Bachelorette Banter: Part II

Last night confirmed it: Jojo is going to be an amazing bachelorette! 

Typical to The Bachelor/ette formula: the first episode presented the usual anticipation-building moments leading up to meeting the men and Jojo getting to size them up.

I downloaded an app called FansPlay that is literally like fantasy football but for Bachelorette contestants (because watching this show is basically like a sport, right?). With the app, you rank three contestants, solely based off of their profile bios. For each week that your selected contestants receive a rose from Jojo, you get a certain amount of points. Before watching last night's premier I chose the following guys as the best suitors for Jojo:

#3: Jonathon (aka man in kilt) 

I totally regret choosing Jonathon as one of my top three fellas after having to witness the terrible "no panties" joke he said to Jojo when he got out of the limo. Wearing the kilt, I thought, was neat! It definitely made him stand out and was a good conversation starter about his heritage. But Jonathon, c'mon, bud... you had to totally ruin it with the inappropriate joke. *sigh*

I chose Jonathon as my #3 guy for Jojo because he seemed to have a really silly sense of humor. In his bio, he even gives credit to his sense of humor as being one of his best attributes. One of his favorite movies is also Toy Story 3 so I thought for sure this guy had to be cool if he had a love for Disney! JoJo's sense of humor seems really laid-back and fun-loving so I thought Jonathon's sense of humor would be a good match (but obviously I was wrong.)

I also liked how Jonathon included in his profile bio that his greatest accomplishment to date was buying and renovating a house on his own. Jojo, who is in the real estate business, would be all for that! Jonathon should saved the crude humor for another time, used the kilt as a conversation starter about his upbringing, and maybe bring up real-estate stuff since that is something Jojo is knowledgeable about.

#2: Alex (attractive, yet short, Marine) 

Based off of looks, I think Alex and Jojo would look great together! I was a little surprised about his height, but up against Jojo it doesn't seem so bad.

Alex being in the military is a HUGE plus. Any man willing to serve his country is an attractive trait. It also shows he's a hard working, trustworthy individual. I chose Alex as one of my top guys because based off of his profile, he seemed to have a strong sense of himself, just like Jojo. After watching last night's episode, I'm still rooting for Alex. I think he will be in some of the season's drama, but (hopefully) he will handle it all with grace. We shall see!

#1: Chad (the bully /"bad boy") 

I was about to LOSE it hearing him complain the entire night. He proved himself to be a stereotypical bully and I am so sad I chose him as my number one pick for Jojo!

Before watching the premier, I picked Chad for several reasons:

a. He's a luxury real estate agent. Since Jojo is involved with real-estate I figured they'd have plenty of common ground interests to talk about.

b. He's an ex-Marine, so like Alex he seems like a hard-working, trustworthy guy.

c. He seemed laid-back and chill. Jojo is someone that is relatable so I thought Chad's self-described "laid-back" nature would be a good fit for Jojo's personality.

I think we will definitely be seeing a lot more from Chad this season. The previews for this season seemed to have Chad in the middle of most of the drama. Jojo says in the previews that she is really drawn to Chad and calls him the "bad boy" type. Booo. Don't do it, Jojo!

 For my fantasy league sake, I hope Chad sticks around. For Jojo's sake, I hope she isn't blinded by his charm and sees how he is a bully to the other guys. She talked about how she felt drawn to Chad, but honestly.... I just didn't see it. He immediately just annoyed me. Sorry, Chad.

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Here are my top three picks for Jojo after watching last night's premier: 

#3: Wells (aka man with the acapella-entourage) 

Wasn't Wells just adorable?? I'm not sure if I see Jojo with a DJ, but props to Wells for bringing the acapella group! She obviously really loved it and it made a great, lasting first impression. Kinda wish the singers left once the cocktail hour started.. It was sweet and cute when he first got out of the limo but when they started singing again once Wells and Jojo got some one-on-one time, I was over it. 

#2: Alex (attractive, yet short, Marine) 

I just get a good vibe from Alex! It was kinda a turn off when he started doing push-ups, but hey, Jojo seemed to like it so that's all that matters! 

#1: Jordan (ex-football player / winner of the first impression rose) 

Jordan was great right from the get-go! He was relaxed yet comfortable in his own skin and didn't rely just on corny gimmicks. It was no surprise Jojo gave him the first impression rose. But... #tbt to last season when Ben gave Olivia the first impression rose... we all know how that ended. I'm hoping Jordan continues being a gentlemen but I have a feeling that he is going to be the center of a lot of this season's drama. Don't let me down, Jordan!!  

