Ryan Conklin Greases The Pole

There were various times and situations during The Real World Brooklyn where Ryan Conklin and Scott Herman had some good bonding time. One of the situations was when Scott was quite peeved by what he perceived as a lack of cleanliness and neatness from Katelynn Cusanelli. Scott felt that she should be more considerate of her roommates by cleaning up after herself on a timely basis. Ryan, as the good buddy, sided with Scott and tried to support him in any efforts that Scott deemed necessary to show Katelynn his displeasure. Ryan proposed to Scott several pranking tactics that could do the trick.

While Ryan was commiserating with Scott about the problem, Scott brought up another annoyance: Katelynn talking about her stripper pole. Scott and Ryan had noticed that she would talk to people as if she used it a lot, while they believed she hardly used it all. Scott wondered aloud how many times she actually used "that f'ing pole". Ryan replied that it appeared to be only when other people came over to the house, when she would then give a demonstration of her skills.

Ryan said he noticed that Katelynn made it a priority to tell everyone she meets, "Oh, I'm so sore," or "I'm in the advanced pole dancing class." She would do it "as if we really care about pole dancers."

Ryan then went into full-on Katelynn impersonation, mimicking her voice in a very grating way and saying, "I'm going to pole dance all of the time and I can practice all of my moves. Cause I'm in the advanced class at pole stripping. In case you didn't know." Scott tried to impersonate her also, but his falsetto was an octave or two too high.

It was at this point that Ryan got the idea of greasing the pole so that it would be too slippery to use. He looked in the kitchen and found olive oil. He asked Scott what he thought about it and they both agreed it would be a good idea to coat the pole with it.

Ryan and Scott went down to the gym where the pole was and Ryan stood on a stool while he poured oil on it. Ryan stroked the oil onto the pole as Scott murmured with much satisfaction, "Oh, yeah..." [BTW, where is some good RWB slash fiction?]

Again using his transgendered voice, Ryan convincingly pretended what Katelynn would say when she found out what had happened. "Oh my God. Who did this to my pole? I can't believe, you guys are so childish. Who did this to my pole? This is why I chopped my penis off, because men are so horrible."

As they finished doing the dirty deed, Ryan tried to justify it by saying that everything would have been cool if Katelynn had only played by the rules that the boys had created. Scott was even more specific by saying if only she had washed the dishes.

It would have been a lot less contentious and made for less drama, but one wonders why not just get paper plates and plastic forks for everyone to use? Problem solved.

Chef Declares Ryan A Pranking Master

Not long after the night of the election party during The Real World Brooklyn, Ryan Conklin's friend Chef came by to visit him. Chef had heard about the marvelous pranking upon Scott Herman and Chet Cannon that Ryan had accomplished on election night, and he wanted to hear more about it. The two of them sat in the Confessional and discussed what had happened and why Ryan did it.

Chef told Ryan that he had caught wind of the story of Ryan putting fingernail polish on Scott's fingertips while Scott slept that night. Ryan acknowledged that he had in fact done the deed, but he had an excellent reason for doing it. Ryan revealed to Chef that the reason that he did it was because it was funny. He didn't mention to Chef that it may have seemed funnier because at the time Ryan was "festive" and over 300 hundred electoral sheets to the wind, enjoying Obama's victory.

[Ryan had also let viewers of the show know that an important consideration for him in deciding to paint Scott's fingers was that since Scott is a model, Ryan thoughtfully wished to help make him "a little bit more prettier." Ryan explained, "He's a model - he's all about looking pretty. So I feel like I'm helping him out." Ryan is always generous to a fault.]

Then the conversation turned to the placement of Obama's face on the life-size cardboard figure of Chet that Chet had audaciously (and considering his unpleasant appearance, rather cruelly) posted for public display over the fishtank. Chef and Ryan both agreed that the defacing was well deserved since they both felt that Chet is very egotistical. Chef noted how unacceptable it was that Chet had pathetically put "Chet is so cool" in a sad cartoon balloon next to his cardboard head. Chef said a compliment about someone should be made by others, not by the person themselves.

Chef's assessment was that, "He's in love with himself! Totally in love with himself!" Ryan was forced to agree completely.

To show the proper way to give a compliment, always from one person to another, Chef told Ryan that given the recent circumstances, Ryan was a "pranking master". Then as a sign of respect, Chef bowed at the wrist towards Ryan. Ryan responded in kind. They did it turn for several iterations until Ryan, presumably a little hungover, asked Chef to stop.

At the end of the conversation, Ryan spoke to the camera and made a non-sequitur: "I'm a horrible ventriloquist. And I don't give a sh**." Chef, always an ardent Ryan supporter, gave an affirming cheer for Ryan, just to let him know that even though he may not be perfect in everything, his friends still love him so.

The Soup Says Ryan Conklin Good-Bye On Real World Brooklyn Is 14th Best Clip of '09

On a episode of E! television's The Soup Presents, host Joel McHale presented the 20 TV clips that represented the "Best of '09 So Far." Amid scenes from major shows like American Idol, The Bachelorette, and Jon and Kate Plus 8, Joel introduced the scene from the final episode of The Real World Brooklyn where Ryan Conklin and Chet Cannon exchanged their good-byes as the 14th best clip of the year.

In keeping with the nature of The Soup, the scene was presented as a subject for ridicule. Joel introduced it as "The final good-bye between 'not gay' Chet and Iraq War vet Ryan, on 'Real World Road Rules Brooklyn Blah-Blah-Blah MTV Huge Long Title'. It puts tears in our eyes."

The shots that The Soup put together of the good-bye scene started with one at the ferry boat dock where Chet clutches Ryan around the neck and passionately tells him in his ear that he loves him. As Ryan walks toward the boat, Chet calls out loudly, "I love you!" Ryan laughs it off and plays along by giggling "love you too." Once Ryan is on the boat, Chet with nothing to lose lets Ryan know how exceedingly attractive he thinks Ryan is, by shouting, "You're beautiful!" Not knowing what a suitable comeback to such an awkward statement would be, Ryan just immediately repeated the line back: "You look beautiful." Chet finally and pleadingly asked (with much hope), "Are we in a relationship?" Ryan laughed at Chet and responded, "Shut the hell up!"

Realizing how silly the conversation was sounding, Ryan joked, "Are you sure we're not gay?"

In an added shot, Ryan, presumably talking about putting together his entourage, says to the camera, "I wish Chet would move to wherever I live. We could kick it all the time."

Joel McHale then added his commentary, saying, "Ryan, you would know if you were in a relationship. Because first of all, you would be 'kicking it' in a military prison, and Chet would be 'kicking it' in a prayer camp that is trying to cure him [of presumed homosexuality]. Don't worry, dudes. You guys are just buds."

Ryan Shows Another Film

During Ryan Conklin's class at the New York Film Academy, he had three film projects that he worked on. In addition to his mise-en-scène and troubling No More Tomorrow, he did a short film on 16mm with the theme of a man seeking isolation within the confines of a large city.

Going straight to video, the film was shown by Ryan on the TV at The Real World Brooklyn house so his roommates could see it. Watching Ryan in the film as the lead character, they were entranced by what they saw.

In the film, a handsome, well-built young man (Ryan A. Conklin) reads a book while sitting on the sidewalk with his back against a wall. He is in a large city, but literally on the sidelines of it. He puts his book away and rises to his feet. We see by his attitude and slightly unusual dress and grooming that he is someone who keeps himself out of the norm and he is quite confident in himself for doing so. He places large headphones over his ears and with a confirming nod and closed eyes he shows he has successfully withdrawn into his inner world and shut out awareness of the surrounding space from which he wishes to separate.

With his eyes closed, his hands tightly tucked into his jacket and his head bobbing, he proceeds to walk straight ahead down the sidewalk, oblivious to all but the sounds and patterns swirling in his own mind. He bumps into a woman, knocking her books and papers to the ground. He maintains his forward motion and path with no indication that he is cognizant of who or what he has momentarily made contact with. Unfortunately for the man, the collision with the woman was but a foreshadowing of more dire consequences ahead stemming from his desire to be within but apart from the city that he is traversing.

Still walking, the man removes the book from his pocket and begins to read again. His eyes are now necessarily open, but he allows them to see only the printed words and not the activity around him. He begins to cross a street and in a moment of uncharacteristic lack of control of his behavior, he accidentally drops the book onto the pavement below. He stoops to pick it up, and when arising he finally takes notice of something that he cannot avoid perceiving: a moving car that is poised to strike him in less than a moment. The impact is not shown, but what we see immediately before that is the shock in the man not only of his impending demise but also the realization that despite his willing it, he could not truly be separate from the people and tangible objects that would always be around him.

The roommates were very supportive of Ryan in their comments about the film, despite obviously not having a background in film studies (Sarah Rice: "It's very film noir.")

Ryan's Scrapbooks

At some point during the latter part of the The Real World Brooklyn, Ryan Conklin decided it was time to share with the roommates some scrapbooks he had made of photos from his time in Iraq. He felt that by showing them the photos that it would make more sense to them about who he was and how he got to be that way. Or as he described it, "My quirky little, sometimes serious, sometimes absolutely crazy, all in the moment, living life, best I can every day, type person."

So Ryan showed Baya Voce and Sarah Rice two of his scrapbooks. He showed pictures of bad guys, including one who had a bloody lip ("Somebody didn't like him.") He also showed scenes from missions where his group would fly on helicopters from place to place to search houses for weapons, bombs and more bad people. He showed a photo of a pit that he explained that they would use at night when it got cold, as they slept outdoors, where 4 or 5 guys would sleep snug together to keep warm from each others' body heat.

Ryan felt that Sarah and Baya's viewing of the scrapbooks was a good thing as it gave them a picture in their head of what Ryan saw in Iraq, or at least the sanitized version of it.

Ryan noted that he keeps his scrapbooks relatively clean, which is to say, not containing gory photos of the effects of war. Things like body parts, dead bodies, burned bodies, are subject matter than Ryan doesn't keep in his books. He does that because he wants to be prepared to show his scrapbooks to anyone that wants to see them and not have to worry about whether people will be able to stomach seeing his pictures.

He does keep a collection of the gory photos on his computer and will show it to people who have an interest in seeing them. Ryan believes the photos to be sick but interesting. He views them as evidence of an event in history and with him being a history major and a student of military history in particular, he is keen on keeping them as a record of what actually occurred. He showed Baya and Scott Herman some of the photos. He felt it was probably a sharp notice to them of what combat is actually like.

Through his showing his photos, Ryan demonstrated that he wished he could communicate to others what his experience was truly like, and optimistically he feels he is able to accomplish that in some small degree, but in the end he recognizes that only through the actual hearing, smelling, seeing of the terrible sights he has beheld could anyone surely know of that which remains a dreadful memory residing in his mind.

It doesn't bode well then for those wishing to understand Ryan, as he advises, "That was a big chapter in my life, obviously. And if you don't understand that chapter about me, then you'll never understand me." It becomes harder to think about understanding him when professes, "Hell, half the time, I don't even understand me."

Ryan Conklin On Twitter

In recognition of Ryan A. Conklin's 5000th follower on Twitter, it's time to look at what's been happening there. For one thing, it's clear that Ryan uses it as his primary means for letting his fans know every day that he's okay. (Thank you for that, Ryan!!) With his tweets, Ryan tells a little about what he's experiencing, what he's thinking, and what he's interested in, plus a hodgepodge of randomness to keep readers on their toes.

By the time of his 5000th follower, Ryan had posted 91 tweets since June 15, or about 45 a month. As would be expected with his little down time, Ryan doesn't tweet as much as the more prolific RWB alumni like Scott Herman and Chet Cannon. Another difference between Ryan and those two is that Ryan doesn't do as many @replies to people, only 16 so far.

As one of the lucky people who has received one of those rare rewards, I can report to everyone that the sensation of finding something like that on your twitter page is akin to Charlie finding the golden ticket wrapped around his chocolate bar. Woot!

Looking at Ryan's status messages, the most pervasive theme is his distress from the oppressive heat and blowing sand. Ryan tries to make light of it by saying things like the sand stuck on his sweaty body has made him into an Iraqi sugar cookie. Considering the heat, he said that he sweated on patrol more than a Trekkie would at a Leonard Nimoy yard sale.

He also provides specific information about what's happening to him. For instance, when get got air conditioning in his Humvee, when he switched patrol areas, and when he got his promotion to sergeant.

On the kind of things that interest him, he mentions some of the music he listens to (e.g. The Decemberists, For the Foxes, The Lonely Island, Green day), and movies he watches (Garden State, What's Eating Gilbert Grape?, Ace Ventura, Jr, No Country for Old Men).

Of the mundane, there are the things he eats: corn on the cob, S'mores Pop-Tarts, and M&Ms.

Then there is the random stuff that is off the wall, such as quotes like these: "I'm taking a piss on the cradle of civilization." or "Put the lotion in the basket." Okay.

