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If you have been directed to this page via email response it is because you can find the answers to your questions in the write up below: Please read:
That's Entertainment
Reality TV has earned itself a nickname in Hollywood; "Phoneality TV"
When you watch those survivors stranded on a desert island do you honestly believe that they are all alone ? I would say that there are at least 50 people behind the scenes making things happen.
Reality TV is neither history, biography or news. Its entertainment. And like a movie, sitcom or soap: It is of no value if it cannot "evoke an emotional response" from its audience.
A producer or writer's number one objective is to evoke an emotional response. Conflict, controversy and drama are required . Understand that anything you read or watch is what the producer or writer wants you to hear or see. He or she will include or exclude, and/or switch around whatever is necessary to deliver his or her message. By editing, he or she can sway opinion to one way or another
TV is an industry who's survival depends on advertising. Entertainment is of no value if it cannot produce the required emotional response. If you were stirred by what you watch or read, that's fine. The producer or writer has achieved his or her objective.
.People today need to be smarter and understand this. Would you have followed Hitler's propaganda campaign?
The Roadwarriors are not normal. We are extra-ordinary.
I did not build the bus worried about what people would think. If I was worried about what the Jones' across the street thought of me, I would have bought the prettiest motor home and gone into debt. I built the bus for us. The Bus is the mechanism, a device, a tool that will help us achieve our dreams. I built the bus because I could. Because I have the courage to do so. Believe me, its courage, not knowledge. I did not have the knowledge: I acquired it. Knowledge is available everywhere. Courage, now that's different. Courage comes from within. An if you do not have courage, well, you will not build a bus and much less venture far from home. Do you fear the unknown ? Do you dare venture outside your comfort zone ? What is your Bus?
And what of My Daughters.
They are turning out just fine. They are smarter, more confident and happier than I could ever imagine. I witness this everyday as we home school, fix things, work and play on the computers. The greatest lesson my daughters and my wife have learned from me is to have this courage. To not to be afraid of the unknown. And this I know is the greatest lesson of all. For the quality people in this world are those with courage. Those who think things through and are not afraid of effecting change in order to improve things. They are not selfish and do not command their will onto others. These people know not to stand in judgement. For who are they to judge. My girls know this....They are confident and without prejudice, and most important of all; they are not peer dependent teens.
Been there. Done that.
We chose to partake in a reality TV show to learn. And that we did. It was by far one of the most rewarding experiences we have had as a family. We learned so much, not just knowledge, but more importantly about ourselves. I cannot begin to describe to you how proud I was as I watched my daughters and wife be interviewed on live TV. How strong and confident they were. And as I write this piece I have yet learned something new about people in general. And so we move on......
For those of you demanding that I apologize to the nation: I do not apologize for these actions, or my beliefs. I do not apologize for my existence. We will be judged by no one. I am fully aware and responsible for my actions. We do not dignify uninformed opinion or tabloid. We are steadfast in our resolve. Are you judging us ? Who are you to judge?
How do we feel about the show ?
We feel that the produces did an excellent job. It was funny..... emotional..... I even saw some tears in our friends eyes as they watch while at the party. It was great entertainment !!
As a person who loves making videos I can appreciate the huge task to make a story out of your videotape. Hardest of all is to make it entertaining to an audience. Excellent Job.
Andre
And what about Michelle?
Make no mistake! We love Michelle, Rick and the boys. The boys are precious to Lynn just as Gillian and Talia are Michelles' "girls'. We have no hard feelings, we keep in touch, and intend on getting together in the future. We share something very special: Having had the oppertunity to participate in ABC's WifeSwap TV Show.
The Roadwarriors
Fort Lauderdale families life on the road collides with reality in Wife Swap
By Kathleen Kernicky
Staff Writer, February 16, 2005
In her previous life, Lynn Smith sold million-dollar houses in Weston. She carried a pager, missed her daughters' soccer games and accommodated clients who went ballistic over the wrong color of granite. Her husband, Andre, a pilot by profession, played Mr. Mom to the couple's two girls. Two summers ago, that life shifted gears. Lynn left her job. The couple sold their house in Fort Lauderdale, pulled their daughters out of school and moved onto a 40-foot Greyhound bus that Andre customized into a motor home. Then they hit the highway, traveling from state to state, spending a few weeks or a few months at each stop.
