No. 2 'Survivor' is Back Home on LI Among Friends

THE WELL-WISHER arrives at about the same time as Kim Johnson's tuna melt and Diet Coke.

"You did a great job," gushes the stranger as she hovers, beaming, at Johnson, who is sitting at a window-side table at Taby's Burger House in Oyster Bay.

Graciously, Johnson acknowledges the anonymous accolades, smiling and issuing a demure thank you - a routine she'll have to repeat several times before lunch is over.

Long Island has had ample representation on CBS' "Survivor" series, starting in the inaugural version with neurologist Sean Kenniff, who exasperated his teammates - and viewers - with his insistence on voting off his rivals in alphabetical order. Season two brought Ronkonkoma bartender Kimmi Kappenberg, whose whining about the challenges that surviving in the Australian Outback brought to her vegetarian philosophy was not terribly endearing, either.

But Johnson, who made it to the penultimate position on "Survivor Africa" before being beaten by 27- year-old professional soccer coach Ethan Zohn, is arguably the most popular of the show's Long Island alumni.

First off, she looks pretty damn good for her 57 years - good enough to wear a thong on one episode.

"I don't know when I was younger if I knew what 57 looked like - I probably didn't think it looked like this," says Johnson, accessorized with such 20-something touches as a denim jacket, thumb ring and the occasional use of the word "cool." "You can be who you are." - Read The Whole Article...

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