Bachelorette Banter: Part I

I treat watching The Bachelor/Bachelorette like how some people watch a playoff game. I am glued to the TV, I am constantly tweeting my thoughts (always using #TheBachelor, of course), I cheer, I fist bump, etc. So in conclusion, I am a HUGE Bachelor fan. After watching each week's episode, I like to read various blogs to see the thoughts other avid viewers express. As the new season of The Bachelorette approaches, I decided to attempt (key word: attempt) to share some of my thoughts on each week's episode to add to the craziness that is Bachelor Nation.

This is the first Bachelorette season that I am OH SO excited to watch pan out on the screen. JoJo was definitely one of my favorite contestants on Ben Higgin's season because of her authentic and relateable nature; who didn't want to be her best friend after watching her on TV?? In the spirit of a new season approaching, I compiled a list of things that make JoJo a top-notch human being and bachelorette:

1. She values friendship.

Truth be told, though I really really liked JoJo, I didn't anticipate Ben choosing her; she seemed more like a best buddy to him. BUT I love when relationships have that "friendly" nature to them. I think partners ought to have a strong sense of friendship and companionship to accompany the romantic relationship. That is something I really admire about previous bachelorette Kaitlyn Bristowe and her fiance Shawn Booth. (If you don't already follow their Snapchat accounts, I highly recommend it! @snapbackbean @shawn_booth) They are so funny and appear to have a strong sense of friendship that only makes their relationship together stronger. I think we will be seeing this same emphasis on aspects of friendship with JoJo and her relationships with the men. On Ben's season, JoJo approached her and Ben's relationship with a laid-back, judgement-free vibe that is often evident between groups of friends. She wanted him to feel open to talk to her about the good/the bad/the ugly/weirdly hilarious/gross/uncomfortable things and vise versa because life presents the good/the bad/the ugly/weirdly hilarious/gross/uncomfortable things. If you are going to do life with someone else, you have to be comfortable approaching uncomfortable topics. Often time Ben would confide in her things that he felt he couldn't express to the other women. Not many people have the ability to make people feel at ease like she did with Ben.

2. She doesn't avoid the tough questions. 

During Ben's season, JoJo was one of the only women that dived into some pretty tough questions. If Ben Higgins confessed his love to me, I don't know if I would be level-headed enough to question his feelings (because I would be on Cloud-9, ya feel me?). Even in a moment as perfect as when Ben first said those three words to JoJo, JoJo was able to keep a leveled head and dive deeper into his love declaration. It would be easy to take his words and run with it, but she was able to articulate her concerns. She knew the rules of the show and how what he said went against them. She knew that their were other women still there too (cough, cough.. Lauren B.) so he could either a) truly love her and not have those same feelings with other women b) have said the same thing to other people like Lauren B. (which we all know he did). She called him out on it and wanted an explanation as to why he loved her. She has the ability to confront tough topics and ask questions that seem to be the elephant in the room. I think this quality will be great when approaching relationships with all the guys. Don't think you can pull a fast one on JoJo, fellas! 

3. She knows who she is as an individual. 

JoJo knows what she wants in a life partner. Her honesty and transparency make it evident that she knows who she is as a woman. One thing that I find admirable about her is that on Ben's season, she made friends with the girls in the house and was what I like to call a "girl's girl". When I see contestants berate and start drama with the other women, I think it has a lot to do with insecurities that have been bottled up. JoJo avoided bringing other women down in an attempt to get closer to Ben. She knows who she is as an individual and doesn't let stressers like being one of several women dating a guy on television (totally normal, right?) influence who she is and what she believes in. 

4. She handles tough situations with grace. 

JoJo has had her heartbroken in ways that men and women around the world can totally relate to. She went through a tough break up before the show, and still put herself out there, open to the possibility of love again. During Ben's season, her previous boyfriend tried to contact her and she didn't let his negative energy mask her relationship with Ben and optimism of this new-found love. When Ben did not see a future with JoJo, she didn't dwell on the situation. She was honest about needing time to heal (like any normal person) and took her relationship with Ben and used it as a lesson and tool to help her with future relationships. When people break our hearts, it is easy to stomp their name in the mud, dwell on all the things that went wrong, and develop a sense of negativity towards relationships as a whole. JoJo, however, handled her breakup with Ben with great poise and grace and did not let it taint her feelings toward finding love in the future. 

5. She has the best sense of style. 

So this reason may be very materialistic, but we cannot ignore the fact that JoJo's style is always on point. Here are some of my favorite looks of hers to prove my point: