Michelle Schubert (CBS)
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Name (Age): Michelle Schubert (28)
Current Residence: Yakima, WA
Occupation: Missionary Recruiter
Hobbies: I love learning and reading and dancing. I seek beauty, adventure and adrenaline. I like nature, exploring, rock climbing, slacklining, and CATAN expansions. I also study dragons and the stars.
Pet Peeves: Windshield wipers on a dry window!
Three Words to Describe You: Hungry, hungry, hippo.
NOTE: Usually I get a good thirty minutes with each contestant before the game starts. However, this season I had to get through all 20 players in only two-and-a-half hours. So, these pieces will be short and hopefully sweet.
Gordon Holmes: First thing is first; how do you study dragons? They don’t exist.
Michelle Schubert: Oh my gosh, draw a quick picture of a dinosaur.
Holmes: Hold on. OK…done.
Schubert: Now draw wings.
Holmes: (Laughs) I see what you’re getting at.
Schubert: (Laughs) The word “dinosaur” was actually coined in 1852. What do you think people called them before that?
Holmes: This feels like a technicality.
Schubert: They called them dragons!
Holmes: Mind blown.
Schubert: Right? (Laughs) Marco Polo, who we learned about in school wrote about dragons. Take out that fantastical, mythical idea of them flying around like “Game of Thrones.” But really we have hundreds of accounts of dragons. Sometimes fire breathing, or at least they shoot sparks out of their nose or something. All of them said they were birthed with eggs. Normally a myth is, like, the gods threw a magical baby onto a rock and it shattered into a thousand dragons. But no, dragons always say that they’re born from eggs, and they live in swamps, and they eat large livestock.
Holmes: You take that kind of persuasive reasoning into this game and you’re a millionaire.
Schubert: (Laughs)
Holmes: Have you kept up with your cross country?
Schubert: A little bit. I run now for fitness and for fun, but not for competition.
Holmes: You want to bring eye-liner with you so you can stay hot on TV.
Schubert: (Laughs) Yeah. But the thing is, a girl is not usually as strong as a guy. And we have other disadvantages. But, we have one major advantage; being a woman. You think through Biblical mythology, if you want to call it mythology, or Biblical history says that Samson, the strongest man who ever lived…Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived…David, the King of Isreal…they all had one downfall…women.
Holmes: Well put. I also like how you said, “Stay hot.” I admire that confidence.
Schubert: (Laughs) Yeah.
Holmes: Any issues lying in the game?
Schubert: I don’t lie in real life. I do think that’s wrong. But in a game for a million dollars where you’re supposed to outwit? I don’t think it’s wrong.
Holmes: How well do you deal with being lied to?
Schubert: I’m one of the most forgiving people I know.
Holmes: I think I know the answer to the flirting question based on our eyeliner discussion.
Schubert: Absolutely, but I think you have to be careful because you don’t want to put a target on your back if a guy thinks your faking or other people think there’s too much of a bond. Maybe it’s less flirting, but somehow showing interest. I think giving glimmers of hope is what a girl needs to do.
Holmes: Is there anyone back home that’ll be upset if they see you giving glimmers of hope on CBS?
Schubert: (Laughs) Um…no. There’s someone that I’ve been seeing recently, but he understands that it’s a game for a million dollars.
Holmes: How well do you deal with hunger?
Schubert: I fast semi-regularly in real life and I don’t think I’ll go longer in this game without food than I have in my fasting. So, I think I’ll deal with it fine.
Holmes: How well do you deal with lack of sleep?
Schubert: That’s going to be tough for me.
Holmes: How about extreme temperatures?
Schubert: I’m OK. I don’t like being cold, I don’t like being too hot. But, at the end of the day you can’t do anything about it. So, stay hydrated and cuddle up.
Holmes: How about paranoia?
Schubert: I do meditate, I do pray…so hopefully I deal with it better than others. I think you can tap into truth in the spiritual realm and the truth inside you with those techniques.
Holmes: If there is a twist this season, any guesses as to what it could be?
Schubert: Oh gosh…I don’t know. I hope there are twists. I love adventure and I love not knowing what’s next.
Holmes: If you could align with any past player, who would it be?
Schubert: I would think maybe…Coach…the Dragon Slayer…or…Parvati? Because even though they had drastically different games, they were actually very loyal to their alliance and even sacrificed for them.
Holmes: How could you possibly align with a dragon slayer?
Schubert: I know! I hate that he wants to kill dragons!
Holmes: Alright, lightning round time. Cats or dogs?
Schubert: Dogs.
Holmes: Beer or wine?
Schubert: Beer.
Holmes: Superman or Batman?
Schubert: Superman.
Holmes: Meat or vegetable?
Schubert: Vegetable.
Holmes: Republican or Democrat?
Schubert: Communist.
Holmes: Books or TV?
Schubert: Books, hand down.
Holmes: Swimming or sunbathing?
Schubert: Swimming.
Holmes: Many casual friends or one good friend?
Schubert: One good friend.
Holmes: A nice car or a nice home?
Schubert: A nice home.
Holmes: Smart or funny?
Schubert: Smart.
Holmes: Parvati or Boston Rob?
Schubert: Parvati.
Holmes: A big vacation or a big TV?
Schubert: Vacation.
Holmes: Working alone or with a team?
Schubert: Alone.
Holmes: Here’s an easy one; dragons or unicorns?
Schubert: Oh my gosh, dragons!
Holmes: Careful planning or fly by the seat of your pants?
Schubert: Seat of my pants.
Holmes: Jeff Probst or Ryan Seacrest?
Schubert: Oh, Jeff Probst!
Don’t miss the season premiere of “Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen-X,” Wednesday, September 21, 2016 at 8pm ET.
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