What I Watched Today
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Spencer comes downstairs, and Laura asks how he slept. He says he didn’t, and she says he’s been under lock and key for a month. Maybe it takes time to get used to the comforts of home. He says, that’s not it, and she says, then what is it? He flashes back to finding Esme’s pregnancy test, and Esme telling him that she’s late. Laura says, he knows he can tell her anything, right?
At Charlie’s, Esme smiles looking at the Invader headline about the sex tape. Nikolas walks in, and asks if that’s a smile he sees, and Esme says, good morning. He says, it looks that way. The first night in her new place must have agreed with her.
Trina is brought to the interrogation room, and Jordan tells her, have a seat. She just wants to walk Trina through what’s next. In a few hours she’ll be escorted to her arraignment. If she pleads not guilty… Trina says, if? She’s pleading not guilty because she didn’t do it.
Harmony sets out some breakfast on the coffee table, and Alexis flashes back to Harmony knowing where the carpet cleaner was. Harmony says she made some breakfast to celebrate her new digs. She hopes Alexis likes scrambled. She asks Alexis, what’s wrong? when the doorbell rings. Harmony says she’ll get it, and opens the door to Sam, who asks what she’s doing here.
Carly and Ava go over Avery’s schedule, which is busier than mine. Carly says she talked to Avery’s dance teacher about the little sprain, and she said, no problem. Ava says, Avery loves her time with Carly, and Carly says, not as much as she loves spending time with Avery. She can’t believe how fast they go from playdate to college. It’s crazy. Ava says she heard about that awful video with Josslyn and Cameron. If she ever finds out who’s responsible, she wouldn’t blame Carly if… Sonny comes over, and says, hello. Carly says, she and Ava are going over Avery’s schedule, trying to coordinate some dates. He says he thought they were talking about Trina, and Ava asks why they would be. Sonny says, she just got arrested for making the video of Cameron and Josslyn. Ava says, that’s crazy, and Carly says, Trina would never do anything like that, especially not to Cameron and Josslyn. Ava says she works side-by-side with Trina at the gallery. She couldn’t trust Trina more if she were her own daughter. Carly says, she was clearly set up, and she and Ava both say, Esme. Sonny says he doesn’t think Jordan would have arrested her if there weren’t some kind of evidence, and Ava says, evidence can be fabricated, as they know. She picks up her bag, and says, always a pleasure. Carly asks where she’s going, and Ava says she’s going to make sure somebody pays for this. Sonny asks how Josslyn is, and Carly says, hurt, humiliated, but standing up for herself. He says, Joss has been his stepdaughter for years, and if he hadn’t found out about this tape from Dante, he would have had to find out from the Invader article.
Alexis says she tried calling Sam, but couldn’t reach her, and Sam asks, what’s going on? Alexis says, Harmony is just staying here for a little bit. She thought Molly or Kristina might have called Sam. Sam says she guesses it slipped their minds, and Harmony says she totally forgot the sugar, and heads for the kitchen. Sam says, so Shawn takes off, and Harmony moves in?
Laura pours Spencer some more coffee, and he says, it’s a perfect first morning of freedom. He holds up a breakfast cookie, and says, he would dream about these when he was on the inside. She laughs, and says, he was on the inside for a month, and he says, even worse, he had them so recently and the bakery was so close. She says she’s glad whatever spoiled his sleep didn’t ruin his appetite. Quit stalling, and just tell her what’s wrong. He asks what makes her think he’s stalling, and she says, maybe because she’s known him since he was a little boy, and when he stalls, it looks exactly like this. He knows he can trust her with anything. He asks if she’s ever done something she shouldn’t have, but didn’t realize until it was too late. She asks how much time he has. She could fill an encyclopedia with the mistakes she’s made. She’s tried to learn from them, and hopefully, maybe she can impart some of those hard won lessons to him. He says, it’s about Esme, and she says she thought so. She’s so sorry they broke up. If there’s anything she can do… There’s a knock at the door, and she says she bets that’s her right now, and if it is, she can go upstairs. But it’s Victor, who says, good morning. She says, it was so close to being one, and he says he just stopped by to see if Spencer… Why, slaughter the fatted calf – he goes to Spencer and hugs him – the prodigal has returned.
