Ryan:
OK, sorry my last confessional was so salty. I'm delighted that Keith played an idol and my vote with Ben went through. I still have zero votes cast against me, which I can't believe.
Johnny wins again. No one is surprised.
We're down to the wire, and I am frankly exhausted. I'm trying to keep hope alive, but now that I know there's a F2 I am becoming less and less confident that I will be there, and less confident, too, that people will even respect my game if I do get there.
I haven't been able to find any idols, and I have only 1 immunity win under my belt. I feel like I've played a really solid game of positioning and evading votes, and that has been the one thing I've had to rely on to make it this far. I came into the merge with solid relationships across the board, and then I decided to pick a side, stick to it, and make sure I had the best relationships within that group. I feel like I'm solid with Ben, solid with Keith, and solid with Eric, and I think Eric and Keith being somewhat against each other has given me options throughout the game.
And I think Eric and Keith being against each other will keep me alive again tonight. The simple vote is for Me/Ben/Eric to take out Keith, and hope no idols come into play (for the fifth time in a row). But with Keith on the block, I could also take the riskier route of siding with Keith, pulling in Johnny, and voting out Eric.
There would be some advantages to this. Keith is more likely to beat Johnny at F5 immunity than Eric. Then, if the F3 was Me/Ben/Keith, I think I could make it to the end no matter who wins. There's a chance that Keith would take Ben over me, but I'm not sure. Eric, on the other hand, I'm almost certain would take Ben.
I talked to Ben, and he is likely going to write down Keith. And I decided to be transparent with him and let him know I'm considering voting out Eric, which he said he's fine with, as long as it's not him. I am just so hesitant to talk to Johnny about anything, really. The worst thing I could do for my game at this point is give Johnny ammunition to turn people against me, when I've worked really hard to build trust with my alliance.
I understand Johnny has literally had his back against the wall for SO many tribals now, and I know I'm losing his respect by literally not talking to him about strategy, but ever since the tribal where Zach has gone home, working with him in any capacity NEVER would benefit me. It would only put me at risk, when my game thus far has been successfully risk-averse.
Once again, I'm in a safe position at this vote. Ben is not going to write my name down. Eric/Keith/Johnny are not going to team up to take me out. Regardless of Johnny's potential immunity run to the F2, I have to continue to set myself up for the best positions moving forward.
So, the decision tonight will be between Keith and Eric. I have some thinking to do.
