The Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous Podcast - Moving In with Krystal Nielsen and Chris Randone

Episode Date: December 4, 2018

Krystal Nielsen and Chris Randone are hanging out with us today! They’re on hand to talk to Blake Hortsmann, when he calls in to talk about his blind date to the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball over the weekend.   Then, Chris and Krystal share what they learned about each other after they moved in together.  And Ashley leads the group in a comparison of their lives before and after being on The Bachelor.  Plus, we hear about a BIG surprise Krystal received in bed recently. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the Ben and Ashley I almost famous podcast with IHartRadio. Hello, hello, hello. Ben's on here today. He is, I think, at a golf tournament and Dominican Republic, which is pretty cool. Yeah, I know. We have some familiar guests here. We have Chris and Crystal. Thank you guys.

What's going on? Hey, guys. She did the sexy voice. Hi. Yay. I forgot my sexy man. Chris. How often do you get the sexy voice?

I get it on occasion. Yeah. I don't have to ask. I get the good morning sexy voice every morning. Ooh, that's a nice way to wake up. Already, I'm ready to rip every morning. Oh, he is. You guys were nice enough to wake up at 5.30 in the morning.

We left at 5.30 this morning. From San Diego to beat the L.A. traffic. You guys, it's supposed to take like, it's two and a half hours, right, from San Diego to L.A. But it always takes about four and a half. About four. Those last 50 miles are the worst. They'll get you because you're like, oh, we got 11 miles to go. Awesome.

55 minutes later. Oh, yeah. Absolutely. I'm so confused. I know exactly what 11 miles are talking about. Before we get into it with you guys, we have Blake Hortzman on the line. Are you guys friends with Blake? Oh, yeah.

Blake's my boy. You know Blake. Yeah. Okay, great. Well, he just had a blind date at Jingle Ball. Kisses Jingle Ball here in L.A. And Blake, hi, I hear you giggling. I did. I was giggling.

I'm so sorry I didn't run into you a jingle ball. That was so sad. You guys were on the other podium, like on the other side of seats. I know. I was trying to wait for you guys to the red carpet, but I just, I was starting to miss the concert. And I didn't want, you know, I wanted my date to see the concert. So I had to take her in.

Yeah, I didn't. I don't want your date to miss the concert either. So the date was to help, what was it? What was it? It was Ben's, it was humanity and hope? Yep, humanity and hope, yep. So benefit, humanity, and hope, are you allowed to tell us how much this girl bid

so that she would get the date with you to Jingleball? There was money involved. Yes. So it was a charity, it was a fundraiser. Blake's value's got to be high. Well, I think Ben, I think Ben, he raised $5,000 or something for his blind date. You do really? Yeah.

I think that's an overestimate. Oh, is it? Wait, hold on. Blake, how much did you get? How much did you raise? So I don't know the exact number, but I know it's over 4K. I think I was like right. It was like 4,200, I think.

That is very respectable. Like, that's amazing. Thank you. Thank you. I was a little worried. It ran 2,000 up until the last 20 minutes. And then there were so many bits there at the end that I'd actually shut down the webpage.

So that made you feel pretty good. Oh, wow. Holy Blake, remember how eBay used to work where it was just like a bid here or there? I mean, eBay still works like this, but I feel like everything right now is by now. Oh, there's like a by now. option. Yeah, there's always a buy-now option. But I remember, like, in the heyday of eBay, my parents would be like, refresh, refresh, refresh, and that's how it is with the auctions online. I was saying, I got a bunch of DM saying, you know, I was going to be higher, but it's timed

out or something like that. So it was good. It was fun. It was good. So tell us about your date. Like, tell us about the girl. Were there any sparks? Yeah. So I was very lucky. I'll be honest she was like completely normal and a lot of fun and so right away the first thing she said to me she's like i'll be honest i had a little bit of wine while bidding and i was like oh really i was like that's good she's like no i'll be honest i had a substantial amount of i was like oh good we'll get along i like it already oh that's sweet i feel like you are probably the least awkward person to have to go on a blind date with like you're just so personable and a good conversationalist that you could probably find something to say to anyone.

Yeah, I mean, yeah, I wasn't too worried about. I like meeting new people and everything. So we had a blast, and in the morning. We even all, we all met up and had lunch together because I brought my sister and her friend out, too. So it was great. It was a good time for sure. Oh, that's so sweet.

Chris Harrison was also at Jingle Ball, and so was one of the executive producers. Just wondering if you had any chats to them about Paradise while you were there. I did not, actually. I didn't have a chance to see any of them. so I haven't had a chance to talk about paradise. You didn't see them while you were at Jingle Ball either? No, I saw them like way back. So that red carpet was actually like a really long red carpet.

I was probably on it for like a good 40 minutes. Yeah, I know. I saw him. He was like two people behind me, but I never had a chance to see him to talk to him. Oh, bummer. Well, we all miss each other, but I'm glad that you provided with a great date and you raised a lot for charity. They know, they were raised some money. So all in all, it was a success for sure.

All right. Well, thank you, Blake, for joining us and for coming out to L.A. to do that. We'll talk to you soon. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, sounds good. See you guys soon. Bye, Blake. All righty, bye.

Man, I just got to say, I'm having so much FOMO right now because we were supposed to go to Jingle Ball and we were like, oh, we're going to L.A. next week for the podcast. And then we got to come back up here again. We're like, let's just not a jingle ball. You guys, it's too much. I know everyone, everyone we know, like, went to Jingle Ball. I'm, like, sick to my stomach that I miss the date. It's definitely really fun. But it also took us over an hour to get there from West Hollywood to the forum.

Wow. Yeah. And parking. So you guys know, don't. I did want to see Cardi B's. So I think that's why I'm stressing right now because I heard she's amazing in person performing. All right. So I have a confession.

I don't. I don't get Cardi B. You don't? I don't either. I want to see it. Oh, you do? That's from what I hear. Okay.

And so in person, everyone's like, yeah, she's a great performer. Yeah. I went to her Instagram before. I'm like, I just don't get it. I know. Okay. Me neither. Yeah. There's a lot of things I don't get, but that for sure is one thing. I feel like she's going to come at me or something. You know? She's a little bit of an aggressor, but okay. Very aggressive. Okay. You guys, you just moved in together. What was it? What month was it?

Actually, it was just a couple weeks ago. Oh, my goodness. So we're brand new. We're like three weeks in. We have washed the sheets twice, only twice. Well, something very drastic happened in the middle of the night. So let me just tell you, I told her moving and I said, listen, we're going to have the dogs sleep on the floor. I remember the dog issue has been a thing for a couple months now. Well, first week in, it's the middle of the night. Of course, the dogs are sleeping on the bed. She wakes up screaming.

And I'm thinking, oh, my God, what is going on? She goes, get the light, grab my hand. I can't see. And I'm like, why, you're blind? Like, what's going on? The dog puked all over her face. Oh, my God! In the middle of the night, on the bed.

So here's what happened. And Chuckie, little Chuckie, like, he'll need to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. So he's like, he's like a lassie. He'll wake you up or he'll bark when he needs water. He's a very good communicator. He's a little papillon. And he was like, waking me up, like, I have to go outside. I have to go outside.

And I was like, I was in such a dead sleep. And so I was like, no, no. He's like kissing my face, kissing my face. And all of a sudden I just feel warm liquid. And it was vomit that was in my eye sockets that had like rustic. I like turned on the light and I'm looking at her. and I wanted to throw up. Like, I started dry heaving.

That is a scene out of Carrie, basically. This is like a couple's version of Perry. I can't even, I could smell the vomit. Like, Chris is guiding me into the bathroom. I can't see anything. It was one of those situations where you reconsider the dog sleeping in the bed. Oh, my goodness.

They're still sleeping in the bed. They are still sleeping. It's not going to ever change. I tried locking them out one night at the room. And she goes, watch, they're going to start scratching the door and trying to get in. Angry bark.

Within two minutes, angry bark, scratching the door, it's like, they're so spoiled that you can't unspoil them because she's spoiled them for the last five, six years. Well, we have the same issue. We have two dogs now, too. When my sister isn't home and she's at her boyfriends, then the two dogs are sleeping with us. And recently, the baby one, it's because she's a baby. She's peed on the bed if you don't take her out early enough in the morning. And she starts to, like, wrestle with the other one. But the puke came out of nowhere.

