RealityBBQ – Big Brother 11 on CBS and Reality TV News, Rumors, Spoilers

Michele on the Buddha statue in the house: “I don’t need Buddha’s power…I have my own power.”
Kevin: “If I get evicted, I’m taking Buddha with me.”

HEAD-OF-HOUSEHOLD COMPETITION: “The Smore The Merrier”
Winner: Kevin

FUN FACTS:
• Each of the Houseguests’ globes that they filled with chocolate held
16 gallons.
• The cup the Houseguests used to transfer chocolate held 9 ounces of chocolate.
• To completely fill the globe with chocolate the Houseguests had to run the equivalent of at least 4.15 miles (that’s if they didn’t spill a drop)!

BTW, I’m going to have to disagree with Jeff, who said Natalie had the best wipeout of the H.O.H. Competition during last night’s live show. Kevin went two feet in the air on his backside…that HAD to hurt (they were all a bit sore afterwards, but everyone’s fine!).

So, Natalie finally won a competition…she’s now the new Head-Of-Household. I’m curious to see what her 30 year-old boyfriend looks like…and if that might further cause the others to question her actual age (for those just joining us, Natalie has told most of the Houseguests that she’s 18, but she’s really 24). I’m getting ahead of myself, but I laughed watching Sho2 the other night when she tossed back four of those spiked lemonade drinks from Kevin’s HOH stash and Jeff said “What planet am I on, Big Brother, that an 18-year-old gets to sit back and get hammered and I can’t get a beer?” The fact that no one is taking that question a step further and possibly realizing that UNDERAGE DRINKING IS ILLEGAL AND WOULD NEVER BE ALLOWED is still beyond me!! Oh well, future Big Brother Houseguests…take heed. ☺

Natalie insists she’s not drunk.
Jeff: “Say the alphabet backwards.”
Natalie: “I can’t even do that sober….which I am!”

Kevin decided to open Pandora’s Box by sticking his hand in the hole and then, in his words, “screamed like a 12 year-old school girl!” when his arm was locked inside? The. Best. His reactions were too rich for words as he watched all the other Houseguests collected money in the yard while he slumped over Pandora’s Box, looking miserable. Another classic moment from Pandora’s Box was when Jeff was waddling up the stairs with all that money stuffed in his pants and Natalie was on his heels and he couldn’t figure out why.

Jeff, totally annoyed with Natalie as they headed up the stairs to the HOH room: “Why are you following me?? Get AWAY from me!!!”

Sho2 was even funnier that night when Jeff’s paranoia was in full swing and he was convinced something bad was going to happen to him because he found the key and thought Natalie knew more than she was admitting (which she actually didn’t, but it was also amusing to watch her try to convince Jeff, but she couldn’t keep a straight face long enough to make her argument). He kept creating all these scenarios in his head and worked himself up into a ridiculously funny frenzy.

POWER OF VETO COMPETITION: “Martians are From Mars, House Guests Are From Veto”
WINNER: Michele

FUN FACT:
Each Visio television that an alien image came up on was a 50 inch plasma monitor.

Kevin (on Michele and Natalie’s morphed alien photo): “Michele and Natalie’s? I think a hot mess drag queen…I see an alien drag queen!”

Something that didn’t make the broadcast: Production decided to mess with the Houseguests prior to the P.O.V. Competition. At random points, images of aliens would appear in various mirrors. At one point, Jordan was doing dishes and an alien appeared in the mirror and she just about jumped out of her skin. Jordan ran to tell Jeff who decided he was just going to keep his eyes closed from then on (he didn’t). Michele walked into the bathroom and was greeted by an alien in the mirror. Zero reaction…not even slightly taken aback. Jordan ran into the H.O.H. room to tell Kevin and Natalie and one appeared in the H.O.H. mirror…as Jordan’s luck would have it, she was the only one who saw it.

After Michele won the P.O.V. and took herself off the block, Kevin replaced her with Jordan. The sad realization that the “Showmance of the Summer” was coming to an end came to fruition. They were fun to watch while it lasted, though!

And now, the final Unintentionally Funny Comments from Jeff and Jordan (sigh, I’m going to miss these):

Jordan: “Use me and drop me.”
Jeff: “Who’s using who?”
Jordan: “I don’t use you at all. You are my BFF. You know that.”
Jeff (sarcastically, as he buried his head in the pillow): “…let’s get friendship bracelets.”