Finally, there is fan appreciation that Ryan shows for the actor Fred Savage. One wonders if Ryan feels a connection with the character Kevin Arnold and his family from The Wonder Years, considering Ryan also has a sister and an older brother. In any case, Ryan expressed that he takes moral guidance from wondering "What would Fred Savage do?" To have a reason to spend time with him, Ryan stated he would like to play the game of Connect Four with him.

In conclusion, the only reasonable assessment that can be made about Ryan Conklin on Twitter is that Ryan is undeniably a tweetheart. ♥

http://twitter.com/RyanAConklin

Ryan Conklin The Joker

For Halloween during The Real World Brooklyn, Ryan Conklin dressed as The Dark Knight version of the Joker. Ryan enjoyed not only looking like him but also acting like him. In Confessional, he recorded a sinister, disturbing scene of himself speaking in character. I have never seen the movie, so I have to let others determine how good was his impersonation. I will say that Ryan was able to be very convincing that he was not Ryan, but rather some other being, twisted and maniacal.

Ryan shows that he can portray a character that is quite unlike his real self. But the Joker is too sick a character to want to see Ryan play him. I tried to think of some other role that would be a little warmer but also an over the top stretch for Mr. Conklin. I thought of Dr. Frank N. Furter from The Rocky Horror Picture Show, but I think seeing Ryan perform that might permanently damage my sense of veneration for him. Besides, if the RWB cast were being recast into RHPS, then hands down it would be Chet Cannon as Frank. Other easy ones would be Scott Herman as Rocky, Katelynn Cusanelli as Magenta, and of course Devyn Simone as Eddie. That leaves Ryan and Baya Voce as Brad and Janet, the couple that starts off virginal and then gets kinky. I'd pay a lot of money to see a midnight performance of that.

Let's do the Time Warp again?

Scott & Company Say Hi To Ryan

Several days after his first video message to Ryan Conklin expressing his affection for him, Scott Herman made another video message, but this time he included Baya Voce and Chet Cannon as well. Together the three of them took the opportunity to give a big cheer and hello to their beloved cast mate Ryan.

Scott started by noting that Ryan was probably hot and sweaty at that moment over in Iraq. Baya gave clear indication that she kind of liked the general concept of Ryan being that way, soaking wet with those irresistible Conklin pheromones. Chet, on the other hand, inappropriately bragged that the three of them were sitting in a cool, air-conditioned environment.

Scott let Ryan know that he had a surprise for him: three new Nazi zombie levels in the game Call of Duty. Baya amusingly showed that she was quite nonplussed by such news.

Chet expressed his hope that Ryan would return in "one piece". It was an awkward moment, so Baya tried to joke about it saying she wouldn't mind having two pieces, or twice as much Ryan. Chet said with two Ryan pieces, he could have one and Baya the other. He did not specify exactly which part he really wanted.

Scott jokingly said to Ryan that if when he came home he spent all of his time with Baya. Scott would "beat your a**." Chet quickly followed with a chilling threat that his response would be to slit his own throat. Not surprisingly, Baya uncomfortably responded with "This is awkward."

Chet then got down to business to talk more about himself. He took Ryan to task for not speaking enough about him in Ryan's update from Iraq video. He tried to soften the criticism a little by pantomiming taking his heart from his chest and hurling it in Ryan's direction, but all he found was empty air where it should have been.

Finally, Baya confessed that with their long separation, she could use some more loving from Ryan. With that she got up and gave a great big kiss to the camera.

Scott Herman Misses Ryan Conklin

In response to Ryan A. Conklin's video of August 4th, in which Ryan told about how much his missed his fellow cast members from The Real World Brooklyn, Scott Herman recorded a video message for Ryan to let him know how much they missed him also.

Scott said that he was touched by the affection that Ryan expressed about his roommates. He said he is happy that Ryan is doing well, and he looks forward to him coming home as soon as possible. He wants to hear all the stories that Ryan will have to tell.

Scott lauded Ryan's attitude for making the best of a bad situation, and said he is a role model for others. He mentioned Ryan's many fans who support and write to him (like me!) out of respect for the kind of man he is, one who has a steadfast resolve and a strong sense of duty.

Finally, Scott requested that Ryan write a new song and send it just to him, as an acknowledgment that there was at least a threesome with Scott, Ryan and Chet Cannon, and it wasn't just the so-called "bromance" twosome between Ryan and Chet.