I was not expecting you guys to tell me that they're, I mean, we've had puppies that, you know, throw up on the bed, but throw up on your face is quite something. The worst part was it kept throwing up. Chucky kept going. You didn't hear like the, you know how they like do those dry heave things? It was like one of those movies where like the plate hits and everyone just starts getting really sick and I'm like, wow, what did this? What did he catch? Because now I'm worried he's sleeping in the bed. On the brand new bed, on the brand new bay, on the brand new carpets.

Not one, but both carpets. Very interesting situation. So we broke in our house, our new place. Okay, so is it a new place? Brand new. Brand new. Oh, so you guys move into a new place together. That's nice.

Because we were in my bungalow, which is 300 square feet for two months together. 300. I'm really bad with square footage. That's about the size of this. No way. I think a little smaller. Actually, no. No, that's a great test then.

It really was. And we wanted to see if moving in together would be the right step for us or if we needed to continue long distance to build our foundation before we took that step. And it just, it actually worked out perfectly for us. It was a good test. It showed our compatibility and understanding one another. If you can live with someone in 300 square feet, then anything more than that is just a piece of cake. I completely agree. What is one thing that you've learned since moving?

in together about each other that you didn't know beforehand. Go first, baby. There's so many. She likes things done. She's very OCD. Particular. She's a micromanager. Not in a bad way, but it's like I'll be cooking and she goes, oh, you know, these

boxes need to be put away. Oh, this, this, this, this, this is. And like, but she wants it done now. Okay. And strong multitasker. Very strong multitasker. And I'm fine with that, but I'm also like, I'm doing this right now. And I'm sure I can get to that in a minute.

And so it's just understanding kind of each other in a way where how can we get things done, where it's not right now or, you know, just both expectations needing to be met. Crystal, I feel like this is something I've noticed watching my sister's boyfriend, watching other friends' boyfriends and living with Jared. I feel like guys have less of a sense of urgency than girls do. So much less. It's almost distressing. It is. It is. Like, oh my God, like,

get out a little pep in this step. Let's go. I know, right? So we have this reputation if we take forever to get out of the house, right? They sometimes take longer, but just because they mosey around. Like, every step is a little slower.

Every movement, like they pick up one thing at a time and then put one thing like that. Well, you know why we take so long to get out of the house? It's because we're doing our hair and our makeup and folding laundry and doing the dishes all at the same time. Right? Exactly. But, you know, she'll say these things that where she's not asking,

me to do it but should be like oh there's boxes by the door and and it's like what i do that no i'm very direct some consciously i'm thinking okay you want me to get the boxes and throw them out so i'll get up and go get the boxes and throw them out but i mean other than that it's just funny because i like doing things on my own time yeah and then now i've now entered a life where i'm with someone and i'm sharing that life with them and they have a certain agenda too that where they want things done so it's just making sure we're able to handle both our wants when it comes to when we want to do something So funny. Also, it's been interesting because the last two weeks we've been living together, I just did a huge product launch.

And so I was just really wrapped in work and while moving at the same time. So it was crazy to be doing that. And I have like 900 clients. Holy moly. Right. So now I have more urgency. Plus moving, plus unpacking. Yeah.

It was wild. I would say that the biggest thing I've noticed with Chris since moving in together would, is that how nurturing he is without me having to ask anything and you know he sees me working he'll just whip up an amazing lunch or snack or a smoothie or dinner without me asking and you know he throws down in the kitchen it's he's very nurturing and supportive it's awesome to see that okay but give us the dirt like what's the most annoying about living with him um tell me what's annoying but just like not like annoying but like what's something you didn't know like a little nitpicky thing honestly I don't know Really?

Yeah. Thank you. That's so sweet. Yeah, no. I appreciate that. I mean, he leaves spoons in the sink. Okay, I do. With yogurt on them that I have to eventually clean.

I mean, that's about as bad as it gets. So that's like a little, little part of Jared and my annoyance about each other. He like needs every piece of silverware, every plate cleaned immediately. And I'm like, I do. I'm like, it's okay. I'm like, a spoon, a fork in a plate can sit in the sink for a couple hours. If they're rinsed off, I'm cool with that. But they need to be, like, cleaned and just left.

I learned that this past week, so I had a yogurt on a spoon, and she expressed to me that that's not okay. Okay, yeah. And you know what? She's right, because then it gets crusted and it sticks on, and it's a pain in the butt to clean. So I respected that. Did you grow up in a house where your mom, like, left the dishes in there for a couple hours? No, no. My mom did, but, like, I never thought that was a bad thing.

Like, she's constantly doing dishes, but if she wants to leave a couple of things, there for a little while. It's fine. You know what I would do? I would fill up a cup of water that's already in the sink and then I would just put the spoon in there to where it can just soak and then I can clean it later and that way it will just fall right off. I got to say one thing that drives me bonkers is when we'll do like a dish or there's like a dirty stir fry pan just filled with water like there was zero effort into scrubbing the food oven. Like we consider like that okay that's not okay in my book. It makes me go bonkers. I always say that these are your problems. We're all very lovely.

Is there anything that you guys have come in your relationship, not just living together, that you've realized you're never going to see eye to eye on, but it's okay. Dogs in the bed? Dogs in the bed. What else, babe? I don't know. I feel like we're really normal. Yeah.

I mean, we have different opinions on different things. Like, perfect example. Remember when Wayfair came with the couch. and they were bringing it in and she goes oh just bring it into the room and I said no leave it out in the living room because it's going to take up too much room and there's too much stuff in there and she goes no and then we got into like this big thing about it for like three minutes and then I unpackaged it put it in there couch looked beautiful she bought a pink velvet couch for the office very suede plush and afterwards she was like oh okay you know you know you're yeah I'm glad that we could agree and blah, blah, blah. And I'm just thinking, like, okay, we definitely didn't see eye to eye on it. I think that's exactly what it is. It's like, it's the technique of how things are done.

I like them a particular way. He likes them a particular way. Ultimately, it gets done. Yes. And we come together. But on how it gets done, like, I feel one way is incredibly more efficient when you have two movers who can move the heavy piece of furniture for us into the venture. I feel like the problems are the exact same, guys.

I really do because Jared and I only fight about, like, how the bed is made. I like it super tight and like military style with like all the throw pillows exactly angled perfectly and he just like throws the comforter on top and literally throws the throw pillows and he's like we don't have to make the bed military style I don't get it

and I was like it looks the best that way he's like it looks good in my way too I'm like not the best though very true anyway okay you guys as I spent like 10 minutes it's folding the throw blanket over like the poor. I know right. It looks like

it was just tossed. It was not just tossed. I specifically voiced it. Model home. That's how it must look. God, exactly. I love it. I just feel so good. Like that energy. One more thing to add, she'll always ask me my opinion on something when she's already made up her decision. Like, she wanted

a pink bed and she goes, well, what do you think about? Of course a man is not going to really want a pink bed. It's beige tufted. The sheets are pink. And there are 2,000 thread counts. And it doesn't matter what I say, and at the end of the day, I really, it doesn't matter because I'm not going to be too picky on the bed or the color or whatever, because I know at the end of the day, she's going to go with what she wants. And it's just funny because I already know that she's already made a decision in her mind and I just go along with it. But it probably, what's working here is that you have an opinion.

You like to stay with the opinion. And you are okay with going along with her opinion ultimately. And that's very similar to us too. Like I am the control freak and he is the relax. guy that lets me have my way. Yes. It's a perfect way to put it. Best way. It's a great way. What did you guys do for the holidays? Like

it's their first engaged holiday as it has also been my first engaged holiday. Congratulations. Thank you too. So how have we decided the whole Thanksgiving Christmas thing? Wait, are we, are we Christmas? Are we Christmas? Are we in Hanukkah? Okay. The Christmas we haven't, it's to be determined on what we're going to be doing.

Okay. But Thanksgiving, we just spent it with both of us together because I was essentially the first real week of us living in our place. So we just had the dogs and we went and got a bunch of food. And she also had to work on that day. So it was almost as if we couldn't really experience it essentially. But we made do with what we could because she was just so busy with work.

And we threw down in the kitchen a little bit. Did you make a turkey? No. No. Did turkey so weird. We did make. I made buffalo cauliflower. That sounds better.

Yeah. Didn't we do soup potato nachos? Sweet potato nachos. Okay. And then I also made organic rice crispy treats. Nice. Sounds so good. But your moms are really good friends now.

They're both, we're both raised with single moms. And now they are buddy, buddy. So I guess it's going to be no problem getting them together for holidays. Yeah. We were actually talking about flying your moms out to spend it with us. That would be so sweet. So we're trying to figure out if it's something that we can do,

if we don't have any other things to attend to. and there's some days open, we definitely want them to come out and spend some time with us. But if it doesn't happen for Christmas, the next month, we're planning our engagement party. Oh, my goodness. So that's another thing too. We got planning in the works. Nice. So do you guys have a wedding date yet?