Jeff to Jordan: “If I could play again, I would just pretend that my arms and legs didn’t work and just drool and not win any competitions and just skate by.”

Jordan (while watching Jeff pack): “An ant just crawled into your shirt.”
Jeff: “F— it…it’s going to Chicago.”

Jordan: “I like when Barbra Streisand does interviews. WAIT! I mean Barbara Walters!”

Jeff (going in to the Diary Room): “I am going in there to bitch like a little bitch.”

Okay, this one is just too darn cute:

Jeff to Jordan, after she asked him what his best Big Brother experience was: “You.”

As a reminder, as I announced last night, next Tuesday, September 8, is a LIVE EVICTION SHOW, so be sure to tune-in at 9:00 PM ET/PT on CBS! Have a great Labor Day Weekend!!

VIEWER QUESTIONS:

QUESTION: Do you think CBS edits one person as a villain and one as a victim to garner sympathy or keep the public on their side? For example, the fight with Russell and Jeff, where Jeff’s blatant threats were left out of the broadcast to make it look like Russell was the evil one? Do you watch live feeds also or only the broadcast?

JULIE: We absolutely do NOT edit to makes one person look like a villain and one like the victim. We do our best job to accurately portray what’s going on the house in a concise manner. I find myself watching Sho2’s Big Brother After Dark quite often…many times when I should be doing my “Early Show” homework since I have an early wakeup call the next day. But, Big Brother After Dark is soooo addictive!

QUESTION: Who would you like to see on the next all stars?

JULIE: All the past winners facing off!

QUESTION: What player so far this season surprised you the most when you interviewed them?

JULIE: Russell. I was surprised how he was not the emotional and sometimes hot-headed player we saw in the house. I expected his emotions about the people and the game to be a bit more raw. But I think it’s probably very confusing when you are first evicted and see other human beings for the first time in weeks!

QUESTION: Hey, Julie! Have you ever thought about doing a celebrity version of Big Brother?

JULIE: Yes but I think half of what makes Big Brother so great is NOT HAVING celebrities and kind of creating some from putting them on the show. I love the “getting to know you” phase of Big Brother. You always learn that no one is all good and no one is all bad. Everyone has flaws…we’re human! (Okay, insert your own Chenbot joke here!). But seriously, it’s fun to see the personalities unfold and how some people can bring out the best or worst in others…and how sometimes enemies can become friends if just one element (ie. houseguest) gets eliminated from the picture. Natalie and Lydia were a good example of this. When Jessie left the house, these women started to get along (relatively). As for celebrities, my feeling is they can tend to be too aware of the cameras and media savvy to be as interesting as the non-celebrities we get to meet every year. This is not to say I would turn down a dream team of celebrity Houseguests for a celebrity season. Some names that come to mind include: Oprah Winfrey, Sasha Baron Cohen, Bill Clinton, Sarah Palin, Madonna, Manny Ramirez…

Sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself. Backtracking…

Jeff won the Head-of-Household Competition, and we were all treated to a glimpse of his life outside the house. Say what you will about the bowl haircuts he sported as a child, but I loved how he defended it by saying, “My mother was rocking that look for me back then.” Or something like that. No apologies. And, BTW…I had the SAME hairstyle at that age. My Mom was rockin’ it, too! Go, Momma Chen!!!

HEAD OF HOUSEHOLD COMPETITION: “CAN DO” (Winner: Jeff)
I instructed the House Guests to stand on a platform. Below them were two tubes and the goal was to drop empty aluminum cans into the tubes. The first to 24 cans, or the player with the most cans in their tube at the end of an hour, became the new Head of Household.

Kevin got off to an early lead with three cans. Michele began to play catch-up and fought with Kevin for first. The House Guests were then informed about a moving platform that blocked and unblocked the pipes at random. Then came the Gold Cans which were used to stop the game play of another. Kevin and Russell went after each other (and successfully stopped each other from playing for 60 seconds at different points during the game), leaving Jeff wide open to win the competition.

FUN FACTS:

* The distance between the top of the railing and the top of the recycling containers was 6 feet.
* Jeff’s winning time was 22 minutes and 22 seconds.

So, we all saw the tide turn with the assumed Final Four of Jeff, Jordan, Russell, and Michele when Jeff made the deal with Natalie and Kevin (see above) who swore he’d be safe this week. Jeff, you do realize you’re in the Big Brother house?

