D'Andra Simmons: Kameron Allowed Herself to Be Manipulated by LeeAnne
"I hope one day she will learn to think for herself and not be influenced by the unfounded opinions of others."
Hey, Y’all!
I cannot believe that we made it out of Stephanie and Travis’ frat party alive, let alone this entire season! I’m not going to get ahead of myself…we still have a reunion to face!
I want to begin by saying thank you to all of the fans that watched us this season. I am humbled by your support and kindness. Your love, encouragement, and sweet notes have helped me to persevere through this difficult season of my life, and I am stronger than ever. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!
My mom FINALLY handing over the keys to the company was one of the best days of my life. I moved back to Dallas from Washington D.C. in 2004 after working for the Bush Administration at my parents’ urging. They wanted me to assume responsibility for Ultimate Living, a nutritional products company, so my mom could retire and they could spend the final years of my father’s life traveling the globe. He had been diagnosed with heart disease and had undergone a quadruple bypass. I had been told it would be just a few months of training and within a year the company would be handed over to me to take it to the next level with new ideas and insight from a younger generation. Somehow a year turned into almost 15 years of waiting for my mom to let go of control after I learned how to run the business from the ground up.
Ten years ago, frustrated and wanting to do something on my own, I used my own money to start Hard Night Good Morning skin care. Having my own business and something I created in the midst of the disappointment I was experiencing after having changed careers in my mid-30s made biding my time more tolerable. At the beginning of the year, I was at the end of my rope. I had given up. I had started to stockpile money for the big “move away” from my mom and the protection of Ultimate Living. And then, just like a blessing from above, my mom had a change of heart. She decided it was finally time to hand over the reigns and retire. This long period of waiting proved I not only have patience, but also tenacity. I was able to learn other skills during my 14-year wait, like fundraising, selling on multiple platforms, and business communication. I gained discernment, knowledge, maturity and a lot of time with my mom, which I am most thankful for. After all of that time I was definitely ready to take over both companies completely, and having all of our friends and family there to witness the official transfer was amazing. The true “Queen,” Dee Simmons, handed over the “Queendom Keys” to her daughter, and it was now in writing! The joy and gratitude I felt was simply amazing.
My mom’s approval and acceptance has always been important to me. I mean, you’ve all seen Mama Dee, would YOU want those eyes looking disappointed at YOU? I don’t think so! Hearing her say that she trusts me and is excited to see where I take the company is all I have ever wanted to hear, and it was the perfect way to end this year and to go back to being mom and daughter, or “Pete and Repeat,” as my dad used to call us!
Now that this business talk is over, let’s get down to the “Risky Business” at Stephanie and Travis’ frat party! I’m not jealous of ANY of these women, but I am a tad bit jealous that Travis got to go to Harvard Business school! This has always been on my bucket list! Instead of going back to college, I am stuck here dealing with all this collegiate drama! I know we are supposed to be at a frat party, but come on! We are standing here fighting over a phone that may or may not have been stolen. I think all of our husbands thought we were insane.
Brandi did not steal LeeAnne’s phone. LeeAnne, on the other hand, flat-out LIED to Brandi about cloning it. LeeAnne, who says constantly in interviews and on the show that she isn’t a liar, then laughs when she is caught—multiple times. I’m not giving her a pass on this one...EVER! She is so hell bent on proving she is “not Satan” and doesn’t have special powers to catch us all on fire, but she sure does stare a hole into Brandi like she is about to shoot flames.
I’m “D’Anger” for pointing my finger at you, LeeAnne, but you are the only person who has ever actually been violent. You are poking Brandi in the chest, getting up on the couch to take a swing at me like the Incredible Hulk, throwing glasses at parties so hard it could take someone’s eye out, shoving your friends in front of trolleys, threatening to gut someone like a pig, and of course, who could forget your numerous death threats to anyone and everyone who gets in your way? You may not be Satan, LeeAnne, but you have proven yourself to be Jezebel, same difference! You may call out to Jesus all you want, but even the demons know Christ’s name. You alienated yourself from us, not the other way around. Your “flip-flop” friend, Cary, was there trying to comfort you, for what reason, I still have not figured out, but you could only see that when she “flopped” back to your side over Brandi’s.