"I didn't feel it was fair to the girls that they miss out on having both their parents around," says Lynn, 44, who now home-schools her daughters, Gillian, 15, and Talia, 13. "I found I didn't need to be a slave to all the things we have. You can live a simple life."
The Smiths' simple life -- they still live on the bus -- is viewed in tonight's episode of Wife Swap, an ABC reality show that follows two families with different lifestyles as the wives trade places for two weeks. (Despite the title, there is no sex involved.) For the Smiths, the bus is more than a vacation R.V. It's their home, customized with a four-burner stove, a dishwasher, generator, three computers and some comforts of home. But with only 285 square feet, space is tight. The aisle is barely wide enough for two people. The girls sleep in bunk beds with no privacy. The bathroom is the size of a linen closet. And the family shares living space with their Chihuahua, a Siamese cat and an Amazon parrot. During the show's taping last October, Lynn traveled to suburban Indiana where she traded places with Michelle Pyke, 35, a stay-at-home mom who likes to roll around on the floor with her three active boys and who is married to the town mortician.
While Lynn is in Indiana, Michelle moves aboard the Smith bus.Tensions quickly crest between Andre, 43, the controlling captain of his ship, and free-wheeling Michelle, who blanches at the confinement of the bus and berates Andre for subjecting his teenage daughters to such an isolated lifestyle."It was like two rams butting heads," says Gillian Smith, referring to interactions between her father and Michelle. "It was awkward at first. But we got the gist of it." "It was very intense," Andre says. "You don't get a lot of sleep." Still, the Smiths feel lucky to have been chosen for the show.
"It was an amazing experience," Lynn says. "It forces you to stop and analyze your life. We went into it very open-minded. The only negative was, it was exhausting. They'd shoot 20 minutes of me brushing my teeth or scrubbing the toilet ..."Everywhere you go, you get a lot of attention. You feel important. I think both families learned from the experience." During the second week of taping, the wives change the host family's rules. Lynn lays down the law with the Pyke boys, whose mom allows them to eat junk food and escape household chores. Lynn delegates the housework, puts the boys on an allowance and takes away the junk food. She insists that Rick Pyke, their workaholic dad, come home in time for dinner and spend more time with his sons.
Michelle demands that Andre return to South Florida, park the bus and enroll his daughters in school and activities with kids their age. The show portrays Andre as a control freak who drags his wife and daughters on a mid-life odyssey, with no end in sight. In reality, Lynn says they made the decision together. "The bus is our home. There's a misconception that we're missing something. I've never looked back and thought, `I wish we hadn't sold our house.'
"We feel very confident in ourselves. If people want to be critical, we're OK with it." "It was an experiment," Andre says of their nomadic life. "We didn't know if it would work. We're not afraid of the unknown." During the show, Gillian and Talia briefly attend a Christian school in Coral Springs. "I felt like I was behind," Talia says of the schoolwork. "I liked being able to hang out with other kids my age," Gillian says. "I went through the sixth grade in public school. I'm glad I didn't move on to middle school. You have the `popular' kids, the peer pressure, the teasing. You feel really stressed." When the cameras left, the Smiths moved back on the bus, which is parked temporarily at a friend's yard in Davie. Taking Michelle's advice, Lynn and Andre did enroll Gillian and Talia in more activities with other children, such as a physical-education program for home-schoolers, volunteer work and art classes. But they plan to pull up roots again soon. They're mapping a trip north along the East Coast. The Outer Banks. Washington, D.C. Maine.
"We follow the weather," Lynn says. "Settling down is putting down an anchor and I'm not ready for that. I can't wait to hit the road again. We feel like we've barely gotten started. "
Kathleen Kernicky can be reached at kkernicky@sun-sentinel.com or 954-356-4725.
Copyright (c) 2005, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
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Emails
I'm sure that by now you have received letters from other home school families, but after seeing only the last 15 min. of the show last night, I had to write. I am so embarrassed to think people would think that other home school families are like yours.
I had family members who called to tell me their own opinion of how bad the show made home school families look. Your family does not represent the normal home school family. I am saddened so much to see what the writers choose to use in your segment. Your children were very disrespectful and they made it look like they hated home schooling. This lead the American public to think that all home schooled children are like this. What a bad testimony for Christ and for Christian home school families. What were you thinking? Didn't you think they would pick out the most juicy, negative things they could? The damage is done and I wish there were some way you could apologize to America for giving the public and the government more ammunition to disgrace home schooling.