Nikolas says he knows Esme’s room above Kelly’s isn’t what she’s accustomed to, but she says, it’s fine. It might not be the lap of luxury, but it’s clean and comfortable, and beggars can’t be choosers. He says, she considers herself a beggar? and she says, close enough. She can’t access her trust fund until she’s twenty-five. In the meantime, her allowance is metered out in pieces. He says, oh, the horror, and she says, poor little rich girl. She’s not making a very good case for herself. He says he was joking. He knows how it is being dependent on the largesse of family; sometimes strangers can be more generous. She says, no one has been as generous to her as he has, despite what she’s done to him and Ava. She didn’t deserve his kindness. He says, kindness has nothing to do with it.
Jordan tells Trina, it doesn’t matter what she believes. Her job is to gather evidence, not judge who’s guilty or not guilty. That’s up to a court of law. Trina says Jordan knows her; she knows Trina’s parents. Does she really think Trina would do this to Joss and Cam? Jordan asks if Trina can explain how the phone that posted the video was found in her possession. She can tell there’s something Trina wants to say. What is it? Ava comes in, and tells Jordan, she’ll say it for her. Jordan’s got the wrong person.
Alexis tells Sam, relax. Harmony isn’t taking up residence here. She just needs a place to stay. Alexis is just helping her out until she can afford to get a place of her own. Sam says, clearly Alexis has made up her mind, and there’s nothing she can do to change it. Alexis says, not that it’s going to stop Sam, and Sam asks if she’s ever thought Harmony’s redemption act is too good to be true. Take it from someone who knows, a grifter’s instinct never leaves you. All you can do is own it and fight it. Is Harmony doing that, or is she working Alexis?
Victor takes a bite of on of the cookies, and says, not bad. Laura asks what he’s doing here, and he says he was just checking up on his great-nephew. Now he’s a free man. Spencer says, freedom’s not all it’s cracked up to be, and Victor says, trouble in paradise? Laura says she’s sure Spencer will tell them what’s going on in his own good time. Right now, she thinks they should give him some space. Victor says, what others call lies of omission, he likes to call truths to be told at the right time. She says, a time that benefits him, and he says, she’s a politician. She knows the value of strategy. You can’t succeed without maneuverability and a sense of gamesmanship. She says, funny he should mention that. Rumor has it, he enjoys a good game of cards. He laughs and says, doesn’t everyone? Spencer tries to slip away, but Victor says, there’s something they need to discuss. All three of them.
Esme says she should have known Nikolas wouldn’t find her a place to stay without wanting something in return. She gets up, and says, if this is about her putting in a good word with Spencer, he won’t listen. Not now. He gets up, and says he’s not asking her to go to bat for him with Spencer. Not because his son stopped caring for her, but because he doesn’t have reason to trust her. She says, at least he’s honest about it, and he asks if she can blame him. She came close to driving the woman he loves out of his life. She says she has nothing against him or Ava. She only knew Ava from what Spence told her. She never questioned his perspective because he was in so much pain. When he asked her for help, she couldn’t say no, even though she knew it was wrong. Of course (🍷) that was just the first of many mistakes. He says, yes, it was, and she says she doesn’t understand. If he hasn’t forgiven her for the things she’s done to him, why is he helping her? Why make sure she has a roof over her head, when he could just as easily send her packing? Of course (🍷). He did it so he could keep an eye on her.
Ava asks how Trina is, and she says she’s fine. Jordan says she has to follow up on something; she’ll leave them to talk. Ava asks if she’s not forgetting something, nodding to the officer, but Jordan says, he stays. They have ten minutes. Ava sits, and says she’s so sorry this is happening to Trina, and Trina says, so is she. Ava says she promises she’ll do everything in her power to get Trina out of here and clear her name. This is a terrible miscarriage of justice. Jordan looks in on them, and picks up her phone.