I know this is the most over-asked question possible, I'm sure. So we just begun picking venues. Okay. We have a couple different cities in mind. We're also contemplating because some of my family. family brought up the opportunity of getting married in Italy. So you're Italian. Yeah.

How much? I'm Sicilian and Argentinians. You know what? You got to do 23 and me because I'm telling you, you'll be surprised. I thought I would love to do that test. I thought I was a quarter Italian, but then I got my 23 and me back and I was like 17%. Really? Yeah, it was disappointing.

My mom was like 10% African American, so I think I got to look into that. Is she? Yeah. I don't know how. I would love to do 23 and me. It's so cool. I would definitely love that. It's so cool.

Anyway, okay, so Italy is on the map, possibly. San Diego, somewhere also beachy. So, I mean, we're trying to figure out, I'm sure for you guys, it's not an easy decision or easy process. It was actually easy. Really? It was easy deciding where, like, what region of the country we wanted to get married. But it wasn't easy to find, actually, the venue. was pretty easy, but we had to compromise.

We had to get married on a Sunday. Is that normal? I mean, ideally, it's always a Saturday, you know? Oh, okay. But Sunday, because everything was sold out a year in advance on Saturdays. Oh, wow. Yeah. Are you married in Boston?

Rhode Island. Rhode Island. Yeah. That's nice. What did you guys pick there? We can't tell you. What? We have not revealed the venue yet.

Yeah. But it's a Newport, Rhode Island. People can honestly, like, if they really wanted to figure it out, they probably could. Oh, I said, why did you guys pick there? Oh, why? Oh, we can't tell you. I was like, oh. Jared is from Rhode Island. Okay.

And I always wanted to get married on a beach, like not on a beach, but on a ball, like in a ballroom that has a beach view. Tell us more details. That's awesome. That's awesome. And what is the date? No, that's the date. That's what I can't tell you. Oh, okay.

So I can't tell you that. That's exciting. And I can't tell you the exact place. Because my wedding planner says not to. I would be like, you know, a little bit. No, save the suspense. Yeah, okay. I like, I like suspense.

Are you going to get a wedding planner? Yeah. 100%. Okay. So you're going to find the locale for us and then find a wedding planner? Yeah. We're going to be very extra. You're going to be very.

I think with the food. Yeah, with the food and the wine. With the food and the wine. That's a good way to go. That's what people really care about. The plates, I'm not worried about the silverware. No one cares. I just wanted to look good as far as the venue.

And then I wanted to be outdoors in the beach. Nice. Okay. So outdoors. We got outdoors. But we don't have the beaches of Puerto Vallerta in paradise. No? Babe, you could talk about that.

I mean, I'm sure we went through the exact same experience. I want to know. You know, we haven't discussed anything about Perto Vallarta. But I think right now we're definitely looking at venues. So it's not off the cards, but, I mean, we're ready to make plans. Yeah. Okay. So basically the show hasn't come to you and you don't want to wait for them anymore. Right. I mean, I know that they have things going on with seasons that are coming up and things of that nature.

But also, too, we have kind of certain timelines for what we're wanting within our own lives and, you know, our path. So as of right now, yeah, we're looking at other places. And if Puerto Verita somehow came into the mix, we would be open to it and seeing if that would be something that we would both want together as a unit. Right. Gotcha. I don't know about you guys, but my skin in the winter gets so dry and chapped from the wind and the dry weather. That's why I use bio-clarity. I use their essentials routine, which is great for normal to dry skin, and it's only three steps. You're going to cleanse, restore, and hydrate.

It contains hydrating plant extracts like chamomile, green tea, cucumber, licorice root, argon, olive, and shay. And that's, all those are like really calming ingredients. but their specialty here is Floralux and that is derived from chlorophyll the green stuff in plants it also helps minimize redness reduce porousides and even out skin tone I love how hydrating it is especially

around the holidays because I've been wearing makeup so much that I hate I hate putting makeup on dry flaky skin it looks so bad and I'm watching Crystal like literally shudder over there is it the worst I am sharing yeah well I think you just don't feel confident no when your skin isn't looking good no so by

And moisture is key in winter. Yes. So bioclarity is going to help you with that with the essentials routine. The other great thing about bioclarity is that it is delivered straight to you. And it's just a three-step easy-to-use system. So you don't have to second guess, like, what goes first or when you should use what. It's all there for you. And it's a 100% vegan plus gluten and cruelty-free.

I know you guys are fans of all plant-based items. Definitely. And this, you know, it's not just what goes inside your mouth. it also matters what goes on top of your skin. And to get started today, you just go to bioclarity.com and our listeners are going to get 50% off a routine plus shipping is free. It comes with it 100% risk-free at money-back guarantee, so I'm not really sure why you wouldn't try it. All you got to do is enter our code famous as bioclarity.com and enter our code famous. Speaking about other good things for you, ritual is a vitamin that I really love standing behind.

it's the time of year where the flu is going around people are getting colds and you're spending a lot of time close together in indoor environments right so it's very essential to have a daily vitamin and not have to feel sick once especially when you're doing all this holiday mingling ritual is the perfect vitamin it's just two daily capsules that are made with nine essential nutrients and it has the nutrients that women lack the most ritual is made for women. From vitamin D3 to omega-3, ritual essential for women fills all the gaps in a woman's diet, and it has a fresh minty flavor, so there's no fishy aftertaste. For all you obsessive label readers out there, ritual is vegan-friendly, sugar-free, non-GMO, gluten-free, and allergen-free. And their sources are 100% out there for the whole world to see. It's also deliver to you. So your body never has to be compromised because of your busy schedule or because of a huge horse pill that tastes like fish. The subscription for ritual is so easy. And all you got to do is go to ritual.com slash famous to get your ritual started today. You can snooze any month if you

want if you feel like you're getting backed up in vitamins. But all you got to do is visit ritual.com slash famous and start a good for you ritual today. You guys, I have so many other fun questions for you. Are you ready to dive in? I wanted to make this interview, this chat that we had today, a little less normal. I feel like we're all asked the same questions all the time,

but a lot of people want to know, like, your roots and how you got into this whole shebang of The Bachelor. So I came up with a good couple. fun questions. Let's all describe our life pre-show. So I was Ashley. I am Ashley. I was

25 when I submitted an audition tape to The Bachelor. It went throughout the entire process of the show in about two and a half minutes from getting out of the limo to the final rows. It was like a big parody video. Oh, wow. I had

just graduated. I graduated. I graduated. Eight months ago, I'm from Syracuse's Newhouse School of my master's in digital broadcasting when I got the call from casting. And I submitted my audition tape the month before graduation. At this time in my life, I was four months out of an internship with the New York Jets, and I was looking for a job in digital journalism in the New York City area. You worked for the Jets? I worked for a site that covered the Jets.

It was a pretty cool experience. My favorite team. No way, really? Oh, that's so funny. I'm from New York. Oh, that's right. Okay, well, we'll have to talk afterward. This was, it was really cool because I got to be in the press conference room and go in the locker room and interview all the players.

It was a really good experience. Yeah. I would love that. Anyway, so that's what I was doing before the show. What were you doing before the show, Chris? Be honest. You guys, be honest. So I went to UCF for college, and then after college, go nights, by the way. After 2012, I worked for this financial market firm for almost six years, from 2012 to 2017, beginning of 2017. And I was a sales training director. And then I left, started my own company, and I was doing the whole entrepreneur thing for over year. I have a sales training software company.

So, started that and raised some funding for it, launched it, really had some great success early on. And in that time, I had some friends who originally submitted me for The Bachelor or Bachelorette. I think they submitted me in, like, February or March, because I was so confused when I got the call. But you didn't get the call until when? September. Okay.

So about the same amount of time. And you were submitted when? I think February of that year. So she calls me. And, and I'm like, come on. I was like, listen, I appreciate the call, but who is this? Like, I thought it was one of my friends. And I'm like, all right, whatever.

So did they tell you? It was jazzy. But did they tell you that you, they submitted you? So she said, we just came across your, your submission. And I go, okay. And it was crazy because it was a submission of me with no hair. It was just short hair. So I was like, whoa.