Kathy Philippe & Kathy Belland . Auburn, GA 30011 , kbelland@alltel.net
Just checked out your web site – GREAT JOB André, as always! I love getting your updates. So exciting to hear about your “viewing party”. The Roadhouse Grill must LOVE you guys for bringing them into the spot light. André – what does the first sentence in the last para mean: “For those of you demanding that I apologize to the nation”? You can’t be serious! Are there @$$holes out there who seriously want you to apologize? For WHAT! Entertaining us, and not giving in to a high maintenance nag! Please, for us, your friends … DON’T apologize! Keep being yourselves …. We love you guys just the way you are.
Let’s do a rendition of “HouseSwap” … we get your bus for a week! What say you? I’ll even help Bill clean out the poopies … and I promise not to throw up on your engine.
Christy, Will and Bill
I think your life is great! I personally have always wanted to do exactly what you are doing? I private school educate my children 14 and 12. I have a 4 and 1 year old also. I am sure the cut of your wife swap show did not show all the details. Do you, or have you ever thought about joining the YMCA for PE needs. I am sorry your wife swap mother felt the need to change your world back to standard living. I think she missed the whole thing. I was sorry that they felt the need to give out the idea the kids were unhappy and behind in school.
While watching the show, an idea came to mind. Have you ever considered a host site families that have home school children the same age? I mean all you need is a large enough place to park, and an open hearted family.
Noticing your directway, does it work well for you? I live rural and have always wondered about that high speed option?
Best of wishes to you all, happy education.
Regards, Linda
from discussion groups & webboards
Oh pfft to the people who are being jerks to you! It's not your
responsibility to represent homeschoolers. I actually think it's
nice that at least they're showing so many types of homeschool
families that perhaps it will dawn on people that there is no one
cliched, school-at-home model that they all think we live now. :)
Yes, people are naive. It's a little scary.
I was cringing at the way the kids were eating too. But you can't
make that look negative because you might offend all the viewers who
are feeding their kids the same junk, right? What a shame.
I still think it took a heck of a lot of courage to go on an adventure
like that, and admire you and your family for it. I hope in the end
it was worth the down sides. Don't let the grumps get you down.
Alicia
A Magical Childhood
http://www.magicalchildhood.com
"The best way to make children good is to make them happy."
- Oscar Wilde
Hi Smith family
I enjoyed you on wife swap last night. I found you on the web and looked at
all your wonderful pictures. BUT, as a mother of 2 girls almost the same age
as yours, I think you are depriving those wonderful girls of their
childhood. They need relationships, not just family 24/7. And traditional
school is important. I think you can live in a home, go to regular school,
and vacation in the bus when there is time off. I think Andre is a jerk,
and if he can spend $10 a week on beer, it only ads to his obvious
selfishness. I wish your family the best and hope that someday you will
listen to your kids needs and wishes and not just what Andre wants for the
family.
Julie
Did anyone see the show last night with the fulltime RV family? Don't usually watch, but wanted to see the RV stuff....left us with some odd feelings. The kids seemed to "dislike" the lifestyle, showed homeschoolers to be behind & anti-social. The family dynamics/personalities aside, I wonder about kids' true feelings about fulltime RVing. Are kids truely happy with the lifestyle or are parents in denial in their desire to travel? ????
Angela
I never watch it - never watch or even own a TV. BUT, happened to be in
a hotel this week and yes, we saw it.
I thought it was hilarious to see the "other" wife being so judgmental.
I have to say she seemed to be right about those girls not being happy.
(From what was evident on the parts they choose to show). And I'd be
inclined to agree it was dad's dream, not theirs. They are just along
for the ride.
Are all kids on the road experiencing those feelings? I can only speak
for my own family. And we have one very HAPPY CAMPER. I am also
obligated to point out that he has grown up on the road and it is
entirely "normal" to him. He has friends all over the country and was
shaking his head in disbelief that the girls longed for a social life
and actually wanted to go to school.
My impression from some of the other kids I've met who travel is that
they too are happy with the lifestyle.
I think the RV wife was a real breath of fresh air for the other family
and really turned their lives around. That was refreshing to see.
I was bummed that home schooling got the short end of the stick.
Kimberly
Are the participants of the Wife Swap show members of the FOTR group?
I wondered what they have to say about the way the show represented the
family, if it was extremely one-sided (as it seemed), or if it portrayed
the family unit at all.
We DO watch the show rather regularly, and it does seem to portray only
the worst in people. We were excited, however, to see this one and
possibly get a glimpse of how others must view our own family.