In terms of game play, kudos to Kevin and Natalie for fabricating a complete lie and getting Jeff to buy in to it. Kevin claimed he’s not a good liar, but he’s getting darn good at it!

So, Jeff (then current HOH) also wins the Power-of-Veto and used it to remove Kevin from the block and replace him with Russell at the Nomination Ceremony. So much for an uneventful BB house. Showdown #1 between Russell and Jeff was expected. Natalie pulled Jordan out of the HOH room to go to the backyard to get involved. Jordan came down in what seemed to be actual adrenaline rush of “oh crap.” What was truly unexpected was Showdown #2 between Russell and Jordan. Wow, seeing Jordan go nose-to-nose with Russell was crazy…as we say, “Expect the Unexpected.”

Russel regarding Jeff: “I haven’t asked Jeff if something is going on. I did ask if we’re sticking to the plan, which we were. If he goes back on his plan, I will tear him apart.”

Power of Veto Competition
“OTEV” (VETO spelled backwards for those who may have missed Jordan’s hilarious realization of this). It was nice to have Casey back in the “Mingle Mixx” (his moniker)…enjoyed how he rapped the clues to the contestants! – (Winner: Jeff)

Dressed in safari gear, the House Guests convened in the backyard. Former competitor Casey piped in and did a rap about the premise of the game: OTEV, the god of Veto, rapped a statement about a House Guest and requested the proper answer. The remaining six had to track down the correct banana (with the right name written on it), bring it back to the podium and not be late. The last House Guest back to the podium, or with an incorrect answer, was knocked out of the game

FUN FACTS:

* There were over 225 plants brought in to make up the jungle.
* “OTEV the Ape” was carved out of a large block of wood and took more than five and half hours to make…by hand!

BTW, did anyone else feel like they’d just witnessed a fight between their parents when Jordan and Jeff started having words? You have to admit, it is funny to see them bicker and then pout and then make up. According to them, they’re still “just friends.” I’ll have LOTS to ask them at the Big Brother live finale and reunion show on Tuesday, Sept. 15 (9:00 – 11:00 p.m., ET/PT). Yep, shameless plug. : )

For those who saw my interview with Russell on the CBS’s Early Show this morning, he seemed genuinely honest when he said his outbursts and insults were all just game-play. He has no intention of having a throw down with Jeff at any point. Having said that, our cameras will continue to roll at the jury house, should Jeff be evicted, to keep everyone up to date (and, NO, that’s NOT going to happen on our watch…give them 30 minutes, and they’ll be BFF’s…well, maybe not, but they’ll be fine).

Russell: “I’m not saying I’m a saint, but I’m not claiming to be a saint.”

UNINTENTIONALLY FUNNY QUOTES FROM JEFF AND JORDAN:

Jordan: “I’d be on ‘The World’s Dumbest Criminals.’”

Jeff to Jordan: “So, we can make bad decisions?”
Jordan: “Oh, Lord. Jeff’s horny.”

Jeff: “I’m relaxed in here, but I’m stressed out.”

Jordan: “Do you think I look like a psycho on TV?”
Jeff: “A little bit.”

Jeff: “I see Natalie being extra nice. I see Kevin talking more, as well. I’m not blind. They have nowhere else to go. They weren’t talking, but now, my friend, I remember how Natalie was when Chima was here….being a bitch the whole time, I know that was, maybe two weeks ago…now she’s my friend. I see through it. I’m not stupid.”

So, if you think the fireworks in the BB house have subsided…not so much. If Kevin and Natalie stick to their plan and put Jeff up for eviction…I’ll certainly tune in to see how that plays out! Have a great weekend!

VIEWER QUESTIONS:
Question: Julie, I don’t know if this has been asked to you yet, but I was wondering if you have seen some of the foreign BBs. I think they’re pretty different and kind of bizarre. You have the middle-aged lesbian with the mohawk sitting next to the Indian shy boy sitting next to the asylum seekers. If you had the opportunity and were able to produce a racier, zanier series for Showtime, would you be game for that or would you ever consider an exchange with one of the foreign BBs like they do in versions in other parts of the world?

Julie: I have only seen clips here and there of other Big Brother versions around the world, and I read about them when they make news. I think American viewers wouldn’t like the racier versions…that would be a different show. The reason I love our Big Brother and the reason I think it’s a hit here is because our American version is about human emotions and human behavior. It examines and explores what people are capable of doing when living in a confined house with strangers while competing for a half million dollars. The house guests always manage to make friends and enemies…they laugh, they cry, they are forced to look at themselves in the mirror and they learn hopefully not to judge others at the end of it all. It shows how we’re all flawed (yes, some more than others…no names mentioned here!). What works for our culture might not work for others…what works in other cultures probably wouldn’t work for us. I love our “Big Brother” the way it is.

