[Jonathan LaPaglia]

Congrats on making it past the first boot!

Has having inactives around made it easier to bond as a tribe or is there friction? How would you describe your position within the tribe and do you think you are being lied to about it? With so many strong personalities, do you see sides forming or is it just the most active people banding together at this early stage?

[AK]

Oh Jonathan, I don't know where to begin:

Ultimately, I think I am in a pretty good spot - but those are famous last words, I know.

I want Andy gone. I just don't want to play with him at this point. I'm sure he has legit issues, but come on... he knew when this was gonna start... and he should have demanded to play in this second comp. Just don't trust him and don't like his damn face.

Tarzan being MIA probably did help us gel. It def got rid of any major paranoia in this first ep - but I will say, I am still paranoid. I don't trust Abbey at all. And Rohan is fun to chat with, but he just wants the gold, I know. It is stupid to align with a married dude in this game - just can't. But gotta time that one right because he has a bite as evidenced in Tribal today. Granted, him and Abbey supposedly manufactured that beef... but even admitting that makes me trust them less.

I think JL is the most genuine from what I can tell. I do think Flick will run with power over loyalty, but she seems like a good shield at the minute. I am gonna keep investing in that and hopefully she won't see the point in taking me out too early.

I wish I was able to distinguish Brooke and Monika better... they are sorta the same person in my head currently. I like'em both and honestly don't think they are gunning for me, but I just want a better idea of who they each are. I gotta put in the time there and work harder without being too obvi about it. Seems like they are tight too, which hopefully will make it easier for me to stay in their good graces.

Frankly, I am nervous about doing decent in the first competition - If Jenna and I get swapped together, and they have the numbers, I'd go for me over her ... I do worry about how I am perceived by Djaru at this point. I am trying not to be too bombastic from the go - I will put that in overdrive though once a swap goes down.

In terms of sides, I feel like it is Brooke/Monika/maybe Johno a bit vs. Abbey/Rohan/Flick - JL and I seem to get along with most of 'em... Lukey is also a dark horse - I think being fresh off the boat actually helps him - the OG Lukey was in the bottom 3 from what I was gathering... but this one seems to be making headway more.

If I am honest, I don't really think I'd be undying loyal to any one currently. I wanna play with Pia so bad. Ha. It's an irrational desire based on little more than a parasocial relationship made with the actual Pia. But I will say, between her community posts and how much she kicked ass on that comp - I def don't want to get in her sights unless she sees me as a conduit to more.

I do like Johno a lot - I don't wanna go for him anytime soon - he is probably the closest to being my favorite dude on our tribe, JL being my favorite bird.