Week One Evictee: “I was naive thinking I could play an honest game”

By John Powell – GlobalTV.com

She just didn’t make the cut. Janine Holmes, the 44-year-old veteran hair and make-up artist from Toronto, has the unfortunate distinction of being the first evicted houseguest this season. To make matter worse, last night’s vote was a unanimous one as the houseguests overwhelmingly decided to keep Avery over her. They were determined not to rock the boat…yet.

John Powell: It is great to be talking to you! Sorry that it is under such circumstances but how are you feeling?

Janine Holmes: I feel great actually! I lived out a dream I had for a very long time and I feel great! My exit was very unfortunate but I do feel like I got to play a lot of game for being the first player to be evicted.

John Powell: You mentioned on the show that there’s a lot of lies being told in the house and that’s what sunk your game. Looking back who do you think is responsible for your demise?

Janine Holmes: I do believe that Anthony is behind it. He is such a force. And yes, there was an all-girl alliance that I was very vocal about but I didn’t think that was enough of a ‘rap sheet’ against me so Anthony built up my resume and made me seem even more of a target. One person saying that I said that he was my target just wasn’t enough so he said there were three. It was very obvious to me that’s what what happened.

John Powell: Why do you think you couldn’t seem to recover from those lies no matter how you tried to spin things? Why do you think that was so devastating to your game? Is it just because it was the first week and you’re an easy target?

Janine Holmes: Yeah, it’s Week One. No one wants to rock the boat especially for Anthony. There’s something about him! He has the gift of the gab. Even when he was telling me I was the target I was mesmerized. He knows how to talk to people. It’s such an art and I have to give him respect for that.

I feel even before he had mentioned I was the target everyone was dancing around him. Everyone was playing ‘nicey-nice’. No one wanted to give away too much information.

My game immediately changed on Day Four when he said I was the target. I would try to talk to people and they got shifty. They wouldn’t look me in the eyes. They would leave the room. All I could do was defend myself by saying:

“Guys, you’ve only known me for four days but do you think I would say these things? I’m super fan! I wouldn’t put Anthony’s name in my mouth especially when he’s HoH. If anything, I want to work with Anthony. His season of Big Brother Canada was my favourite season to date.”

It just didn’t make sense. I think people didn’t start believing me until I lost the Power of Veto because they knew it (my exit) was a done deal.

 

John Powell: We saw Vivek comforting you and we saw you accuse him of being the one who whispered in Anthony’s ear. What is your perception of Vivek now?

Janine Holmes: I actually had a conversation with Vivek to kind of hide the fact that I was working with the girls but then I could see how that could be taken to Anthony…Unfortunately, Vivek, right now, he’s playing both sides of the house and his power in the game is information so he’s leaking information to both sides.

When I sat down with him and had a heart-to-heart I could tell he was telling the truth. I told him he was my house husband. He reminded me a lot of my husband…I understood him and I trusted him. I told him he was my ray of light and in that moment I didn’t believe him.

John Powell: You made the comment that there’s a lot of lies floating around in that house. Who do you think is playing an honest game and who is pulling the wool over everyone’s eyes?

Janine Holmes: I think that Donna’s being the most honest. She’s playing a great game! I really think she could take it all the way to the end. She’s really flirty with the boys so they like her. They’re going to keep her around but then she actually really knows the game very well. She was she was the one that I felt the most comfortable talking with and she kind of talked me off of ledges when I was starting to spiral.

In terms of lies, I think Spicy Vee and Anthony have something up their sleeves and they are playing everyone! Good on them! They know this game! They know exactly what they need to do! I’ll admit that I was naive thinking that I could go in there and play an honest game and that strategy kicked me in the butt and here I am.

John Powell: You’ve been a superfan for quite a long time. What surprised you the most about the experience?

Janine Holmes: It is just so much harder than you could ever imagine but sooooo much fun! Every day I had ‘pinch me’ moments. I was living a dream! I am in this house! I don’t know I just I loved everything about it! I’m so grateful for the opportunity! If anyone is ever questioning if they want to do it or not I will be the biggest Big Brother candidate cheerleader! Please, go do it! It’s an opportunity of a lifetime and is so much fun! The relationships that you build with the people are incredible.

John Powell: Like all of us you will be following along now. Who are you cheering for and why?

Janine Holmes: The two main people that I’m cheering for and would love to see take the win is first, Dennis. I think he is just as much as superfan as I am and I really think had we played the game together we would have gone really far. But again, as soon as I was the target he really backed off for me…He is so intelligent. He knows this game and I just I would love to see him win. Secondly, Donna. Going back to Donna, I think she is very clever and if she plays her cards correctly she could she could win as well.

#BBCAN12 airs three nights a week featuring new episodes every Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT (Head of Household), Tuesdays at 7 p.m. ET/PT (Power of Veto) and Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT (Eviction).