Question for Julie: What has been your all-time favorite twist in Big Brother?

Julie: My favorite twist was probably Season Five…”Project DNA …Do Not Assume.” When we had the twins (Adria and Natalie) playing half the summer as one person and they managed to fool the entire house…it was brilliant! And I loved the double meaning of DNA that summer…so clever!

Question: Where do you find the great clothes you are wearing? It is so hard to find attractive clothes when pregnant!

Julie: I am fortunate enough to have a wildly talented stylist and a wildly talented alterations person. They are both so creative. We bought non-maternity clothes in bigger sizes and when we have to…we do major surgery to the clothes to make it fit by adding panels and matching fabrics. It has been a major process and a lot of work this summer…thanks for noticing and liking the results!

Question: Julie, I have a quick question. A few years ago, I think within the last 3 to 4, you wore a bronze or copper colored dress on opening night. I can’t remember the exact color, but it was a beautiful dress, and I wondered who designed it. Do you remember the dress?

Julie: If it’s the one I think you are referring to…it was a skirt and top…sleeveless and satin with a few sequins around the arms…it was like a cafe au lait color? If so…Max Mara. I love them and tend to wear a lot of their clothes for both Big Brother and The Early Show.

Hi, Julie. With Chima’s ouster leaving the possibility of a tie vote from an even-numbered jury, I wanted to share a fun idea for a tie-breaker. You could have the finalists guess the sex (or draw M or F from a hat) of Baby Chenbot, then have a live ultrasound to reveal the winner. Wouldn’t you think using that as a teaser in promos would draw extra viewers to the finale?

Julie: Thank you so much for the interest and suggestion…but I think this would take away from the House Guests and the game. I prefer to stick to the gameplay and all the interesting personalities we’ve had in the house. If anything I say the last vote should be America’s Choice.

You can actually read the apology she sent two websites that have employed her in the past (she’s a freelance journalist) by going to either www.hollyscoop.com or www.the360mag.com. Unfortunately, destruction of property (throwing a $4,000 microphone in the hot tub) was an act of defiance that clearly broke the rules of the Big Brother house and we were forced to send her home.

Sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself. As we saw, Michele won last Thursday’s Head-of-Household Competition (the self-proclaimed nerdy neuroscientist has been kickin’ butt in the competitions!) and was able to see pictures of her family and friends and enjoy the luxury of the HOH room…for all of 48 hours…but more on that in a sec…

1st Head-of-Household Competition: “Hit The Road”
After Jessie, aka Mr. Pectacular, was evicted, the Houseguests headed out to the backyard to play the H.O.H. Competition, which was a duel-style set-up. Two Houseguests played against each other and were asked a question in which the answers were either “HOH,” “Veto,” or “Have or Have Not” Competitions. The first to ring in, if the answer was correct, bumped their opponent. If wrong, they themselves were out of the game. After each elimination, the player remaining picked two more people to face off. It came down to Kevin and Michele…Michele prevailed.

BTW, did anyone catch Sho 2 last Thursday night after Jessie was evicted? Lydia, Natalie and Chima bonded at the dining room table as they cried and raised their glasses to Jessie while Kevin sat at the table, silently seething and rolling his eyes.

Kevin on Jessie: “OMG, these girls are acting like Jessie got hit by a Mac truck and had been killed! I mean, he got evicted from Big Brother, we knew this. What is the deal? I wanted to scream, ‘Girls!” Seriously, I mean, I wanted to tell Chima, “Do you not remember that Jessie nominated you?? This guy is an idiot and a complete a-hole, why are you crying over him?”

Have or Have Not Competition — “Chaosserole”
The Houseguests competed as one team to match casseroles via tastes in order to secure privileges and rewards for the house. In teams of two, Houseguests slide down into a big fake casserole, waded through to a table of casseroles, and determined which two on the table were the same and placed them on a podium. A correct match earned a privilege, while an incorrect one removed a privilege. The Houseguests waded through the mess, tasted, and swapped the casseroles in and out. When it was all said and done, the Houseguests gained access to food this past Tuesday through this coming Sunday, warm showers for the week and a grill for the backyard. The Houseguests missed out on food last Monday and a steak and lobster dinner.