I was like, okay, well, let me hear what she has to say. And we talked and we hit it off. And she was, send me some more pictures and fill out this. thing and next thing you know I'm going to Fort Lauderdale a couple months later but they talked to me every week and then it went to Fort Lauderdale in December of that year and then right after that was casting finals weekend which was the following month in January and then I went there and then little did I know that I was going to be on the show literally a month and a half later and then everything after that just became a huge blur that's so nuts so were you single I was single yeah

were you dating anyone at the time no I mean I would go on dates but as far as anything that had substance, no. Okay. My last serious relationship before that was like two years before that. And I've only had like two serious girlfriends. One of like four years through college and then one for two years after college. Crystal, it's your turn. Hi, I'm Crystal.

I don't know why I wanted to do it like AA style. I love it. My life before Bachelor, it's so funny, I was just talking about this yesterday. I was 29 years old when I got the phone call. and ironically I spent the last two years well I guess the last year living in my little bungalow I was in a four year relationship left that the day I moved in the bungalow my girlfriend submitted me for the bachelor for nick season but it was it was too late in casting so the same here I was supposed to be well I submitted thinking Juan Pablo was actually going to be Jeff home because I thought Jeff home was the cutest so that's when I submitted in like July August and then they were like no like Like now in our minds, we're like, oh, no, that's like basically casting weekend. Right, right, exactly. And nine months later, I got the phone call.

Nine months later, all of us got the phone call so much later. Nine months later. And the ironic thing was I was actually writing a book about just this whole, like, last year of my life and just this crazy journey I'd been on. And it was actually about losing my voice and this whole, like, search of finding it and finding who I was. and I was listening to this Lois House or Lewis House podcast on how to get my book published and how to grow my audience.

And as I'm literally taking notes and I was supposed to be in Italy and Greece on a trip with someone that I was dating, broke up with him and called off a trip. We dated for a month and a half. We had a three week trip to Italy and Greece and I broke up with him two weeks before

because I was like, he's just not for me. I can't go on a three week vacation with someone. Oh my God, no. You know, with someone I know I don't want to be with. So I broke it off, didn't go on the trip. And so I was supposed to be on that trip, but I was home, you know, investing in myself. Yeah. And I got the call from The Bachelor as I was listening to that podcast.

And I was like, that's just so serendipitous and crazy. And at that time, I was coaching with Orange Theory Fitness and just started my online business coaching, like, through Facebook. And was just really looking for an adventure and was really in a space. I just spent the last year really getting to know who I was and working out a lot of, you know, limiting beliefs and understanding why that for your relationship didn't work out and why I didn't want to commit and kind of just looking back at my life. So I really saw it as a fun adventure that, you know, I was, I've been looking for. That's awesome. Yeah. So you guys didn't do audition tapes. You just got called based on applications. No, I did. I had to do an audition tape. After you, after you talked to. Yeah. So I did. I did an amazing 10 minute video. of just me cooking food. I was cooking a skirt steak with chimmy churie sauce and then I made the chummy churry sauce from scratch. And then I showed...

He loves cooking. I know. I'm so not surprised here. I showed a little tour of my place and then I did different little interview spots and I talked about the questions that they told me to talk about on the video and just went into some other more in-depth situations. And then after that I submitted it and literally the next day they were like, okay, we'll see you in Fort Lauderdale. And so I was like, oh, wow. So that's, that's you guys out there.

They go on a tour basically of the entire country where they, it's open. It's an open casting call, but they do make special times for the people that they're very interested in based off their applications. So I don't know about you, but I was like rushed to like the front of the line. And everybody was probably like, why is this girl going to the front of line? Why is she skipping? Oh yeah, I didn't wait. When I went to Fort Lauderdale, she came down and I was at the bar and she was like, she was listening, I just want to apologize. She goes, I'll come back down and get you in like five minutes.

She goes, just stay here. You don't have to wait over here. And I'm like, okay, no worries. And she came back. She got me. But you know what was weird is when I submitted the video, I got an email response. I said, okay, well, we'll get back to you in two to four weeks. When they got back to me the next day, I knew deep down inside I was like, this is for sure.

Something's going on. It's happening way too fast and I just got to embrace it. See, I was on the opposite end of the spectrum. It just took so long to hear back from everyone. And I really tried to play a cool where I'm like, I'm not going to get emotional. I'm not going to get too excited until it's final. It's final. And it didn't become final until 10 days before I left.

Really? It was officially go time, right? Before like going in secluded. Yeah. So it was almost an entire four-month audition process for me. And just so the whole time, like, am I leaving? I have to pay bills. Like, what am I going to do? What about my two dogs?

So it was a very stressful situation. I knew a couple days after casting weekend. I knew. I think it was probably like 25 whole days before that they sent me the packing list and all that. Yeah. Yeah, I didn't get the packing list until like a few weeks prior. But the woman who I was in contact with, she had told me she was everything is good to go. And then I got the FedEx pamphlet that came with like the final confirmation thing.

But then there was something in there that kind of. kind of scared me and it was you could be an alternate did you ever see that oh my gosh yes and they said i think there was like there are a couple people that will sit in the hotel room and that they're not actually picked but they're there just in case anybody chickens out that would be devastating well i know that happened in paradise like i'm sure that's definitely definitely have it's so disappointing yes oh so disappointing how many times have you done paradise is it twice yeah okay did you like it both times was it better the second time Uh, no, it was worse the second time.

It was. Yeah. No, it was definitely worse the second time. Because you didn't how small it was. That's so crazy. Yeah, but there's that and just like, there's already too many formed relationships off the show when you go into the second season. You know, you're like, I'm friends with this person. I have a pass with this person.

Oh, blah, so. Was Jared on both? Yeah. Oh, he was. Yeah. Don't you remember she came in? She's like, I'm not going to cry. I remember.

I just, I would have to rewatch it again because I don't think I've watched season two. Okay. I've watched season. three in season four okay so that was my next question actually is were you fan of the show beforehand you know it's crazy i was telling her this not too long ago uh when i had just uh moved to downtown orlando uh the girl i was dating with at the time she we were in a long relationship and we were watching andy dorfman she was the bachelorette and uh and i was like man i was i was watching it it was a really good season and my girlfriend at the time got me

into it and there was a moment where I was at my girlfriend's place and I was sitting there and I was like wow I'm definitely not going to marry this girl that I'm sitting next to and that's what kicked off my interest in the show because it helped me understand that the girl that I was with at the time it wasn't really going to be what I'm watching and he was inspired I was inspired as far as what I wanted or what I was looking for as far as love and I was like well maybe this show actually can legitimately bring you that opportunity. Yeah, that's so fascinating. Here I am, like, four or five years later, and I'm married to an, or I'm engaged

to an amazing woman. That was just a, that wasn't like a, that wasn't a slip, right? No. What did you say? Like, I was good when you said married. Yeah. Well, you're not like undercover married and not letting us. It's okay.

I called Jared my husband. We have our secrets too, Ashley. No. Okay. Well, that's so fascinating, Chris. Yeah, it's pretty interesting. Wow. Yeah.

I have a crazy story, too, because the day I. moved in the bungalow was the day I was submitted and I just moved out with Chris whom I met on the show and now we're engaged yeah yeah and so we both have like journeys I mean really the bachelor and bachelor has been a huge part of our lives you know individually and as a couple of course it's so nutty I remember watching the show with my friends and my family back like during Ashley Behr or Emily Maynard season and we would just you've been a long time oh yeah we would um just like come up with hypotheticals of like like how I would deal with being on the show.

We would like laugh so hard, just imagining me on the show. Oh my gosh. And then fast forward a couple years, I actually do an application. Then look, I found my future husband. Isn't that the craziest thing ever?

When you guys think about the separate journeys that you had to go on to find each other on a show, I mean, I guess it's no weirder than honestly finding your partner in a bar or a restaurant or at a job. Tinder. And it's actually probably a higher likelihood because it attracts like-minded people

and it attracts people that are looking for the same thing. I think what's incredible, and I'm sure your relationship with Jared is like this, but coming out of The Bachelor, like in that interim between Bachelor and Bachelor in Paradise, it was really hard for me to date because guys just don't understand it. Like, you just can't relate to someone on that level. Yeah.

And so there's a whole issue of trust and just it's hard to date. And so going into Paradise, I was really excited and that was my big my biggest reason was to meet someone even though I was like I swear I'm not gonna date I'm working I don't want even on a boyfriend and I remember like a producer being like that's exactly what they say the ones to get engaged I was like there's no way like I'm gonna leave on day one like I'm not unpacking and it's so crazy like you know we were the first surviving the last to leave um but oh my gosh I know I remember um I was like you guys are gonna like If you, I honestly remember, this sounds a little conceited, but I was like, if you want me around, you're going to figure out a way to keep me around because I'm not going to like anyone. I was like, I know myself and I know I don't like anyone ever. So I was like, good luck. You know what's crazy when you go into Paradise? You have this predetermined understanding of you think you know exactly who's going to be a match for you.

