Contestant Blogs
This Week's Contestant
Erin D.
| Theme: | Give Me A Break |
|---|---|
| Hometown: | Los Angeles, CA |
| Week of: | 04-18-2011 |
POSTED 4-18
I barely even remember applying online. Watching Wheel of Fortune one night about three years ago, I vaguely remember thinking, "I should apply. It's not like I'll get called but who knows." I then completely forgot about the whole thing.
I still watch the show as often as possible. As a child, dinner was always put on the table around 6:45pm. You had 15 minutes to say anything you wanted as dinner conversation, but at 7:00pm the TV went on for Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune. My mom was on Wheel of Fortune before I was born and she was the show's big winner! In other words, she was quite good. The goal was to try to solve the puzzle faster that she did, whether she knew this goal or not.
So anyways, I do remember getting the email saying I had been accepted to audition. I was driving from my hometown of Los Angeles, to Northern California. I read the email a few times before reacting because I wasn't sure if it was real. I mean, after all, I didn't even remember applying. I was quite excited about getting the chance to audition but kind of kept the excitement at a minimum because why get my hopes up.
The audition was tough. You didn't know what to expect and there were tons of people there. I kept telling myself to just remain calm, and just be myself. If I was meant to be on the show, then that was all that mattered. As a teacher, I have no problem talking in front of people or even knowing how to project my voice, but the test we were given now that was difficult! When I left the audition, the contestant coordinators said, "Some of you still remaining here will receive a letter within two weeks saying you've been accepted onto the show. Good luck!" Wait, what if you're not accepted? Do you just continue waiting for nothing to arrive? These are going to be a stressful two weeks.
Prior to the audition, December 24th to be exact, I was celebrating Christmas Eve with my family through our traditional visit to a Chinese restaurant. At the end of the meal I opened my fortune cookie and my fortune read, "three months from today something great will happen to you." Finding that to be a very specific fortune, I kept it in my wallet.
On March 24th (three months after Christmas Eve) I called my mom and said, "You know, today is exactly three months from receiving that specific fortune, wouldn't it be odd if I heard from Wheel of Fortune today?" Then opening my mailbox, there it was, my letter of acceptance. I've never screamed so loud!
Now all I had to do is wait for a call from a contestant coordinator telling me when I was going to tape my episode, buy a new outfit, lose 10 pounds, tell everyone I know, oh, and get a grasp on the fact that I was going to be on Wheel of Fortune. That's all. Oy!
After waiting about six months to hear from the contestant coordinator, I did all of the above things... then came the official taping day. Tune in Thursday, April 21st to see how I did!