FUN FACT:

* Each giant “chaosserole” that the Houseguests slid in to held 950 gallons of Big Brother “chaosserole.”

So, after Chima left the house late Friday night, Michele’s role as Head-of-Household was considered complete. Poor woman, she probably had the shortest reign as HOH in Big Brother history, but she took it in stride. A mere 48 hours after winning, she had to pack up her things and move back downstairs. A second Head-of-Household Competition was held (in due fairness, Michele was not eligible to compete).

New Head Of Household Competition – “The Big Brother Invitational”
The backyard was transformed into a miniature golf course. The ultimate goal for each Houseguest was to putt a hole-in-one. If they missed, their ball landed at a revolving windmill with various point values assigned to compartments located amid the blades. All players, except for the current HOH (Michele, who hosted), were allowed to play. In each round, the player who missed a hole-in-one and ended up with the highest number of points was eliminated. As consolation, the latest eliminated was able to pick a mystery prize (some good, some bad). Each time a player was eliminated, they could choose to keep their prize or exchange with another eliminated player’s prize.

Jeff threw the H.O.H. competition and let Jordan win because she really wanted to see her family photos and read a letter from home. Chivalry is not dead, people!! The only mystery prize left for Jordan to pick ended up being the superhero unitard, which she quickly traded with Lydia (who was first out of the competition and ironically pulled the HOH key, which she knew she was never going to hang on to!). Too much champagne and too much time in the sun led to a very angry Lydia, but the house calmed down after she slept it off. To Lydia’s credit, she embraced the unitard and promptly died her hair pink to complete the look.

FUN FACTS:

* Lydia had the privilege of becoming the 4th person to wear a red unitard while in the house. The previous three were Jen from Season 8, Sheila from Season 9 and Michelle from Season 10.
* The windmill the Houseguests were shooting at was spinning at approximately 9 revolutions per minute.
* Depending on where they placed their ball, the Houseguests shot their ball between 20 and 24 feet.

Sidenote: Russell and Natalie are out of control with the amount of candy they’ve been eating! He’s been the first all week to talk about it, but continues to shovel in the sweets…would love to be a fly on the wall when his trainer gets ahold of him after the game!

Russell: “Me and Natalie are probably the candy fiends of the house…bubbling over with excitement with candy…if you put candy in front of Natalie and I, it is gone!”

Moving on…for those who didn’t see the live feeds that showed the entire conversation between Lydia and Natalie regarding Jessie:

As we showed in last night’s show, events came to light when Lydia and Natalie had a heart to heart and discuss what really happened regarding Jessie. As Kevin, Natalie and Lydia got ready for bed on Sunday night, the three began to chat. After the usual battery of questions about former lovers, etc., Natalie asked Lydia how many times she hooked up with Jessie. Lydia initially denied that anything happened. Natalie then baited her by saying she already knew because Jessie told her everything. After some prodding, Lydia fessed up to about five “good times.”

Lydia: “Oh my God! That question is off limits. I don’t kiss and tell.”

Natalie: “Actually, you do.”

The conversation continued. Natalie said that she never found Jessie attractive, but saw themselves as best friends. Lydia and Kevin didn’t buy it. Kevin said that Natalie was being a tease to Jessie, which Natalie disagreed with. Kevin also said that Jessie did shady stuff to Lydia all the time. At this point, Kevin asked the two of them to go in another room to clear the air. Natalie and Lydia moved to the recycling room and continued the conversation. Natalie then told Lydia that Jessie told her what Lydia does for a living, and Lydia pushed Natalie for more information, indicating that she’d be quite upset if what she says is true. Natalie said that Jessie told her that Lydia was a babysitter of some kind to some person (she said didn’t recognize the name). For those who didn’t know, Lydia was once a nanny for Paul McCartney! Anyhow, Lydia was extremely annoyed, saying that it was crap that Jessie spilled the beans about this after swearing he wouldn’t. Let’s just say the mourning of Jessie’s departure officially ended that night!

Natalie: “I may be 18, but I’m not dumb.”

*For those who don’t know, Natalie told the house she was 18 years old when she entered the house, but she’s actually 24 years old. Only Jessie and Chima know this…that’s why, when she had a glass of wine to toast Jessie, production did not intervene (why warning bells haven’t gone off with the other Houseguests, I just don’t know!).