And it's the complete opposite. It wasn't the opposite for me. Jared was on my list. He was the only one that I was like I, if he's here, he's probably the only one that I may like. But then when I saw him in real life, it was a whole different, like, boom. Take us back.

Okay, to the first time you met him. Yeah, no, the first time I saw him, it was a feeling that I had never had before. It was wacky because I had watched two episodes of Caitlin's season by that time. Oh, right, because it had just aired. Yeah. I was like, he's cute.

Like, on the show, I was like, he's cute. He seems nice. I'll put him on my Bachelor in Paradise list. but I'm not saying that I'm going to like like him. And then when I saw him in real life, it was a whole different feeling than seeing him on TV. Were you there on day one?

Yeah. How excited were you when you first met him in person? I was so nervous because I liked him before like he even spoke. It was so weird. And I was like, oh, no, I didn't come in here prepared to have a crush. Right. You know, because having a crush, I don't know about you guys, but it makes me so nervous at first and it makes me like not be myself at first.

Yeah, I mean, it throws you off your. game because I think we go in and we're always guarded and not afraid to let people in and when you let those guards down it makes you vulnerable and it's very scary so that's what I was going to say about what you were saying about finding somebody on the show when you did when I

would try to date off the show after already having show experience I found that regular guys who had never guys who had never been on the show where they were just very it seems like emotionally unavailable

and, like, not as vulnerable because the show puts you through that emotion training to be so open. And so soon. So soon. And so soon. And a big thing for me was hard. Like, when you're out, people want photos

and want to talk to you. And, like, fans will come up and they ignore the people that you're with. Oh. Like, haven't you... When people come up for photos and to talk to you, like, they totally disregard the person that you're with. So I know that was hard, like, when I'd gone on dates.

Yeah. To kind of deal with that. You need to see the person just uncomfortable. Yeah. not having not dealt with that before yeah i think dating and bachelor nation you shared this special bond uh that really a lot of people don't experience and i think that alone helps relationships form within bachelor nation or at least gives a better opportunity than dating someone out in the real world who's just normal who hasn't been exposed to this type of experience

totally all right well guys i got to take a break i'm sorry you okay oh yeah no i have to take a break Talk about bullet branch. One of my favorite things to do with Jared right now is just lay in bed and just like scroll through Pinterest and Instagram looking, you know, for wedding plans. Inspiration. Yeah, especially since it's a little cold. Even out here in Southern California, you guys,

it's like getting down to the 60s now. And I don't know about you. Well, you're also been living in Orlando too. So you are adjusted to this warm weather. And it's just too cold out here for a minute now. So we're like staying in enjoying the Christmas lights, the Christmas tree, hot chocolate. And our Bowlen Branch sheets.

Bull and Branch makes the softest, most comfortable 100% cotton, organic sheets you'll ever sleep on. U.S. presidents even love sleeping on Bowling Branch sheets. They're made from 100% organic cotton, and they start out soft, but they get even softer over time. You can try them for a whole month. And if they're not the most comfortable sheets you've ever slept on, you can actually send them back for a refund. That is right. You can test drive your sheets. No risk means no reason not to try them.

Plus, you're going to get $50 off your first set of sheets at bowl and branch.com when you use the promo code almost famous. It is spelled bowl, B-O-L-L, and branch.com promo code almost famous. And you're going to get $50 off your first set of sheets. And if you don't like them, you can send them back for a refund. Again, that is bowl and branch.com promo code, almost famous. And another thing that I love, especially in. the winter time.

E is my Fab Fit Fun box because it comes with all these cute seasonal things. There's like a really snugly blanket in there. They often have cute mugs for your hot chocolate. And like you guys probably know at this point, FabFit Fun is a seasonal box and it doesn't just come with sample sizes. There are full size beauty, fitness, and lifestyle products. And the winter box is epic. It has this knit throw like I just mentioned from Mark and Graham, body cream from

anthropology. It smells so good and it's so hydrating on your dry winter skin. There's also a dry shampoo from Orbe and a coaster set from urban home and that's just the beginning of it. It is the perfect gift for the holidays. I've had so many people come up to me and tell me that they have used my code for FabFit Fun to get a year-long gift for the person because you sign up, you can get somebody Christmas four times a year because this box is going to be delivered seasonally. Everybody finds something in this box that they like and they will re-bu and then use forever or, you know, for the foreseeable future. So if you're looking for a holiday gift for the daughter, the sister, the girlfriend, the fiance, the wife, the mom, the aunt, the cousin, go to fabfitfund.com and use the code almost famous and you can save $10 off your first box. making it only $39.99 in the value of this box is always over $200.

So that is the deal of the century. Again, that is fabfit fun.com and use the code almost famous. You deserve to treat yourself. All right, guys, so I still have more pre-batchelor questions for you. We talked about audition tapes. We talked about your life before the show. But now I want to know what you did when you were sitting in the hotel for three days before. Because I find this to be a fascinating point in your life for self-reflection.

because the first day, you're like, okay, they took my phone away, which I feel separation anxiety, but I also feel very relaxed at the same time. You're like, I can just watch TV and read a book for the next three days and just kind of like gather my thoughts, write in a diary. This sounds like not that bad. So the first day, you're like, yeah. And then you're like, I'm making new friends. I love these producers.

And then day three comes around and you're like, I am so tired of watching TV. and I'm making up stories. I'm looking at the window and I am making up stories about the people who are walking into this hotel. So tell me about your experience there. I'm going to say I loved it. I loved it. I was coaching 300 people through a challenge.

So literally I took the train up from San Diego with like seven suitcases. And I was working on the train. Like literally to the minute I literally walked in the hotel, I was like, here's my phone. bye like i was so ready to be done i slept for 12 hours and i actually brought my notebook and all my workout equipment so i was doing workouts in my hotel and watching real housewives i was just catching up on tv because i don't have a tv in the bungalow you didn't have a tv in the bungalow no i didn't have a tv for two years i got tv i got room service this amazing i'm on my cell phone no one could reach me i am in heaven right now you got so much heaven the unlimited room service i was

I was like, this is a dream come true. It was, it was. But then you're like, wait a second. I don't want to be all bloated in the face for like night one. That's what I did. So like the first day, I was like, okay, you can have what you want tonight. But then you have to like actually like cut down on the sodium the next two days. Totally.

Exactly. So for the Bachelorette, the first day, it was kind of easy. And then the next day I had no view. I had the worst view possible. So you couldn't look at people in the first. the parking lot? I couldn't look at nothing. There was just branches and there was just nothing. I'm like, wow, I really feel like I'm in jail and I've never been to jail and this was, this was me understanding that jail is just not for me. And just on. Huge self-reflection. So, but outside of that,

I ironed my clothes every day. I took multiple showers. Well, why? You were just going to pack them back up. Well, because I just got bored. Stayed busy. Yeah. I tried on clothes. I laid everything out, all my shoes. I tried everything on. I paired him up. But I also spent a majority of my days with producers in my room. I would say for hours throughout the day. Yeah. And one of the biggest things was finding out what I was going to do for the limo entrance. I had no idea.

What did you do? The choir. Oh, that's right. Yeah. So that happened very last minute. I don't even know how we pulled that off. And I actually went to the mansion before anyone else did. So I was at the mansion that day.

For rehearsal? Pre-rehearsing. And the choir came and we were all setting up where we were going to be and stuff. So I actually got to see the mansion and everything before the show even began recording. That's really cool. We have VIP over here. During the day. Yeah.

So then I was like, all right. What happened? But here's the worst part is I was the last one to get out of the limo. So I was the last one to leave the hotel. And I didn't eat probably since 12 o'clock because I didn't want to look bloated. And so I thought the same thing. It's a thing. But that's a detriment usually.

because then you get less time. Oh, no, you don't get less time at the cocktail party. Sorry, that was just my season because with regular seasons, you do like the whole 25 first. So with my season, they did like 15 and then Chris came in

to mingle with us and then they did another 15 and then he had to mingle with them. Yeah, but okay, no, that makes sense. It's not a detriment. It actually was probably a good thing. Well, it was because I drink some good tequila for hours and I was about 10,000.

30 where I finally left in the limo and I'm with one producer and we drive up to the house. And then as we get up to the house, all the limo or all the choir people get out of their limo into my limo. So we're in there together and they're hyping me up and they're singing and stuff. And it was in that moment where I open up the door that he opens up the door, the limo driver. And I see Becca and I just blacked out. I think we all blocked out. I blacked out.

