Search

A
A+
A++

Big Brother News

'Big Brother' Exclusives

Big Brother 9 Finale More

Feb 10, 2008 10:57 pm US/Pacific

Digg |

Facebook | E-mail | Print

I Lost My Virginity In The 'Big Brother' House

My Reality TV Virginity, That Is

SLIDESHOW: Eight Personalities 'Crash' Big Brother House

Complete 'Big Brother' News

Reporting
Erik Oginski

LOS ANGELES (CBS) ― Have you ever sat in front of a hamster cage, mesmerized by the fury critter's every move; watching it run on a wheel or chew on a piece of wood? "What will that silly little hamster do next?" Well, a day in the "Big Brother" house gave me a hamster's point of view.

"Big Brother" granted me and seven other characters -- including my CBS 2/KCAL 9 colleague Josh Rubenstein -- a rare opportunity to experience life as a houseguest on the CBS reality show. They locked us in the "BB" house for 12 hours and ran us through an accelerated week.

Now I'd like to give you an honest account of what it's like to be a contestant on the show, but one small factor separated my day in the house from an actual houseguest's potential three-month stay -- money.

If I faced a possible $500,000 pot at the end of my game, I may have changed my strategy just a smidge.

For instance, I probably wouldn't have volunteered to be nominated for eviction just so I could play in the "Golden Power of Veto." And when I lost that competition -- coming in a close second I might add -- I may not have campaigned to be evicted just to taste the, er, dejection.

Yes, money is a funny thing, but strangely it did not take a nickel for me to sell my dignity within the first two hours. Kimberly Caldwell from TV Guide Network's "Reality Chat" offered to do my make-up. (Hey, it's not easy to come up with fun things to do with strangers for 12 hours, trust me.)

Kim transformed me into a bald version of a second-rate carnival's bearded woman. As it turns out boredom was all the motivation needed.

Boredom represented just one of many moods I felt during the day, which began with nervous anticipation.

As an avid fan of the show, I could only imagine what surprises "Big Brother" had planned for us newbies. I "expected the unexpected" and prepared myself for everything from eating bull testes to diving through a giant bowl of spaghetti.

Fortunately for us we were spared a food competition and the only spaghetti we saw was on our dinner plates.

Well, not all of us ate spaghetti. "BB" handed the crowned Head of Household, Mark Long from Fox Reality's "Reality Remix," the task of assigning three people to the dreaded "slop" diet for the day. Mark spared me, but Josh was not so lucky. Sorry, Josh!

I got a chance to sample some slop -- of course after eating my fill of "real" food -- and I will say that the taste was bland, but the texture was not unlike vomit. Add into mix the extremely high amount of fiber per serving and I cannot image how anyone could eat nothing but slop for weeks at a time.

A taste of slop was not the only thing I took from the house.

I had expected the overall experience to be similar to spending a day in jail (not that I know what that's like). But with the posh amenities of a pool, whirlpool, sauna, massage table and plenty of places to expose my unmentionables on camera, it was much more like being placed under house arrest at Paris Hilton's place.

Also like Paris, there was plenty of drama around when Josh lost his wedding band in a yard full of hay following a competition. Fortunately for Josh -- and his marriage -- after several stressful hours, the ring mysteriously appeared in our storage room, tucked neatly in a small pile of hay.

We have no idea how, who (or what) found it, but Josh is still grateful; KCAL 9 might have had to fill a weatherman position with Josh likely in the hospital, or worse.

Even better, now Josh's wife will NEVER have to know that he lost the ring while teamed up with a former Seahawks cheerleader and current CBS Mobile personality Amber Valdez. You dodged that bullet, JR! Whew!

The "Big Brother" house has been totally redecorated in a winter-cabin theme with 60s décor, except for the HOH room, which has been done up as a tropical paradise and even smells like coconut.

I found the house to be roomier than it appears on TV (which is odd), but the lack of privacy clearly makes it a Petri dish for conflict when it's packed full of polar personalities.

Such a group of people will be moving in soon for a special winter edition of "Big Brother."

So, set your DVRs – or tune in if you're a romantic – on February 12 as a new cast of houseguests move in for the "BB" experience. Let's see what those silly little "hamsters" will do next!

For more on what happened during the12 hours Josh and Erik spent in the "Big Brother" house, watch the videos and view the slideshows accompanying this report.

From Our Partners

Video

You need the latest Flash player to view video content.
Click here to download.

Click here to bypass this detection if you already have the latest Flash Player.

: There's a saying at "Big Brother" that most know -- what goes on in the "Big Brother" house is broadcast around the world for everyone and their mother to see.
CBS