Victor says he regrets they had to cancel Spencer’s welcome home dinner, and suggests the reschedule it. If not as a welcome home dinner, than some other kind of celebration. They do have a lot to celebrate. Laura says, they do? and he says, more than she can imagine. Her phone rings, and she says, Jordan? Jordan asks if Laura can stop by the precinct as soon as she can, and Laura asks if there’s trouble. Jordan guesses Laura hasn’t seen The Invader today, and Laura says she hasn’t. Jordan says, just as well. She’ll brief Laura when she gets there. Laura says she’s on her way, and Victor says, a mayor’s work is never done. She says, something’s come up; she’s sorry. Victor says, never fear. Her grandson is in good hands. She tells Spencer that she’s a phone call away, and leaves. Victor says, alone at last. Suppose Spencer tells him exactly what’s going on between him and Esme? Spencer says he and Esme are over. Whatever they had was over when he realized he couldn’t trust her. Victor says, trust is an illusion. Loyalty, on the other hand, is priceless. Has Esme been disloyal? Spencer says he doesn’t know, and Victor asks if she’s harmed Spencer in any way. Spencer says, directly, no, but she went out of her way to hurt his friends. She tried to pin the blame for something she did on someone else, someone he cares about. When he confronted her, she denied it, they argued, and the day he got out of Spring Ridge, her bags were packed and she left. Victor says he gets a sense the separation is harder than Spencer imagined it would be, and Spencer says, he doesn’t know the half of it. Victor asks if Esme has gotten her claws into Spencer. Has she played the love card? Or more insidious yet, the sex card? Spencer says he’s changed his mind. He doesn’t want to talk about this. Victor says, nonsense. They’re both men of the world. What’s more, they’re of the same flesh and blood. He can’t help unless Spencer tells him what kind of hold Esme has over him. Spencer says, Esme might be pregnant.
Carly says, her priority in all of this has been Josslyn, so if she didn’t tell Sonny about the tape, she didn’t feel it was her place. He asks if she’s okay with Josslyn doing an interview for the newspaper, and she says, that was Josslyn’s choice. She and Cam were being trashed on social media, so they decided to get in front of it; take charge of the narrative and speak up for themselves. She’s damn proud of her daughter. He says, so is he. She’s always going to be a daughter to him, but someone is using that video as a weapon against her, and in his world, when somebody pulls out a knife… She says, you pull out a gun.
Alexis says, Harmony needs her help. What is she supposed to do? Sam says, okay. As long as Harmony is the friend Alexis needs her to be, and as long as Kristina is okay with it. Alexis says, she is, and thanks Sam for understanding. Sam says she’s here if Alexis needs her, and they hug. Harmony comes back, and asks Sam if she wants some coffee, but Sam says, no. She starts to leave, but stops and says she hopes this all works out for Harmony. She leaves, and Harmony says, by that, she thinks Sam means, save up as fast as she can so she gets out of Alexis’s hair as soon as possible. Alexis says, Sam is very vocal about her concerns. Sam also doesn’t make her decisions for her. Harmony asks if Alexis has made any decisions she needs to know about, but Alexis says, not yet. She can’t help but notice how well Harmony knows her way around the house. It almost seems like Harmony has been here before without her knowledge. Harmony says, because she has.