And I knew I was blacked out because I guess when I walked in, there was a chicken, David. And I didn't even acknowledge David, let alone. didn't even know he was in a chicken outfit you're like that's normal and he's like bro you did you not see me i'm wearing a chicken outfit i'm like oh my god i didn't i'm just like not in the moment right now i'm trying to get back into my body and uh but no i mean that was uh it was it was it was a blessing and a curse because all the guys got to meet each other and then i'm last and i'm just like and then as soon as i get there then she comes in so you didn't have a bonding moment with the guys uh in that in those first couple hours no but then afterwards you're you're waiting for your

You made up for it. Yeah, I would hate that because there's so much anxiety of anticipation of waiting for that moment, like when you step out of the limo. And for me, it just felt, I'm sure for you guys too, I mean, I was a huge fan of the show, so I'd seen it. And to know I was actually stepping on that set. Oh, I couldn't believe it. And being in the, it was out of body. I know that I will never experience that we are feeling ever again. And it was just like the wet pavement and the lights everywhere in the camera.

as all, and all the 200 staff that night, there's 200 people working at night, night one. And it was just such this out-of-body experience, like a dream. Yeah. It was freezing. I remember, I remember standing with, like, Clay and Blake and, uh, Connor, we'd be by the fireplace because it was just so cold, but then they don't want you all bunched up together in one area. They want you spread out to have conversations, to have different views.

And I'm thinking, like, it's 30 degrees in L.A. Is this even possible right now? How is this going on? Out in Malibu in the hills. Yeah, I can get cold. Struggle. Yeah. So I'll always remember, like, they get you ready early.

I was in the first limo. So I had to get ready. Like, they wanted me in makeup and hair by 1.30. I was 2 o'clock. Yeah. So that was way too early for me. I was like, no, if I have to look pretty by 8, this is not going to work here. And there was a whole bunch of, like, weird makeup issues with me that day, too.

They thought that I was wearing too much makeup. Wait, really? Well, they messed up my makeup. Oh, same here. Oh, I didn't know where I was going to be this honest. I had to go and redo it. I was like, um, when's last time you, like, styled someone because it is in 2017 here. Crystal, I was the exact same.

I didn't know if I wanted to, like, you know, talk about this, but I went into makeup and they, like, dusted my eyes with maybe, like, some brown. And then I just didn't look like myself whatsoever. And then my hair looked like Tracy Turnblad. I said like old Hollywood waves and I turned out to like be like 60th style wig and I went back I judged myself and then

I love that you said judged because the first of I heard it was night one No way really? Because there was a different set of people who did touchups for her and makeup and they were amazing. I know they were amazing judge yeah I was like judge

so funny that you said that's exactly yeah they were great one of the guys that works at Access who does my makeup sometimes when I'm over there he's like I do the judging on night One, at the mansion, I was like, you are great. You're great.

So, anyway, there was a couple issues with that, but I remember you had to get in your dress or your suit hours before they, like, called you downstairs. To get miced up. Right? Yeah. So they miced me up, and then I sat in my room for almost two hours. My heart was pounding. Pounding, doing nothing.

And I actually called down for champagne. I'm not even a huge drinker, but I was like, I need a glass of champagne right now. It's nerve racket. Yeah. It is. And I'm like, I'm sitting there like praying and I'm like, are they listening? Are they hearing me go to the bathroom? Because you're all miced up.

You know what I'm saying? Like that element of I am alone is no longer there. I mean, for hours before even going on set. What's nice though is when you get out of the limo, I did remember you can't really see any cameras. So that's kind of nice. That kind of sets the tone for you just getting that out of the way and just realizing, okay. Because once you begin the process of exiting the limo, you forget about all the cameras. It becomes like they're just not even there.

So that's something that helped me at least get past that first part because that was definitely hard. Yeah. I remember walking down to the hotel, like the hotel lobby and seeing the girls that were in my limo. And we weren't really allowed to mingle with them yet. We were each with a producer or a handler talk. They're like, look at me, look at me, don't look at the other girls. And I remember seeing Britt Nielsen at the corner of my eye. And I was like, oh, God, this is going to be really hopeful.

because she is like the most stunning person like I've ever seen and I was like wow okay yeah but then um then all the sudden you start talking to the girls and you're like oh I like them oh I think we're going to be friends who did you bond with the most on night one uh Blake Blake for sure Nick Jordan uh who else was there bonded with Jordan on night one yeah I like Jordan. Jordan is one of the funniest people to ever come out of this franchise. That's true. But being in the house with him was also amazing because I knew that there would be something extra each day or just something where he would make me laugh. And he's just very comical. Comic relief. Yeah. And he's so witty. And he's a good chirper. So if someone chirped at him, he somehow already has something that's going to be right back at you right away. It's like it doesn't even it already processed and it just comes out right away. I wish I had the speed of his brain. Yes, very fast. Oh, yeah.

Crystal, who'd you bond with? All the girls I bonded with went home on night one. It was Brittany. Brittany, there was two Britneys. So the Britney who went home on night one, she was in my limo. We were close. Caroline was actually in my limo. Bree, she went home on night one and Lauren Jay.

That must have been hard. It was like, yeah, the girls I was like chatting with the most. Like they all let and I was like, oh my gosh, they're like my buddies. Yeah. The friends that you make on night one aren't necessarily the friends that you stay closest to the entire time, but it's definitely probably who you cling on to the most that first week. Yeah, Blake, he had the first one-on-one and I had the second and kind of that brought us together and we bonded even more based off that because it's a very unique experience to get those first one-on-one dates. You had the same situation getting an early one-on-one.

And you just, you get that bond with someone and talk about, you know, what you're going through and how you're feeling. So it's nice to just have someone there and be able to relate in regards to that. I don't want to name producers, but all of us naturally are inclined to, like, just be really trummy with a couple of them. And they figure that out pretty quickly. how in what ways did you bond with the producer that you seem to be set up with the most it's so funny we were talking about producers on the way here this morning there's a lot of producers that I love and I'm not going to name drop anyone but I had a certain producer that came to do my intro package and I really like her a lot she is a really good friend of mine and she's amazing amazing human being I did have someone else who was my main producer producer. He was my main producer for the first few episodes, first three or four. And then it changed to someone else whom I do love as a person. And he's a very close friend of mine. But I do understand that each producer and why everything's switched up. And everything makes sense now. And

it's also nice because Crystal helps me also understand and identify kind of the impact of the show outside of the show as far as who you are as a person and things that come out of who you are on the show that maybe you never knew about but you're able to identify and be able to fix those things or be able to understand wow okay that actually is something that came out of me so there had to be something there and now you're able to address it isn't that interesting how they use certain people that bring out certain characteristics in you some of them like I knew that my like girlfriend personality like you know like my cute fun like let's have girl talk would come out and then one where it's let's be funny talk let's be snarky one and then one where it was like you're

going to be super emotional right now with him yes 100% crystal yes I agree I'm like I don't want to say anything okay um I would say that just um yeah I think that looking back and Chris never having this conversation yesterday and it was just um yeah I think that you build a lot of trust and report with people and I mean I think even our friendships right are like that we have friends for different events. Some go to happy hour, some go to church, some go to, you know, group setting, some are one-on-one. And I think that you definitely carry those qualities into producers as well. Isn't that so interesting? I will say though, producers, they have a certain job that they have to do. And they're not malicious or they're not bad people, right? And I think that's something

that now I understand moving forward is a lot of the things early on, I had no idea about TV or anything about myself and reactions to certain things and now I do understand it and so now I look back and I'm like okay certain producers can get certain things out of you and that's just kind of how it works and it's nothing against them it's just you got to be very self-aware of the situation or the certain type of environment that you're in at that point in time on the show and I think whether on a show or whether in real life I think it's just this element of I mean we were saying that this particular instance magnifies qualities that are great or not great and takes into another level and we can choose to look at it in two different ways especially being villainized you know us both having that

villain edit I chose to look back at it as a coach I was trained to receive feedback um as a way to grow and so with my experience on the bachelor I mean that is I could let it defeat me and there were definitely moments in my life when they were really hard to pull myself out of but I would read through all those nasty comments and just still try to pull some way that I could grow and apply and, you know, become a better person, become a better coach. And because of that experience, you know, it allowed me to, I mean, to really transform as a person and then to come on to paradise and, like, show who I was and then bring a better version of myself into a relationship. And look what happened. I mean, you are definition like I learned and

growed from the show and I have a whole other season to prove that and you too Chris and I think that it's so cool that you guys were both villains on the show and then you really like a lot of them just like go into the abyss right? But then you guys really came out of it you grew from it and now look you're both very adored

and you're together and you got a happy ending from it. I know and we're so grateful even for those moments that are really hard and I think we really look back at the show and anything in life that curveballs that hit us. It's a moment for us to really grow our strength and to define us. And it's how we choose to react to it. And because of that hard time, like, I mean,

I was able to, you know, find Chris, like had it not been for the show. So I look back and I'm just grateful for all of it. There are things I do regret, of course, but I still look back and grateful for it all. Oh, yeah. Same. So it's honestly like no regrets,

but, I mean, a little bit. Yeah. Okay, so let's talk about when you exit the Bachelor bubble. Not so much when the show is airing, because I know you guys have talked about that a lot and all like the hate and the social media and that's just something that's just kind of been exhausted. Let's talk about when you exit the bubble

and how weird it is when they hand you your phone back when you can call your family and all that weird stuff. So I was in Virginia. when I ended up leaving the show. My home state. Is it? Yes. I'm from Northern Virginia.

