Rob Has A Podcast. THERE’S A PODCAST ALL ABOUT SURVIVOR, HOW DID I MISS THAT?
Listening to Survivor podcasts really changed the way I both watched the game and applied to be cast. I listen to RHAP for insightful commentary and I listen to Survivor Oz as he tries to interview every Survivor. I’ve learned a few things about casting from listening to them. I’d be happy to share those thoughts in another post, but the one thing I take away from both podcasts is that Survivor hasn’t been “16 ordinary Americans” in a long time.
Back to the original Pygmy Island …
When Randy and Susie got cast I realized while I had been around PI since its inception I made no inroads with any other Pygmies. I didn’t share my true identity. I didn’t seek any opinions on my application videos. I didn’t take the time to get to know anyone. A Pygmy lives in the same town as my business and there’s a good chance we have mutual acquaintances but I never reached out.
We all watched as Pygmy Island sort of died. I think many of you just moved on to facebook since you already knew who each other was (or is). It’s funny to me that Scotty recently said he never put Jeff and Svengali together. (I’ve been a facebook friend for a couple years with LP.) Anyway, I’m glad to see this resurrection of the Island. I hope to see many of the familiar names and this time I hope to join in the dialogue. I’d be happy to share some of my casting videos and listen to your opinions. Like everyone else I think I’d be perfect for the game.
When Survivor first aired I didn’t watch it. I didn’t get it and furthermore I didn’t care. I did see part of the last episode of Borneo because I was picking up a friend and he was glued to his TV. I saw the Rats and Snakes speech, but without any context it really didn’t mean anything to me. My wife and I were dating at the time and if I called her on Thursday night she’d rush me off the phone and call me back later.
Fast forward a few years, my wife and I are married and living in a small apartment. Being in retail I get home after the 8pm shows aired so I never watched with my wife. When Johnny Fairplay was telling his grandmother tale I was crossing through the room as my wife was watching.
“That guy’s lying.” I said.
“How do you know?” asked my wife.
“Because I own a business and people lie to me everyday. My bullshit meter has been finely tuned be actual reality, not reality TV.”
This exchange took place just before Fairplay admitted he was full of it. And in those few seconds I took a seat. The Pearl Islands sucked me in and All Stars after that.
Like all of us Pygmies I found the show intriguing and imagined how awesome it would be to play. In researching how to get on the show I found my way to Survivor Sucks and from there read the ramblings of a guy like me. He also had a passion for the game and he even set up a website on Comcast devoted to people trying to get on Survivor. That Comcast site was the predecessor to Pygmy Island and the guy is the Laughing Pygmy.
When the original Pygmy Island opened I joined right away, but I probably didn’t have 100 posts in all the years in existed. I visited the site often and read everything all of you said, but I felt it important to keep a level of anonymity so that I thought casting required.
Like everyone else I made videos for most casting cycles. Some I thought were pretty good, some less good. (Obviously, none good enough for the actual CA’s.) I evolved into a Super Fan of sorts. I’ve seen almost every episode since S9. I found myself watching more as training for when I’m on Survivor.
My first daughter was born and I skipped a couple casting cycles. I thought it would irresponsible to leave my wife with a new born. By the time my second daughter was born I realized my wife handles everything fine with or without me.
When Nicaragua aired I felt I missed the boat. A whole tribe of people over 40 … How did I not get a call for this? After Dr. Jill got booted and I read she was a Suckster I messaged her through Sucks to ask some questions. She messaged back that she had spoken at length on Rob Has A Podcast. THERE’S A PODCAST ALL ABOUT SURVIVOR, HOW DID I MISS THAT?
Listening to Survivor podcasts really changed the way I both watched the game and applied to be cast. I listen to RHAP for insightful commentary and I listen to Survivor Oz as he tries to interview every Survivor. I’ve learned a few things about casting from listening to them. I’d be happy to share those thoughts in another post, but the one thing I take away from both podcasts is that Survivor hasn’t been “16 ordinary Americans” in a long time.
Back to the original Pygmy Island …
When Randy and Susie got cast I realized while I had been around PI since its inception I made no inroads with any other Pygmies. I didn’t share my true identity. I didn’t seek any opinions on my application videos. I didn’t take the time to get to know anyone. A Pygmy lives in the same town as my business and there’s a good chance we have mutual acquaintances but I never reached out.
We all watched as Pygmy Island sort of died. I think many of you just moved on to facebook since you already knew who each other was (or is). It’s funny to me that Scotty recently said he never put Jeff and Svengali together. (I’ve been a facebook friend for a couple years with LP.) Anyway, I’m glad to see this resurrection of the Island. I hope to see many of the familiar names and this time I hope to join in the dialogue. I’d be happy to share some of my casting videos and listen to your opinions. Like everyone else I think I’d be perfect for the game.