Anyhow, last night’s live show was jammed with four different events…first the Power of Veto Competition (Jordan won and chose to leave Natalie and Lydia on the block). To find out what was said during the commercial break in the recycling room…that’s why some of the Houseguests were scrambling back to their seats when we returned live…tune in this Sunday night. Lydia was evicted by a vote of 3-1 (Kevin was the only one who voted for her to stay).

Do not fret, Big Brother fans…we’ll definitely have cameras rolling at the jury house when Jessie and Lydia finally reunite!

UNITENTIONALLY FUNNY QUOTES FROM JEFF AND JORDAN THIS WEEK:

Jordan: “Yeah, I have a lot of blonde friends.”

Jeff on Lydia: “I’m having a great day, enjoying everything, makes me happy to see Jordan win. It’s a bright sunny day, nothing can go wrong…here comes Lydia, the rain cloud, and ruins it. Our reality in here is just: Misery!”

Jordan: “I am in the Diary Room complaining about gaining weight, and now I am eating chips.”

Jordan to Jeff, playing solitaire: “I get bored when you play. I want your full attention.”

Jeff: “I never get your full attention because you’re thinking about something else.”

Jordan, trying to sit in chair with Jeff: “I don’t fit.”

Jeff: “It was that last piece of cookie dough.”

Good news, folks!!! Many of you have asked us to expand our Big Brother finale to include a reunion show after the winner is revealed. Happy to report that this summer’s Big Brother finale will air on Tuesday, Sept. 15 (9-11 p.m., ET/PT). The winner will be revealed and we’ll also follow up with ALL the House Guests. Should be fun!!

READER QUESTIONS

QUESTION: When the house guest first come out, after greeting the audience, the camera’s go back inside the house for a few seconds — is that so the evictees can get seated or is it so they can collect themselves before answering questions?
JULIE: It’s actually so we can switch their microphone and seat them…but more importantly, we get to see what’s being said in the house and how they are reacting.

AND, do you take as much joy in the tortures of the games on the HG’s as we, the audience, do?
No comment!

Julie, are we allowed to ask when you are due? I swear that in one week’s time you appeared to have gone from four months along to eight. And if the baby is born before the season ends, who will replace you during your absence?
Yes, I am due Oct. 4, and if I deliver before the season ends and need someone else to fill in for me…all I can say expect the unexpected!

HEAD OF HOUSEHOLD COMPETITION – “Say What?!”
Winner: Chima

The night before, Big Brother played a series of voice messages left by Big Brother fans as a result of our latest “Call To Action.” The House Guests were then asked true/false questions based on the voice messages. Thanks to all the fans who participated!

Chima began her week as the HOH by immediately lining up Lydia and Russell for nominations. Jessie and Natalie originally tried to persuade Chima to consider Michele for a nomination, but Russell’s increasingly paranoid behavior forced the two to back off and get in line with Chima who’s been obsessing over sending Russell out the door for his lies and actions towards her. We all know the fights continued between Russell and Chima this week…no need for me to rehash, I’m feeling like a broken record on this subject!

CHIMA: “I’m about to turn this tie around my head in to a noose.”

LUXURY HAVE-HAVE NOT COMPETITION: “The Goods”
Winners: Jordan, Jessie, Natalie, and Russell.

* There were 82 different sales tools in the backyard for the House Guests to grab.
* Both cars the House Guests used to stuff the sales tool into were 1970 vista cruisers.

The Have Nots were given slop, liver, and limes as their weekly food rations. How funny was Lydia’s non-reaction to actor Jeremy Piven when he stopped by the house to let them know the winners would see a screening of his new film, The Goods? I loved that he called her out as his guess for the first person to “lose it.” I think she made him nervous!

Lydia wonders why they don’t have a Chia Pet.

RUSSELL: “We do. It walks and laughs.”

(I included this quote because I’ve actually heard that some fans have good-naturedly dubbed Russell a Chia Pet because his hair grows so quickly…kind of ironic!)

VETO COMPETITION – “Flown the Coop”
Winner: Kevin

* There were a total of 16 pieces of giant, oversized bacon in the backyard.
* From the bottom hole to the top hole the Houseguests had to get their egg up approximately 95 inches. That’s almost 8 feet!

Six players were stationed outside giant chicken coops. The goal was to get the eggs out of the coop by passing their fingers through the openings of the fence and maneuvering an egg inch by inch, up and over the fence to the other side of the yard. Kevin was the first player to grab 10 eggs from their chicken coop to win the Power of Veto.

