annabeast 24 Report post Posted May 27, 2010 Agreed on Darrell's demeanor during his brief stint as King of The Hill....as well as Michael's victory. Truthfully, I would have been happy with any of the three finalists taking the final prize as they were all worthy and deserving. It will be interesting to see how everybody looks in another 6 months or so once the limelight has worn off and real life takes hold. Darrell and Drea's interview in the Ann Arbor paper that you referenced in an earlier post really tell me that they "get it". However, I've seen pictures of some previous contestants and the long term track record is less than stellar. Even on the marathon episode for this season, the only past contestant that didn't look noticeably heavier was Mike Morelli-- which really surprised me since he's a college student. Even Poster Child Ali Vincent looked like she had put on about 10 or 15 pounds. I knkow, Maxie. And when they showed the row during the show that had past winners, all of them looked heavy. Although Andrea didn't lose as much as everyone else, I cling to the idea that this is a good thing: slow weight loss is a more permanent method. I still can't get over Darrell. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Maxiemom 623 Report post Posted May 27, 2010 Yeah, poor Drea's taking a real beating over on the NBC boards for not losing all that much on her own....which is unfortunate when you think about the possibility that some of the critics could well be posting with a half eaten pint of Ben and Jerry's along side the key board. "Real life" does not consist of 6 hours a day in the gym, severely restricted calories/refrigerator contents, and all of the alledged tricks and gimmicks that people resort to in the week of the finale in order to posts the best numbers possible. "Real life" consists of having the knowledge and tools to make healthy, positive, and life lasting choices. It never ceases to amaze me how nasty people can get behind the anonymity of a keyboard and how much they think they "know" someone based on 5 edited minutes a week of television time. Until you've walked a mile in someone else's shoes then there's no place to judge. If Drea is happy and healthy and in a good place then that is good enough for me. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
annabeast 24 Report post Posted May 27, 2010 Just got the call, heading over to my in-laws right after work. Darrell, Andrea and Karolee are on their way down to see us! (Wondering if Flat Stanley is with them, which would be ironic since tonight is my daughter's open house with everyone else's Flat Stanley adventures on display) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
annabeast 24 Report post Posted May 28, 2010 OHHHH, do I have the scoop. I'll have to sort through it a bit so no one gets in trouble, but I'll privately email some of the best to my chitchat buddies...... Hilarious! Darrell and Andrea look AWESOME! And they are so happy. We had a great time with them tonight. Photos to come.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Maxiemom 623 Report post Posted May 28, 2010 OHHHH, do I have the scoop. I'll have to sort through it a bit so no one gets in trouble, but I'll privately email some of the best to my chitchat buddies...... Hilarious! Darrell and Andrea look AWESOME! And they are so happy. We had a great time with them tonight. Photos to come.... Can't wait to see the photos...and I can only imagine the extent of the inside scoop. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
annabeast 24 Report post Posted May 28, 2010 Okay, let's start with: DO NOT feel sorry for Koli. At all. He's a dog. Yes, they get a small daily stipend while they are there that sounds suspiciously like a non-union per diem. They do not get paid extra for the product plugs during the filming. The producers brought in some famous tan sprayer to the stars, Jimmy something, to tan the contestants before the finale. Darrell said he sprayed them in a hotel room very close to open panoramic windows on the second floor of the hotel, where anyone who cared to could look up and get quite a show. Darrell's description of how it went down, "okay, turn around, lift your leg, bend," etc, is hilarious. Most of the men didn't want to do it, but the only holdout was Lance (and it showed), No big surprise: yes, the producers definitely try to get them to talk trash or get dramatic. In fact, Darrell got pulled in close to the time he left and was told that they had viewer feedback that indicated that they wanted to see more of Darrell and Andrea, and that the cameras would be on them more than ever. Darrell, without elaborating, said the producers were bummed when he lost the competition that sent him home. Michael and Ashley are definitely NOT together, despite the fact that the show tried to hint it might be happening. Not too many attempts by producers to sway votes, except for a couple times, involving Michael. When I told them that Sunshine and O'Neal annoyed the crap out of me, the whole lot of them busted up (family members got to know the