Victor says, pregnant? Is that all? Spencer says, isn’t that enough? and Victor says, if he’s the father. Spencer says, of course (🍷) he is, and Victor asks if he’s sure. Spencer says, yes, but Victor says, no, he’s not. The man never can be. Spencer says, Esme moved to Port Charles for him. She even broke a few laws because she thought it was going to help. Victor says, and Spencer feels responsible, and Spencer says, isn’t he? Victor says, listen to him. Spencer is a young man with his whole life ahead of him. He has a family with almost unlimited resources, a family that loves him very much, even though sometimes they have a hard time knowing how to express it. If Esme is indeed pregnant, and Spencer is indeed the father, they have a whole array of options at their disposal. They can pay her off. They can resettle her somewhere. They can arrange to have the child brought up by more appropriate parents. They do that all the time in this family, in case Spencer hasn’t noticed. Spencer says he’s sorry, it’s a lot, and Victor says, let him simplify. He can arrange to have mother and child cared for without tying Spencer down. Spencer thanks him, and Victor says he was a little relieved. He was worried at first that Spencer was obsessed with that young lady who works at Ava’s gallery. Spencer says, Trina? What about her? Victor says, hasn’t he heard? Apparently, she betrayed her other friends and got herself arrested.
Nikolas says, of course (🍷) he’s keeping an eye on Esme; she helped Spencer terrorize his wife. She says, everything she did, she did for Spencer, and he asks if he’s supposed to believe she doesn’t have a mind of her own. She couldn’t see Spencer’s plot spiraling out of control? She says she doesn’t know how many times she can say this. She was wrong and she’s sorry. He says he provided her with a place because there’s a good chance this break-up is temporary. If that’s true, he needs to know she’s good for his son. She says, in other words, he gives her shelter and a chance to prove she’s not some gold-digger? and he says he needs to know she’ll inspire Spencer to be the man he can be. She says, according to whose standards? Society’s or his family’s, because it’s becoming clearer by the day that those are two totally different things. He says, whatever path Spencer chooses, will she be there? Does she really care for him? She asks if she hasn’t proven that by now. Of course (🍷) she cares for Spencer. She loves Spencer more than she’s ever loved anyone. He says, now she has a chance to remind him, but she says he doesn’t understand. It’s too late. She goes back to the table and sits down.
Ava asks Trina to tell her everything that happened. On second thought, just tell her what the police already know. Trina says she tried to show the Commissioner her phone to prove she didn’t have the sex video on it. She pulled out what she thought was her phone. It was identical; same case, same model. Then she heard a chime from a text on her actual phone, and realized her phone was still in her bag. Someone planted the other one. Ava says, and they may not know how they did it, but they know who. It was Esme, wasn’t it?
Jordan thanks Laura for coming, and Laura says she saw The Invader on her way over. Trina Robinson can’t possibly have anything to do with that sex tape, can she? Jordan says, they’re exploring all angles. That’s why she called Laura. There’s another piece of the puzzle she needs to make Laura aware of, personally. Laura says, because the tape involves Cameron? and Jordan says, actually, it involves her other grandson, Spencer.
Carly tells Sonny, the first step is to prove Esme did this to Josslyn and Cameron. Then Carly will make her pay. He says, so he has no say? Does she agree with Michael that Josslyn doesn’t concern him anymore? She says, Michael agrees with Josslyn, and she’s made it clear she doesn’t want Sonny involved. He says, he understands how they feel about him, but he’d do anything for his children. She says, then do what Josslyn has asked and stay out of it. Has he even read the interview with Joss and Cam? He says, not all of it, and she says, he should. It’s pretty impressive. Josslyn showed a lot of courage. He says he doesn’t need an interview to tell him how brave Josslyn is; he sees it. Just like he sees Trina is taking the fall for this, and someone else is getting away with a vicious attack on Josslyn’s name and privacy. She says, someone is Esme, and he says he’s not going to stand by and let that happen. He’s going to take care of it. He strides to the elevator, telling Sam hi as he passes her. Sam tells Carly, she knows that look. Someone’s going to suffer.
Trina tells Ava, of course (🍷) Esme did it, but she wasn’t in the cabin when the video was recorded. She was in the car with Spencer on her way back to town. Ava says, she didn’t have to be there physically to make the recording; it’s not that hard. The officer says, sorry, time’s up, and Ava says she promises to move heaven earth to get Trina out of this. Trina asks, do people really think… Ava says, who cares what people think? Her family and friends, her good true friends, they know her. And so does Spencer, whether she cares what he thinks or not.