Ryan's Near Death Experience

Eight diverse strangers talking together can create some unusual conversation topics. One of the odd ones was the morbid discussion between JD Ordonez, Chet Cannon, and Baya Voce on their preferred cause of death. JD stated that drowning would be the worst way to die, but Chet disagreed, saying he thought it would be the best. He said that as you lose oxygen it becomes soothing. Ryan Conklin, listening nearby, agreed with Chet's assessment, and said he knew it to be true from personal experience.

Ryan then began to tell the story of when he came very close to drowning in a flooded sewer pipe. The situation had occurred several years before when Ryan was in part one of his Army life. He and some friends had been drinking, and they foolishly decided to take advantage of major flooding from a tropical storm by water tubing through some drainage pipes. Ryan and his buddies Vinnie and Avery went through one of them several times and they thought it was fun as they shot through it like a chute at a water park.

Then they decided to try out another pipe. They chose it because it ran for a long distance under a roadway.

What they failed to think about was that drainage pipes often have debris in them and this particular one, unbeknownst to the three friends, had a lot of it hidden halfway down its core. Vinnie went first into the pipe and got stuck against the wood debris that was wedged in it. Avery and Ryan followed and then all were trapped in the pipe. Ryan knew there was a problem as the water pushed him up against Avery. Ryan tried to swim backwards to the opening, but the current was too strong. So instead, Ryan tried kicking at Avery to push him forward. It was no good and the water level rose above Ryan's head. He took a breath, but it was all water and he could feel it enter his lungs.

At this point Ryan entertained the fatalistic notion that this was going to be his end. With his lungs filled with water and no oxygen, he started to drift off. In his mind, he saw what appeared to be a vision of his whole family around the dinner table.

Fortunately, Vinnie managed to bust through the wood. He was then able to pull Avery through. The two of them could see Ryan floating in the water and they grabbed him and pulled him out. They bent him over to let the water drain out of him and they saw him puke up black water. When he came to, Ryan was literally shaken by the ordeal and it took awhile for him to regain his composure.

Ryan looks back at the near tragedy as "the dumbest thing I've ever done." He still is troubled somewhat by being in water.

Listening to the story, Baya and Chet were suddenly and somberly struck by the idea that with a slightly different twist of fate, they might never have had Ryan in their lives. JD just went back to his usual babble.

Obviously, it wasn't Ryan's time. He had too many lives yet to touch and so many people yet to inspire with his character and fascinating life story.

Ryan A. Conklin An Angel From Hell

As I mentioned last April about the Ryan A. Conklin Iraq book, it is to be published April 6, 2010. with the title of "An Angel From Hell". As any mega fan would do, I frequently search for any additional information about it as the publication date draws nearer. It had started to appear on various book seller sites during the summer, but the big news is that it has appeared on Amazon.com. Amazon actually has a picture of the book jacket. It also allows for pre-ordering, which provides an immediate, near tangible sense of connection with the words of revelation that Ryan will be providing about his first tour of duty in Iraq. The link to the book on Amazon is in the right sidebar here.

From the picture of the jacket, it appears that the subtitle of "A Screaming Eagle's Story of Modern War" has been changed to be "Real Life On The Front Lines". Perhaps the "Real" is to connect and capitalize on Ryan's fame from The Real World Brooklyn.

The title refers to Ryan being in “The Angel Company” of the 101st Airborne Division, 3rd Brigade, 3/187th Infantry Regiment (Rakkasans). It's the story of the year he spent in Iraq in 2005-2006, including being part of the security for Saddam Hussein's trial in Baghdad and doing combat missions in Tikrit.

It is assumed that the February date was set to be after Ryan's return home from Iraq (January?) so that he would available to promote the book.

During the first episode of the show, Ryan told his castmate Sarah Rice that writing the book only for himself was his way of dealing with the stresses of war. He said that writing about what he had seen and done had a cathartic effect of drawing emotionally troubling thoughts out of his conscious mind. He also gave as another reason for writing the book that he wanted to be able to share it with his future grandchildren. He lamented that his grandfather had served in W.W. II, but that he had died before Ryan began to be interested in stories of military history. Ryan wanted to make sure that his own grandchildren would know his stories no matter what. Fortunately for Ryan A. Conklin’s fans, now we will get to know those stories as well.

