The new Season of Survivor (Season 38: Survivor:Edge of Extinction) starts next Wednesday (February 20th).   As for every season I am really looking forward to this.  Looks like they are changing things up a bit, with contestants getting the opportunity to get back into the game once they are voted off.    I like the fact that the producers of Survivor constantly change things up to keep the contestants guessing, as long as they keep the spirit of the game the same.   The game of Survivor should alway be based on the contestants ability to outwit, outlast, and outplay the other contestants, and should never come down to pure luck.   The time that it did (when winner Ben Driebergen got saved because of the new final 4 firemaking twist that nobody knew was coming) was a bit of a let down and I didnt think that was fair.

As another season starts, I will again be putting together a application video and applying for a spot on the show.  Believe it or not, going way back, I have applied by sending in video tapes, sending in DVDs, uploading videos, as well as attending a Open Casting call, and even entering the fan contest they had one season.  I have filled out countless applications over the years.  The original application was pages long with lots of questions, and you had to send it in through the mail with your DVD and copies of your passport.

To try and make the best possible video, I have read and watched interview, and watched videos by Jeff Probst, Mark Burnett, Lynne Spiegel Spillman, Robyn Kass, and cast members such as Parvati Shallow.   I listened to every episode Dan Gheeslings podcast “How To Get On Reality Tv”, and read his book as well as other books about getting on  Survivor.   I follow Survivor on Facebook to try and gather information (although I am one of the few who hates all spoilers, so I have to be careful when reading through feeds).   I even watched the Rob and Amber Get Married TV special in 2005

As a Non-Sports Card Collector, I love looking for the Survivor Trading Cars that were released for Seasons 1 and 2, and recently created my own set of Season 1 Cards with the through of trying to get them autographed from all the Season 1 contestants

I actually remember when Jeff Probst was the host of “Rock and Roll Jeopardy”, and actually really enjoyed “The Jeff Probst Show” during the one season it aired.  Every season, I look forward to reading Jeffs weekly column for Entertainment Weekly

I have been obsessed with the show ever since reading about it back in 1999 on the website slashdot

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Starting with Season 1, I have never missed a Episode (I remember having to set my VCR to record the show to VHS tapes back in the day before DVRs).   When my daughter was born in August of 2000, I remember watching Rudy running through the jungle on his way to the Final 4.   I remember when Survivor was on Thursday nights, and would be interrupted for 2 weeks during the NCAA Basketball Tournament.

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Early on, I played in several Survivor Fantasy Leagues, where you got points for choosing which player would be eliminated, or who would go and get / read tree mail.

More recently I have really enjoyed watching the Ponderosa videos on the CBS website after contestants get voted off.   Love seeing the contestants from a different perspective and getting great insights to how the game actually affects people.

Survivor has become a major part of my life; from 1999 when I was a young aventuras 33 year old, up until now as a older (but still aventuras) age of 52.   I still get excited every time a new season starts, and plan on continuing to watch for many more years.

But besides how much I have enjoyed Survivor myself over the years, the best part of all of this, is that my wife and daughter are also a big fan of the show.  I am grateful to Survivor and its producers, creators, and contestants for creating such a great show, and giving my family the great times sitting down together season after season rooting for our favorites (and villians) to make it to the end.   These memories will last forever and for that I am grateful

Hopefully one day, I will be able to write about my adventure on Survivor from the view of the winner of the best reality show ever

Average Andy