contestants over the last week). Let's just say they know how to work the camera. Sam and Stephanie "belong together." Take that as you will. Some seriously bad diva behavior on Sam's part on the night of the finale. The reasons may have been justified, but the reaction was not. Melissa was accurately portrayed. JILLIAN is accurately portrayed. Um... maybe not. Some of her behavior? You could apply an exponent. Andrea said that despite some serious personality conflicts, the contestants were a close bunch that protected and respected each other. Since they were on camera and mic'd nearly all the time, all they had was each other to guard each's character. Andrea is extremely close with Ashley. They also have very close friendships with Daris and the twins, who they say are really fun and great people. Darrell has some funny stories about how he and the twins would mess with the producers/crew. Andrea and Michael started off badly on the ranch, but are okay now. Best of all, Darrell and Andrea both look happy, glowing, confident and even better in person than on TV. They have had transformations in their life, none having to do with money or endorsements, that are wonderful. Andrea found love on the BL, but not with a contestant. He was there last night, very sweet young man who the family likes a lot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Selice 0 Report post Posted May 29, 2010 Thanks for the inside view Anna ..... love to hear what is really going on and get the real scoop! Glad the Drea and Darrel are doing so well! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
annabeast 24 Report post Posted November 4, 2010 Thought I'd provide an update in case anyone is interested: weight is still off for both Darrell and Andrea. Others in the family have also lost weight (wife/mother Karolee, cousins, etc) and their lifestyles have changed for the better. Andrea is still with the production assistant she met while there, they appear to be very serious and he is a really nice guy who gave up show biz to be with her. I wince while watching this season, because Darrell said the footage does NOT exaggerate the intensity of the workouts. And it took MONTHS for Andrea to get her car. We gave her a hard time when we saw her about wining a foreign-made car; anyone who knows anything about Michigan knows that she probably gets some jabbing for driving one there. They are all very, very happy and consider BL, hard as it was, to be an enormous blessing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Maxiemom 623 Report post Posted November 4, 2010 Thanks for the update, annabeast. It's so nice to hear that they continue to do well, especially in light of the apparent contestant recidivism rate over time. To be honest, I just can't get in to this season whatsoever. It seems like everyone on the cast is a 2.0 version of a previous contestant, many of whom I didn't really care for in the first place. My Dad worked in both Pittsburgh and Detroit for many years, so I completely understand the whole foreign auto stigma. OTOH, it's not like Drea paid anything other than income taxes for the car so hopefully she doesn't get too much grief. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
annabeast 24 Report post Posted March 2, 2011 Update for my Chit Chat friends: Andrea became officially engaged this month to the production assistant she met on the show, Daniel. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
branchop 319 Report post Posted March 3, 2011 That is fantastic! I saw this thread pop up and thought I would ask how your friends were doing..... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Maxiemom 623 Report post Posted March 3, 2011 How exciting! Congratulations to the happy couple How is Darrell doing? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
annabeast 24 Report post Posted March 4, 2011 Darrell and Andrea are doing great! Uncle Russ was out here (Cali) a couple weeks ago and said he's still thin. He looked SO good in person when they visited after the finale, and most members of the family had lost weight with them (one cousin lost 100 pounds!). We met Daniel at that time as well. I figured Andrea would be getting engaged soon. She and Daniel would post the sappiest stuff on Facebook.... young love! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
annabeast 24 Report post Posted August 27, 2011 Update for my Chit Chat friends: Andrea became officially engaged this month to the production assistant she met on the show, Daniel. We are going to the wedding! (Even cancelling our own anniversary trip to Catalina to go to Michigan instead). I'll give you the scoop on who I see there. I suspect at least Ashley will be there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
annabeast 24 Report post Posted September 5, 2011 This weekend Sam P took some sort of fall and incurred head trauma. He is in the ICU in serious condition. I guess he is responding to Stephanie's and his mom's voices, and is moving his feet, but "has a long way to go." Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