Very interesting state. Very interesting experience. Very interesting experience. So I leave the hotel. It was like 4 in the morning. And right away I said, I want to go on the next flight. Because I was just over it at that point. And I got my phone back.

And I turned on my phone and I had a lot of notifications. But the biggest thing was, is, you were just so numb to your phone. It's just like I was gone 40 days. I didn't know how. I didn't. I was very resistant to get it back. As soon as I got it and I felt as if that I had to give my energy to all these messages

and I felt exhausted and I hadn't even text anyone yet. So I was like, you know what? I think I'm going to shut it off and then I got on the flight and when I went home, I remember I literally binge to eat so much cookies because I was so exhausted. I slept for 24 hours straight. I laid in bed 24 hours street just yeah I was just so mentally drained not physically mentally because of what I had just experienced and I just needed to allow myself to get back in realignment your body legit pressed reset yeah I was in Paris and it was the day after

my 30th birthday after a two on one and when I went got back to the hotel room got to bed at 4.30 had to be up at seven for my flight no and when I was at the airport I almost got pulled in at customs because there was an issue with my ticket like because i didn't book it someone else booked it for me and so three security people came over talking to me and finally i was like look i'm on a tv show like someone booked it for me and they're like wait what and they're like oh my gosh an american on a tv show like rob me let me skip the line upgraded me check my luggage for free well a couple bags i still had to pay like $700 to ship all my luggage and um on that flight they like they like totally upgraded me and then on that flight I drank for 14 hours I didn't even say I just stood so numb just like oh my god I got broken up with on a national television on my birthday like what happened and I didn't turn on my phone for five days after getting home I came to offer five days went and saw my grandma literally within 12 hours of less than that of landing went and stay with my grandma and slept to my grandma's bed for like

Five days. I couldn't sleep because of anxiety, so I had to take Benadryl. You know, you know what's crazy? And my aunt was like, what happened to you? She knew, because she's very self-aware, she knew that she was going to experience some rough waters. Me, on the other hand, I remember my mom calling me. She goes, how was it? Talk to me. I said, man, it was a great experience, all these great things. I'm thinking in my head, I was like, you know, there was a little rough patch in Vegas and Virginia, but I'm hoping that. I come out on top and boy was I wrong because well not only was I wrong I was completely wrong and I didn't and the crazy thing is is talk about self-awareness exactly and what's crazy is I didn't get to see my season and I'm in paradise getting engaged and we come out of

you saw not even an episode or two one episode the first one so and I come out of paradise with her and And we're watching the show. And the first thing is when I turned on my phone in paradise is my mom was like, what is going on? Yeah, I remember you telling me this. And I'm like, oh, God, I'm like, honestly, I just wanted to pass out at this point. When he's calling to tell her, he's engaged, he's happy, and it's like a whole thing's been going on. She's like, you're not going to want to watch the show. There's just, you're not going to want to read anything.

I'm thinking like, oh my God, what happened? And yeah, so that that was a bigger eye opener than leaving in Virginia. I'd say it was a big cloud too because, I mean, we're coming off. We're excited and we're together and want to celebrate it. And then it was really hard to see Chris go through that experience as a villain because I had just come out of it. And I had gone through it. And you had no idea. He was going to be portrayed like that.

I had no idea. I had no idea. And I know my biggest concern in dating someone or meeting someone in paradise was that especially a new, someone new fresh off Becca season was that they had no idea. what this life or fame or attention would be like and so I was really resistant to dating someone because I didn't know how they would if they'd be like a Peter Pan and want to be like an Instagram model or you know what I'm saying like really like soak and bask in the attention and wanted that yeah because that's not a quality that I'm looking for in a partner and so I mean I was nervous about that but then to see Chris having the villain edit and it was tough you know

to watch him go through that what I had gone through in the same way it's interesting because you definitely fell in love with the person and you had no preconceived notions of who he was. So you really got to know him and not the caricature that was created of him. Correct. Yeah. Very interesting experience, but I'm very grateful. So I have nothing bad to say about any of it. And, you know, it's something where you learn a lot from.

And I came out on top because I got blessed with an amazing woman. So I'm very happy with the outcome of the total experience. Yeah. What's the biggest misconception you think of the show? Because I think the most annoying thing I get asked by fans is just, is it real? I'm like, well, yeah, I'm engaged from it, so it's pretty darn real. Right, people seem to be surprised. Like, oh my God, you guys are actually together.

Yeah, I get that too. Yeah, we are. Didn't you watch it? Yeah. I'm the television show. Yeah. The way I kind of explain it is, especially in Paradise, you're on an island for almost 30 days with nothing besides the other people around you. And if you're really into someone

being with them every single day for that entire duration is equivalent to maybe dating six months to a year out in the real world. Oh, hell yeah. But more importantly, there's no distraction. So if you really want to have some in-depth conversations that have substance that is with someone else and there's no distractions on the table, you'll really be able to justify if this is someone that you can see yourself being with outside in the real world. I definitely don't think it's It's a coincidence that the Bachelor in Paradise relationships seem to be longer lasting. And that they're honestly, yeah, more of them have formed that have lasted long. So we got J.

Tanner, Carly, Evan, Raven, and Adam. You and Jared in a certain capacity. You guys. So it's just crazy when you compare them to the regular seasons because in that case, I think maybe you get 36 hours together alone. Right? In total. Yeah.

And in Paradise, you also don't have the camera in your face so much. You are lounging around. And there'll be a camera launched on the top of the ceiling, but you don't really realize. And I feel like it's so much less competitive because, I mean, the first week, I mean, really, everyone's kind of kissing each other and getting to know. And it's, like, normal, which is, like, was so weird. Yeah. But you're, like, you see, like, yeah, you just go and kiss, like, two guys, like, back to back. It's normal. It's paradise. Woo. Tequila.

That wasn't me. I've seen it. I've seen it. But yeah, I mean, it's amazing. You just spend quality time. And I thought Paradise was just, everyone feels relaxed. The beach is an element where I think it just draws out really great qualities in people. And I would say that my experience with the producers in Paradise, it was so much more, it just felt so supportive of exploring relationships. and there's just so much less expectations and pressure on yourself to perform and compete with other people.

You're not really competing in Paradise. You're just exploring. Right. It all depends on who you are. That's right. Oh yeah, I remember you and Kayla. All right. Well, speaking of packing.

Chrysler, you packed seven bags for The Bachelor. How many did you bring for Paradise? I brought, I think I cut it down to two and a carry-on. Okay, that's good because Paradise, everything's light. You don't have to bring, yeah, you don't have to bring coats and pack for every kind of weather, which is like, what do you mean? Thread Up is so helpful when packing for The Bachelor or really styling any closet wardrobe, filling it up. You know, you can fill up a closet so easily and so affordably with Thread Up. Jared and I have so many fun wedding festivities coming up.

We got bachelor parties and bridal showers, but I can't spend so much money on a dress every single time. And that's why I love Thread Up. If you don't know, Thread Up is the world's largest online consignment and thrift shop. And the prices are 90% off estimated retail prices. 90%. That's crazy. I know, right? That's like free.

I know. That's like tax only. I know. And we're going to actually give you an extra 30% off. with our code, almost famous 30. So that's like negative percent. You know, that's like negative dollars basically. They have a huge selection of over 35,000 brands like Madewell, Banana Republic, B.C.BG,

Steve Madden, Kate Spade, Lulu, Lemon, Coach, and more. I recently found the cutest Steve Madden booties. They were just $16 in a great condition. So if you sign up now, you're going to get that extra 30% off, like I mentioned. for your first order at threadup.com slash almost famous 30. But make sure there's no A when you put Threadup in there. It's T-H-R-E-D-U-P dot com slash almost-famous-30.