LeeAnne’s idea of friendship is much different than mine. I have always told LeeAnne the truth and kept her honest about what is going on, but for some reason this year that makes me a bad friend. When the lens is focused on her problems, she is none to happy, but when it is focused on someone else she is in her element, excited to spread the word, truthful or false. LeeAnne has used me to get to other people and climb up the social ladder to important people in Dallas for years. She has ridden my coattails for as long as she could and told me to be honest and have my own opinion, but when it was about her life she couldn’t stand the heat and moved on to Kameron, who she could easily manipulate. LeeAnne doesn’t want to listen to my advice, because it is not convenient for her, just like the false theories she clings to to explain away her bad behavior. It used to hurt to hear LeeAnne say we were never friends, but now it’s just noise, and maybe it’s true, because the friendship was always one-sided with her using me to achieve her agenda. As soon as LeeAnne found that Kameron could further her agenda to the top of the Dallas social ladder and she could control and manipulate her easily, I was no longer needed. Therefore, my honesty and integrity, which LeeAnne used to praise me for, no longer fit into her checklist for a good friend.
I ask everyone to reexamine what exactly I did wrong this year. I brought up three concerns to my “friend,” LeeAnne. 1. When are you getting married? 2. Do you think Rich is faithful? 3. I stated I’ve heard rumors that he is not faithful after my questions were not answered. Was I wrong? Should I have kept quiet about the things I heard about my closest friend’s fiance? Y’all let me know, because I truly would want to know if I was in that situation.
Unfortunately, because we are all on a reality show, concerns like these must be addressed on camera and not in private behind closed doors. This would take away the “real” aspect of the show we all agreed to participate in. All of these questions could have been simply answered, and Jeremy and I would have been OK with any answer that she gave. It is not for us to judge, but to accept and love. But once these concerns were aired is when deflections started coming at me and my family, and I started being attacked in the show. This is when LeeAnne’s constant lies and violence that she has shown to others throughout the years became targeted towards my family and me. For LIEANNE, her lies and stories are “just a little lie to get even,” and “her bowl of ice cream at the end of the day.”
I am deeply disappointed in Kameron this year for her very childish and rude behavior and judgement towards me. She allowed herself to be manipulated by LeeAnne and others, which just makes me sad for her. She says she doesn’t care about society, but that word is constantly on her tongue along with others like psycho and crazy when referring to me. I hope one day she will learn to think for herself and not be influenced by the unfounded opinions of others. With maturity comes wisdom and discernment. That is what I hope for Kameron in the future.
I am happy that Kameron and LeeAnne are making out with each other as they ride off into the sunset with their co-dependent friendship, however, I just can’t live like that! I agree with Stephanie: Life is not about loyalty, it’s about being real. Not only being real to your friends but to yourself. Stephanie is an old soul with a huge heart. I am honored to consider her a friend, and I appreciate her forming her own opinions and beliefs without being manipulated by anyone else. We may not always agree, but she is never sardonic towards me when delivering her opinion.
Cary, I hope you will take a lesson from Stephanie’s words of wisdom. I have no idea what happened to you this year. I don’t even know who you are anymore. The person you have become is not someone I want to have as a friend. You pot-stir and flip-flop to whatever is convenient for you. Somewhere along the way you have lost yourself and have allowed a person that tried to destroy your family in your circle as one of your closest allies. I have known you for over 12 years, and we have always had a good relationship up until this year. I can only assume that you have also fallen prey to one of LeeAnne’s spells and she has taken away your ability to reason.
I have spent the last year working on becoming my authentic self and developing authentic relationships, and that’s what I am going to keep doing for the rest of my life. Friendships like mine and Brandi’s are about having fun and being there for each other in good times and bad. We don’t always agree with everything the other says. We stand our ground for what is right and what is wrong, not for what’s convenient. I appreciate Brandi being there for me this year, and I truly enjoyed getting to know her and living life more lightheartedly with her. She allows me to be the free-spirited person I have always been inside and that my family loves me for, and for that I am truly grateful!
Now that this crazy season is over, let’s all do a keg stand and make a toast to our real friends! Don’t forget to tune into the reunion next week to find out what has changed and who is exactly the same! For now, I’m going to ride off into the sunset and take hold of my empire! YEEHAW Y’ALL!
Love,
