Michelle was born and raised in Toledo, OH where she grew up tormenting her older brother Mark. In the middle of the 5th grade, Michelle and her brother began home schooling through T.C.S, a small private school. They continued to home school until they graduated high school. Because they home schooled through a regular private school, they were allowed to participate on the athletic teams. While at T.C.S Michelle was a 3 year Captain of her Varsity basketball team and ran track. During this time, Michelle was also a member of the Toledo Youth Orchestra, where she was 2nd chair, 2nd Violin.

Upon graduating high school, Michelle was given the choice of attending the University of Toledo and commuting to classes or attending MVNC. In order to get away from home, Michelle chose Mt. Vernon. There she contently got into to trouble, and set the record for visiting the Deans office the most times during her freshman year. While in college, Michelle received the 1994 Director of the Year Award for Promotions Director at her college’s radio station. She graduated in 1994 with a degree in Broadcast Communications, minors in Business Administration/ Psychology and was voted “Class Clown”.

Michelle moved to Nashville, TN in 1996 where she took a few odd jobs before finding a position at a radio station as a DJ. It was during this time, that Michelle met her future husband on line. They dated for 3 years before marrying in 2001. Michelle and her husband Scott happily live in Nashville, with their 14 year old dog Kasey.

Michelle's motto for this game is summed up in what her father told her before she left for college: “Michelle, be good and if you can’t be good, don’t get caught.”

Application Essay

I hate to lose. I’m not a sore loser but I hate to lose. I have always done what it takes to win. I once shoved the star volleyball player at my college out of the gym doors while she was going up for a lay up in a pick up game because I didn’t want her to score. I poured two glasses of grape juice over the 7 ft tall star basketball player’s head because he kicked me off the basketball court in the middle of my pick up game. He pissed me off and I didn’t care who he was…I wanted to play. I’m driven.

I want to be on Survivor Okinawa because I want to play the ultimate game against others who want to put their wits and cunningness up against mine. I want make the appearance of playing nice but I want to win. I’ll do what it takes to keep my team strong until the merge (if there is a merge) and then when it’s down to being voted out onto the jury or staying in the game, I’m out for myself. Until it gets to jury time, I’m a team player. Let others lead; let me encourage the leaders and the followers. Survivor is an individual game that must be played as a team. Only one person can win and I’ll use my tribe to get me further in the game. My plan, take people into the merge who will be stronger targets for being picked off first. Use other’s to deflect myself from being a target. I want to play to win, not play for the experience.

Finalist Essay

I think I should play the game because I’m a tough scrapper. There have been competitive females in the past but I think they have been prissy competitive females. I won’t use my female powers of persuasion. (girls who do that bug me) I will use my competitive nature and strategy. The guys will want me on their team because I can compete to help them win. The girls will want me on their team because I will help them win. The girls thinking will be wither to follow me or to use me to deflect the view off of them-selves. (Trust me, I won’t let that work) I will be seen as a competitor and by the time they realize I’m a threat in the game, it will be too late. I’d rather be voted out for being competitive then for flying under the radar. My tribe won’t want to set me out competitions. If someone’s going to take me out of the game, they are going to have to work at it because if I go down, I’m going down fighting. Keep in mind, you don’t have to be blatant about fighting to stay in the game…you can go fight for your life covertly.)

To give you in site as to whom I am and why I love to compete, in junior high, I was the only girl who started in a co-ed basketball league. In high school the boys varsity let me play pick up games with them. In high school I had a boy friend from summer camp who came to visit. We were playing basketball and my dad pulled me aside and told me to let my boyfriend win. No way! I beat him…needless to say, we didn’t date long after that. Also, in high school, my senior year I broke my left hand during the first quarter of the 2nd game of the season. I knew my season was done but I talked the coach into taping up my hand and letting me play the last quarter. (scored 4 points and blocked a shot with a broken hand…not bad) In college, guys asked me to coach their intramural basketball team. I have a wild side to me. I went to a Christian college and organized a “Transvestite Night” for one of the volleyball games. Afterwards, the college made a rule that anyone who did that again would be suspended. One time the Chaplin was walking to the gym for a basketball game and I literally tackled him and painted his face our school colors. I grew up in Ohio, I use to run to the gym in the middle of winter with 2 feet of snow on the ground wearing only shorts and a sweatshirt. I helped my roommate get even with her boyfriend by sneaking out of the on campus apartment to the parking lot behind our apartment. We took shovels, surrounded and packed his car in with snow and then poured cold water over the snow, windows and handles. It took him 3 hours the next day to dig his car out. (I’ve never laughed so hard) I take chances; I visited Nashville for a 5 day conference in 1995. A year later, I packed up my belongings and moved down. Found a place to live and a job. Why? Because I wanted to and nothing was going to stop me. I’ve been here ever since and love it! I’m not conventional. I met my husband over the internet.

I think of the game of Survivor is like the game of Mahjong. Each move you make can strengthen or break you. In the game of Survivor, just like in the game of Mahjong, you have to think 3, 4 or even 5 steps ahead. Many times in Mahjong, the first option looks good and tempting but if you don’t look to your other options, the first option could kill you. Survivor is just like that. When you’re in a bind and in trouble, the first option you see might look awfully tempting. But you have to step back and look at options 2, 3 and 4. Keep all options open but be willing to take a chance. I’m not afraid to take chances. In the end if it bites me in the butt, oh well, at least I took a chance.

I know this is long but in closing, I’m a leader, but I know how to be a silent leader. I plan to follow and manipulate the rules of the book “How to win Friends and Influence People:” by Dale Carnegie. Dale says to: Give honest and sincere appreciation. Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about them-selves. Talk in terms of the other person's interests. Make the other person feel important - and do it sincerely (to my own advantage of course) Show respect for the other person's opinions. Never say, "You're wrong." Let the other person feel that the idea is his or hers. Try honestly to see things from the other person's point of view. Begin with praise and honest appreciation. Call attention to people's mistakes indirectly. Talk about your own mistakes before criticizing the other person. Ask questions instead of giving direct orders. Let the other person save face.

I believe if I follow the rules of Dale’s book and use them to my advantage, I can and will win this game. Thank you and I look forward to competing!

Post-Game Links (spoilers)

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