I Will Survive

Why she went:
I was a survival instructor for six years in the Air Force. When I got pregnant with my second child, I kind of just stayed at home. Pretty much all I do is dishes and laundry and the whole business. I guess I wanted a little something to jazz me up.
Hardest part of the show: Definitely the vote, having to pick somebody who you thought their time was up. It was so personal. We each were a little bitchy at times, but I liked living with everybody so much. That's where my conflict came in. I thought I could go into this and play a hard game, but it wasn't that easy. When you play football, you never have to say it's time for the quarterback to go. You're fighting together as a team, and living together; it was really difficult. You really didn't get to say goodbye or try to buck each other up. It was done, it was over. You went back to your camp, and they were gone. You'd be cleaning up the clothes pile on the tree where everybody hung their stuff and you'd find a pair of their socks. It would just bring it back that they weren't there.
Anything you wish you'd left at home?
We were allowed to bring underwear, but after the first couple of days it was a waste. With all the skin rashes and the sand, we just stopped wearing it altogether. We all stunk equally and all looked ragged.
Scariest moment:
When we first jumped off the boat, one of our crates fell off the raft. They started the raft away, and I was trying to swim with the crate. I saw this huge black thing underneath me. My stomach was in my throat. How many times can you watch "Shark Week" on Discovery Channel? I was thinking, "What are you supposed to do? Are you supposed to splash or not splash?" I just kept thinking how much I must look like a porpoise from underneath. It kept getting closer and closer and I was swimming faster and faster to catch up with the raft and it came up higher and higher. And I thought, "Oh, Lord, let this end on the first day. Here I go. This will be how I go out." As it came really close, I realized -- it was a cameraman. So after that, I thought I won't stress out so much.

'You Felt Funny Going to the Bathroom' SEAN KENNIFF, 30 Massapequa, N.Y., neurologist

Why he went:
I would love to be famous. It would be a dream come true if I could not leave my house because there's people and paparazzi outside waiting for me. To get my 15 minutes while I'm young and I can enjoy it -- that was probably the most appealing aspect.
Did the cameras invade your privacy?
The cameras were around you all the time. They were so ubiquitous that you felt funny going to the bathroom. You can't get away with much. I know some people ran away from the cameras at some points. To me they were part of the show. You kind of forget them. You ignore them.
His 'luxury' item:
A razor. I didn't want to look like a hairy beast. I figured 16 people on the island would know what I smelled like, but perhaps a few million would know what I looked like. I shave my chest on television, too. I like to stay neat. I think girls respond to it. They can see your muscles better. I don't mind if they consider me overly foppish for doing it.
Did you ever actually fear for your life?
It's a television show. We all knew we weren't going to die, which was comforting. But there are times when you are hungry, you are cranky. One day it rained for 38 hours straight. We had to sleep on some boards on the sand the first night, and the rats came right up and nibbled on us. I got bitten on my hand and my foot. It was not easy being there, by any stretch. Plus we heard all these rumors about how the snakes come out and mate on the beach at night, and there you are sleeping with them.
Did you ever just want to go home?
The more lavish your lifestyle was before, the harder it was. There was a millionaire on the show who lived in the lap of luxury his entire life; he had a hard time adjusting. Me, I've passed out behind dumpsters before. I had the time of my life. I could have stayed another 30 days.

© 2000