Ryan's too complicated ever to be completely understood, but this book should give fans a view into a very transformative period in his life and help them understand a little better how he came to be the person that he is.

Ryan's review of An Angel From Hell.

Ryan Conklin Update From Iraq

In a guard tower in Baghdad, Iraq, Ryan A. Conklin made a video message for his many fans to let them know how he is doing. He apologized for not creating one sooner as he would liked to have done, but he was understandably busy with his duties as a U.S. Army infantryman and this was his earliest opportunity. His main message was straightforward: "I'm doing good. You know, I make the best out of the situation that's given. I still smile at little things everyday that keep me going."

He went on to say how appreciative he was of the support he has been receiving from people back home, like from his fans, his friends, and his family. He said he receives letters from people representing almost every state. He also said he realizes that he is the subject of many prayers.

On the conditions he is experiencing, he reported that fortunately Iraq is more calm than it was when he was there before. He said he was quite happy about that.

To his followers, he expressed his gratitude: "Thank you all. Thank you for your concerns, for your support. It doesn't go unnoticed. I'm very appreciative of that."

The rest of the video, which was the bulk of it, was addressed specifically to his roommates from The Real World Brooklyn. He told them how much he missed them and how much he wished he could be with them. Ryan waxed nostalgic as he looked back over the one year that had passed since the roommates first met each other. However, he looked forward to when they could all get together again, "when I'm wearing civilian clothes, [and] maybe got some longer hair."

What followed were scenes from the show, interspersed with clips of Ryan on patrol in Iraq and him reading the notebook in which the roommates had all written words of encouragement for him. His voiceover spoke of his memories of how they all fought and cried and laughed.

Ryan made sure to give a shout out to all seven of his cast mates:

"Sarah [Rice] and Devyn [Simone], vengeance is yours. Because where I live, it's infested with rats. Not the white ones either."

"Scott [Herman], you're a wise man for orchestrating this book. It cheers me up when times are dismal."

"I'm so glad, JD [Ordonez], that you never ripped this out of my hands and threw it in the Hudson like you did our phone."

"Katelynn [Cusanelli], what's this I hear about you being engaged? Congratulations. Save some cake for me, or better yet, save me a beer."

He also had a message for Chet Cannon, but his most heartfelt message was for Baya Voce: "Baya, my love, what can I say to you that you don't already know? You've been with me for every step of this journey."

Finally, to all of them, his valediction: "I can't say that I love what I'm doing in this hot and sweaty country, but I make the best of it. Each day is one day closer coming home to you. I miss you all so very much. I don't believe in good-byes, but see-ya-laters. And that, to Brooklyn, until we meet again."

Ryan's Wonder Woman

During The Real World Brooklyn, JD Ordonez would bring to the house some older gay guys for no apparent reason. On one occasion, he brought his friend Mark. Like other potentially gay visitors to the house who met Ryan Conklin, Mark was interested in finding out more about him. For some reason, Mark decided to ask Ryan some particularly trollish and inappropriate questions about his love life.

The first thing he asked was what was Ryan's ultimate fantasy. Ryan gamely played along by immediately giving the standard answer of "twins". Ryan then tried to bring some humor to the awkward situation by saying that triplets would be even better, then quadruplets, then quintuplets, etc. To cap it off, Ryan threw in that his other fantasy is gay icon Lynda Carter, the actress who played Wonder Woman in the 70s television series. Of course, he noted that he meant as she appeared in costume at the time, and not necessarily as she is today. Ryan said he would "do her". He didn't say if he meant her wardrobe, hair or nails, or perhaps s*xually.

That prompted Mark to ask Ryan if he had gotten laid in the house since he had been there. Ryan replied that he had not had any such experiences during that time and that he had a girlfriend back home. Mark wondered if she had visited the house and if so had they engaged in intercourse. Ryan said that she had visited but that they remained celibate. Mark coarsely suggested that Ryan's girlfriend would be getting action back home instead. Ryan remarked that she was not that kind of girl.

Mark asked Ryan how long he and Michelle (Belle) had been going together. Ryan said that they had started dating in August, 2007. He told the story that when he returned home from the Army he didn't want to date any of the girls he knew in Gettysburg. As luck would have it, he was introduced to Belle, who was a girl who had grown up with Ryan's best friend in some other town. Ryan and she started dating shortly thereafter.

Ryan said Belle was a female version of him so that is how his relationship with her worked. Ryan said he calls her, "Ryan with a vagina".