Home schooling really did get the short end - the girls admitted they
thought they were behind public schoolers - maybe they were, but that's
sure not the norm in home school! And, as for viewing the old plantation
homes - sure, that's part of HS, but there's a whole lot more that we
see out here, most of which is pretty upbeat and exciting - kids'
museums, zoos, science centers, fairs, festivals, concerts. Maybe TV
just left all that out...
The girls were portrayed as bored and under stimulated. I think that
sometimes may be an issue with their age group (11-13) when they have
attended public school, then make the switch. They would probably have
the same complaints if they lived in a house and were HS. I think it's
easier when the kids never attend public school - our children are
raised to know that this is the best choice for us, and they believe in
it. They've never known another way.
Our kids lives are probably more exciting being on the road instead of
back home. If we lived in a regular house, we would still home school,
and home is very isolated - not many social opportunities.
As for not having a job and going on "vacation" for two years as the
Wife Swap woman accused the family, I guess some families do save and
plan, and are eventually able to rely on savings while traveling. This
is admirable and probably takes a lot of hard work to get to that point.
Achieving the personal freedom to break away is a dream that nearly
everyone has at one time or another, and those who shun it have a good
chance of being envious!
We however, are out here FOR the work, and go where it dictates. We try
to find an adventure wherever we go, although there have been some
challenges!
So, the show did nothing to paint traveling families in a good light. In
fact, it probably only reinforced the negative stereotypes of deprived
children and self-centered parents, no jobs, no personal space, the
risks of sleeping in truck stops, etc. It tried to make the dad look
dangerous/irresponsible for wanting to overnight in a Pilot. I don't
know if these are the producer's opinions, or what the American public
truly believes, or both.
The GOOD thing about the show was the bus! It just about has my husband
convinced that the bus life is right for us and to park the TT for good.
Pretty bus with some nice ideas.
Amy
The Tree Planting Family
the traditional mom was outraged at the idea that the family would be spending the night at a truck stop. she said that there are prostitutes at truck stops in an outraged voice.
has anyone ever seen a prostitute at a truck stop? we have not in 5 years of traveling.
Pilot showers. Etc.... LOL
SHOWERS? Horror, of horrors....you cant mean it...there might be a prostitute in there...lol
Be careful, I might have to gag all over your engine.
The lady was a major "drama queen".
To make a long story short.....
Funeral directors wife moves into a bus with the rving family. She is MAJOR obnoxious and
spent 2 weeks yelling at bus owning dad. Really insulting stuff. She was horrified at all the
storage in the bus and how well it was organized. (go figure...her house was a pigsty)
She was horrified at the need to put her foot on the sewer hose when dumping (you could
tell the bus dad was enjoying himself at that point) and ended up gagging at the rear of
the bus (near the engine). Best line in the show was when the bus dad told her she could
not be throwing up on his engine. (we all understand that, dont we?)
At the end of the 1st week she got them a house, put the girls in school and got dad a job.
He was not happy. (seemed to us there might be an issue of some sort we did not know
about) If you watched, it was only the little daughter who was whining, not the 15 yr old.
She was thrilled that they would continue to travel.
Lady kept yelling the entire time. Even told him off at the meeting. Bus mom agreed with
some of it. Think there are some issues, as I said. Dont we all have them.
On the other hand, the hsing mom went to the "drama queens" home and followed their
rules for a week with not much problem. (or much coverage since it was not dramatic). At
the end of the week she asked the dad to come home by 6 (he did) and spend time with
his kids. She made the kids get rid of the junk food, which they hid in the garage. lol And
made them clean up. The place was VERY clean and organized when she was done. Dad
realized he needed to try to be home more. Worked out well.
Bus family is camping in the yard of a lady on another board I am on. I am waiting to hear
from them on how the editing was. I will let all of you know.
Missy in TX
Hi, yes its me on "Wifeswap". It was a great experience and we had
alot of fun doing the show. It does however emphasize the negative
aspects of our lifestyle. We really love living on the road and our
kids do as well. It's only TV and we plan on just laughing at
ourselves. So take it for what it is and laugh along with us. My
husband is really a great guy and we made a mutual decision to go on
the road. It has been some of the best times in my life. We did learn
from the show that our kids would like some more interaction with
other children. This is something we have incorporated into our
lifestyle. Thanks for the interest. All the best,
Lynn
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