I admit that I really wanted to hate this season...not this cast, but this season for obvious reasons. Truth is, this is my kind of season for a few reasons...

I don't like too much drama. I like drama, I love continuous plotline bridging over many episodes, but I don't like anything too painful. These kids, no matter their frequent little arguments, are friends, so their quirky disagreements are just that, and you can enjoy the tiny battles while avoiding massive war. I'm totally entertained without feeling stressed out. Maybe because I'm psyched it isn't me, I don't know. Either way, I tune in for the Tuesday 10-spot.

From the very few brief hours I spent with the Chicago cast, they struck me as the kind of people I could have a lot of fun with and be completely comfortable around...now that's good people.

I cannot fathom this overwhelming distaste for Cara that has plagued the boards. She's beyond cool, and she's put together. She has a bright face, mermaid hair, clothes that make me want to break into her closet and steal myself a new wardrobe, and a fantastic sense of humor. I was drawn to her as soon as I met her, and I thought for sure the world would be too. I told one of the directors that I believed if she and I were on the same show, we'd be inseparable. The director agreed. As far the slut comments: how can I talk? I TRIED to hook up that much, I just couldn't get any in New York. <laughing>

Aneesa intimidated me. Her self-confidence and personal power oozes from her voice and her eyes mostly reflecting that which I lack in myself. She is kind and comfortable and seems to make any situation her own. She refuses to be a stranger, and that is a rare gift. You all know me well enough now to know how much I admire people who don't care what other people think of them.

I didn't spend all that much time with Keri, but I could tell she was a fun girl, and I liked her. She was smiley and huggy, pleasant and welcoming. I remembering thinking how gorgeous she was and how the world was going to take her in with open arms.

I was a big fan of Kyle. Looks you right in the eye and gives a hug and a kiss on the cheek hello. I love that, that's what me and my friends from home do. Always greet with a kiss, even strangers sometimes. Well, he, along with the others were freaking out a bit as expected. They had just seen the first episode, just saw that oh-so-familiar opening with their own names now scribbled next to their cute giggling faces, just heard their OWN voices speaking those words that we've all learned by heart over the past decade. It's surreal, and they were understandably anxious. The "what did I do" syndrome was setting in a bit, this I am all too familiar with as you may have read. Anyway, he was intelligent, funny as hell, and just a nice guy all around.

Chris and I have had a brief phone tag relationship. All I know about him is that he's unbelievably kind. He's gentle, open-minded, patient, and genuine. I didn't get to spend any time with him though, so I couldn't get a strong, personal sense of his presence.

Theo and I didn't get to talk for very long either. Remember, I saw these people at a party, and there was lot going on. Fun-loving is really the only impression I was able to get. He seems like he knows how he feels about things, and he sticks to his convictions, which we all know can be troublesome as well as wonderful. He's funny too. These people have fantastic senses of humor.

I don't know Tanya at all. She wasn't around when I was around, and when she was, she was a bit distracted and frustrated. That's all I know, and I didn't even have enough time to have a full impression of her.

I'm loving this season. It's just fun. I definitely think I'm too into it, but I hope to not give a shit come Las Vegas season. Anyway, these people seem very real to me, more so than most casts I've seen. I don't know what people are talking about when they say how fake they are. These seem to me like most people I know around me, very natural and normal 19 to 22 year olds.

It's funny watching all these comments on them though. I mean, they are beautiful across a spectrum of preferences, and people still manage to make fun of them for physical attributes. They are called either too thin or too fat; they either care too much about their looks or not enough. I read somewhere that because Cara dresses so well, it obviously proves how insecure she is because she puts effort into her appearance. "Her clothes are so nice, she is so into herself. She's obviously insecure." Not a single phrase in this statement makes sense. Aneesa has a normal, voluptuous, beautiful figure, and though the world keeps demanding that in cast members, she's somehow crucified for it on the boards. Keri is an of-age drinker from New Orleans with gorgeous full lips, and she's now an alcoholic whose lips are "too big." It never ends. That's part of game, as I've learned, but it's definitely interesting. It's showed me that the world will NEVER agree on a thing. Too many people are looking for flaws, and if there are none, then it's time to turn virtues into vices. It's some tough hazing to join the RW club. I guess that's paying your dues to be "so lucky." Simply fascinating.