I was surprised to see Lydia and Kevin get in a fight over the Power of Veto. I think Kevin was smart to hang on to it, and I ultimately think Lydia understood but she was definitely not happy about it.

LYDIA on Trust: “Last week I had to trust the words of my fellow House Guests they would keep me over RON. This week I have to trust in words again with people that voted to evict me last week. It’s kind of a mad house crazy tea party, if you will.”

LYDIA: “I am going to enjoy my self-pity nap.”

Jeff wallowed in a bit of self-pity as well after being told that he had to stay on an additional day’s worth of Have-Not duty due to his gulp of Gatorade on Monday. It was funny that he blamed Lydia for ratting him out, despite the dozens of cameras and microphones available that are recording his every move and word!

Oh, and how about the newfound friendship between Natalie and Lydia? For those who didn’t see the live feeds, they completely bonded while having a personal discussion. Natalie later told Lydia that if she were a guy, they would date!! Natalie says that Lydia “intrigues” her and she now likes her. Jessie, meanwhile, was looking like his dreams had come true. Lydia said that Natalie has grown on her, as well. The two then hugged it out. Natalie began to open up more and talk about how much she misses her father. She says she’s a tough girl, but she gets really emotional when it comes to her dad. Later in the evening, Lydia made grilled cheese sandwiches for both Natalie and Jessie!! Granted, she voted to evict her last night, but we all know she’d never go after Jessie.

Kudos to Jeff for playing the role of Village Idiot when he knew he had the Coup d’etat “Wizard Power.” Jordan’s jaw dropping to the floor when he stood up to use it was downright hilarious (and should be a clear indication that he didn’t tell ANYONE in the house that he had it…need I remind the naysayers that our cameras roll 24/7…if he had, we would have known!! Of course, some of the House Guests suspected he did, but it was never confirmed until he stood up during last night’s show.

CHIMA on Mystery Power: “Jeff does not like yelling or drama and if he uses that, it will be drama directed at him.”

Natalie to Jessie (after he got involved with a discussion about an accusation that she felt had nothing to do with them): Thanks to you, I’m gonna get my ass wizzed out of this sh*t.”

*I just found Natalie’s quote funny…she was so mad at Jessie about that!

UNINTENTIONALLY FUNNY JEFF AND JORDAN QUOTES OF THE WEEK:

JORDAN: “I felt smelly last night.”

JEFF: “She turned her back on me, like a 360, or, uh, 180, or whatever.”

JORDAN to JEFF: “I told you. No more kissin’.”

JORDAN (while completely failing to slice a pineapple): “Gosh dang, I am having a time with this.”

Well, needless to say, Natalie and Chima were extremely upset by Jessie’s sudden departure. Regarding my conversation with Jessie when he left the house and described his relationship with Lydia as strictly platonic…really? With Michele now Head Of Household, it’ll be interesting to see if Chima’s idea of an all-girl alliance will prevail.

VIEWER QUESTIONS:

In all your time at Big Brother, did you secretly root for anyone or do you try your best to remain neutral? Who is your favorite player of all-time?
JULIE: I try to remain neutral, but Chenbot is human after all. Season 1, I liked Cassandra because she came across as a mature, classy woman. I don’t ever root for anyone in particular, but I do like seeing the interesting characters stay in the game as long as possible.

I often wonder if it is hard to interview some of the meaner House Guests such as Ronnie? I know you are a professional, but it has to be cringe-worthy to hear how mean they can get.
I try to give the House Guests the benefit of the doubt and try not to judge them. The key thing is, I’ve never been in their shoes and never tried to play the game. If they’ve just gotten evicted, I don’t want to kick them when they’re down, but I do want to ask the questions everyone at home is screaming at their television.

Julie, have you ever had a problem with your microphone being on when you thought it was off and the HGs hearing your comments? Especially before they walk into the Diary Room to vote live, you make some comments that are fantastic but are influential if the HGs were ever to hear them.
No, thank goodness, our audio engineers are on top of their game to make sure that NEVER happens.

When can we expect another All-Stars season?
Who knows…expect the unexpected!

Is there anywhere I can catch seasons 1 and 2, maybe in reruns or on DVD? I just love this show and can’t wait until summer comes to watch it. I even faithfully watched the winter season last year.
Unfortunately, seasons 1 and 2 are not available on DVD, but I’ve been told folks have been able to find various forms on the Internet.