Again, that is Threatup.com slash almost famous 30 for an extra 30% off today. Oh, yeah, girl. Yeah. I will be using that. All right. We got to wrap this up soon, but we do have some Bachelor news that I want to talk to you guys about, including this amazing. 40-year-old virgin soup of Colton.

Now, yesterday when Colton posted this, I was like, did he create that himself? But apparently, Judd Apatow had part of this, the director of the 40-year-old Virgin and so many other comedies. No way. Yeah, he is a big fan. I met his wife backstage at one of the... Leslie Man.

Yes, Leslie Man backstage. I think it was at years. It was at Year. She's so cool. I love her, too. I love Leslie. could they have found i'm sure you guys if you follow colton or any of the bachelors on social media i'm sure you've seen this spoof but i mean did colton pose for this because this picture is the exact thing yeah his body is different uh than steve corral so this is definitely colton's body i think he posed yeah i think he definitely posed it it's incredible yeah it's amazing it's on point can i frame this you guys are friends with colton

you're both you know you're both in paradise with him tell us why you think he's going to be a good bachelor or if you don't think he's going to be a bachelor then let's know that too oh i i cannot wait to watch his season colton is multi-dimensional i mean we love we love calling him that because he just offers a lot and i think that um i'm excited to see

with the woman's perspective of i mean with his virginity how that's going to impact women especially if they get they're getting serious and to see colton And kind of make that decision of, am I ready for the, for this step? And, I mean, fantasy speeds, man. Do you guys know any dirt? Like, have you talked to him about how his season unfolded? I mean, I talked to him the other day on the phone.

He lost a little bit of muscle, you know, because he's been doing so much cardio. And he, uh, also are you referring to bedroom cardio? No, no, no. That's how you had like a dirty look in your eyes. I was like, no, I was asking him how, uh, how he was as far as because he trains real hard. He was at, and when I was on the phone with him, he was actually at muscle farm training. But he, uh, he was telling me about how the sodium and a lot of the food in some of the areas that they went, it was different compared to his diet. And he, he has a very,

did he feel bloated? He just, yeah, he just fell a little bit bloated, a little, a little bit of loss, uh, muscle, lean muscles. So he doesn't have any time to work out. Well, no, I can't imagine what, what, what it's like for the lead because I mean, as contestants, I mean, we barely slept, but the lead? Because they have to go and interview after every single day. I don't know how they do it. It's the most exhausting job ever. And nobody gives them credit for it. Right. Yeah. So I can only imagine not only is he probably fatigued mentally and emotionally because that's, it's got to be tough for a couple months doing that. But his body, I'm sure right now that's probably one of his main priorities now coming off the show is getting back to where he was and getting back on his

diet and his regimen and stuff like that. But he still looks great. Looks great. You know, definitely gray body looking good there with the rose so i like that it's pretty i'm very excited i just think he's great because he's going to be so emotional yeah and open about it he's so comfortable with expressing himself on tv i feel like i think you'll see more of a well-polished man uh on this season of him i feel like maybe some people thought with the uh indecisiveness and him always smiling and serious situations, kind of led people to think that he wasn't ready for a role like that and maybe thought maybe him being a little bit more of a boy, I guess you can say. But I'm thinking now watching kind of what's going to play out, I'm thinking you're going

to see a well-polished groomed man and someone who knows what he wants and someone who really gives us everything as far as being real and very genuine. I agree. I have, I just, I feel like he's going to, he's, this was an opportunity for him to step into his own. He's going to shock. Like you guys talking about growth. I think that it's amazing how much growth

we've seen Colton go through over the past year too. We're very invested in him. Bob Guinea has a baby, guys. Former Bob, former Bachelor from like legit 15 years ago. Sorry, Bob. And his wife, Jessica Ken Canyon just welcomed their first child.

It's a baby boy. It's Bob's first at the age of 47. They announced the happy news on Monday on Instagram with the sweet snap of his newborn son's tiny footsteps. The captioned Read today, Footprints. With a sweet snap of his newborn son's tiny footprints, today is the greatest day he captioned in the Instagram. Our son, Grayson Robert Guinea, was born early on 12, 13, 2018.

Sagittarius. Yep, are you? Yep. Great baby. The baby is happy and healthy. Mom is resting, and everybody is so excited. There's also 30. Congrats.

Congrats, guys. In other news, there's 34 days left to the premiere of The Bachelor. Wow. So you guys only have a couple weeks left of this off season and we're back on it. And holy moly. I can't wait. The world would begins again. And lastly, Peter, you guys know Peter Krause?

Yeah. You know him personally? No, personally, I don't. Okay, well, Peter Krause is going to be on. this upcoming season of total Bellas. He goes on a date with Nikki Bella who, as you may know, was dating. John Cena.

John Cena and engaged and about to get married for until like two weeks before the wedding. So now her sister, Bree Bella, sets up Nikki on this date with Peter and they go on a gondola ride and they have wine and it's supposed to be really

romantic. But apparently Nikki doesn't feel sparks. And we see in the preview for the season that he goes in for a kiss, but we don't know whether or not the kiss really happens because there's rumors that say there weren't any sparks and that she stopped the kiss before it happens, but we're going to have to watch Total Bellas to find this out. I mean, she was dating engaged to John Sina, who was like 350 pounds of rock-hard muscle. Like, I'm going to say, Peter might be a little too lean.

I'm not saying she's scared of him, and maybe she's not emotionally ready to jump into anything. John Sine is a big guy. Yeah. And also there's Bachelor Fantasy League. It's back for this coming season. Don't forget that you have to kind of partake immediately. You can't, like, put it off for a few weeks. There's an amazing prize, which is getting to go to after the final rose.

If you do win this ABC Bachelor Fantasy League. Do you guys play Bachelor Fantasy? I feel like we can. I feel like we can't because we know too much. We do. Yeah. And, yeah, I just. It's like cheating.

Yeah. I don't think I can get invested. It is cheating. And then I feel like all the other people involved. You're like, how can I trust that you're not looking at spoilers? Right. I'm in a Bachelor fantasy football league right now, so that's my main priority. Bachelor fantasy footballing, which means that you're playing fantasy football with some bachelors?

With all bachelor guys. Cool. That's fun. I'm in first place. Sorry, sorry to Mario, Josh Murray. Aw. Well, congrats, Chris. That's pretty awesome.

Is there a prize at the end? I take pride. Yeah, money. How much money? That's like $250. Yeah, I know. That's how like every friend fantasy group is. We just do something small, but it's just nice to my first season in.

It doesn't matter what the prize is. It's just that you guys get your competitive juices out. Every Sunday morning, he's like, I got to go to the coffee shop and work for a couple hours. I'm like for fantasy football. That's Jared on Fanduel. Oh, that's what I play. And I'm like, make that money. Jared plays Fandle?

Yeah. So does Tanner. They both do? Oh, my God. They're hardcore. Me too. Yeah? That's where I go to the coffee shop to do.

my lineups. Wait, how many teams do you create? I made in one night 40 grand. Okay. What? Tanner made so much money and I can't drop the number. No, it's fine. It's fine. I'll tell you later. Yeah. You made 40 grand. Yeah, legit. I have over 100K in winnings. Holy. Wow. I have this whole algorithm, uh, numeric system Excel spreadsheet that I created. I'm going to have to set you go with a bunch of stats. He needs lessons. All right. Well, guys, thank you so much for joining us today. This was a fantastic podcast. I'm going to leave here feeling good, like really gave them something fun to listen to. You agree?

Thanks for having us. Yeah, it was great. Thank you so much. This was fun. Well, big thank you to BioClarity. Get your first routine today. Enter the code famous ritual for some good vitamins that don't taste fishy. Visit ritual.com slash famous to start your ritual today.

Bowling Branch, if you want to sleep on sheets at the president's sleep on, you're going to get $50 off your first set of sheets at bullenbranch.com and you use the promo code almost. famous bad fit fun use the code almost famous and you can save $10 off your first box making only $39.99 it is a fantastic gift for any girl in your life and then thread up if you need to fill up your closet but you want to do it affordably use our code almost famous 30 for an extra 30% off today Chris and crystal crystal thanks for joining us and thanks for driving up from San Diego thanks for having us love you guys bye bye Follow the Ben and Ashley I, almost famous podcast on IHartRadio or subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.