Laura asks Jordan how Spencer is involved, when Ava comes out. Laura asks, how’s Trina? and Ava says, innocent.
Spencer looks at the Invader article and says, this doesn’t make sense. How could they arrest Trina? Victor says he imagines the police found evidence of a crime that pointed to her guilt. Spencer says he’s sorry; he needs to take a minute. Victor says he can take a hint. He’ll see himself out. He leaves, and Spencer flashes back to Esme telling him that Trina’s asleep and they can send for their bags. Let’s go. He moves to remembering them being in the car, and Esme saying, what is she up to? It’s not enough he believes she orchestrated the weekend to blow up his friends. He says, which she denied, and she asks if he believes her. He says he wants to. That’s why he’s asking what the hell she hoped to achieve asking the questions she did during the drinking game. Esme asks how she was supposed to know she’d hit a nerve. Then he flashes back to asking Esme to tell him that she had nothing to do with the video, and her evading the question, saying, you don’t always get what you want.
Esme tells Nikolas, not only has Spencer kicked her to the curb, there’s a target on her back because of what certain people think she’s done. He says, what people? and she says, Josslyn’s mom for one. He saw the bruise Carly left on her arm. She thanks him again for taking her to the hospital, and putting Carly on notice. That leaves Mr. Corinthos. He says, Sonny? What about him? She says, he’s had it in for her ever since she stretched the truth about Nikolas and Ava leaving town with Ava. Her misguided attempt to bring everyone together seriously backfired. He says, let him worry about Sonny. Just work being the person Spencer trusted; the person he cared for and still cares for. Can she do that? She says, that’s just it. Lately, Spencer’s put his trust in the last person he should, the person who actually did this terrible thing to Joss and Cam. She shows him the article, and he says, Trina? and she says, Spence thought she did it. If he won’t believe her, maybe he’ll believe his own eyes. Maybe he’ll finally see it was wrong to trust her. Nikolas asks if Trina being out of Spencer’s life brings him and Esme back together, and she says, it might have, before she found out… He says, found out what?
Sam looks at the article, and tells Carly, first of all, that anyone would even do this at all is horrific, but to Josslyn, knowing Sonny Corinthos is her stepfather? Carly says, she knows. Sam should have heard the way Esme spoke to her. She was doing it just to get a rise out of her in front of Nikolas. Sam asks if it worked, and Carly says, he rushed to her side to defend her. She doesn’t know how Josslyn has managed not to slap Esme into next week. When she was Josslyn’s age, back in her day, she would have ripped Esme’s hair out of her head, and that’s before she tried to frame Trina. Sam says, that explains the smoke coming out of Sonny’s ears, and Carly says, Michael and Josslyn want him to stay out of it. Sam says, like anything is going to be able to stop him.
On the phone, Sonny says he needs Brick to coordinate with Spinelli; try to find a trail. Whoever did this… He knows what people are thinking, but he needs to have a clean slate, so proof is absolute. Does Brick know what he’s saying?… Right. There’s a knock at the door, and Ava comes in. She says she needs a drink. Gin if he has it; scotch otherwise. He says, she’ll have to go to the bar. He’s not doing that stuff. She says, kudos to Nina, and he laughs. He asks what she’s doing here, and she says she just saw Trina. He says, and? Ava says, she didn’t do it. As he already knows, it was Esme.
Harmony says, Kristina was living at Alexis’s house when she was interested in Dawn of Day. One day she waited until Alexis left, and knocked on the door. Kristina opened it. Alexis says, Harmony wanted to talk to Kristina when she wasn’t there, and Harmony says, Shiloh wanted her to check Kristina out. They were having coffee in the kitchen, and there was some mishap with the coffeemaker. She can’t remember exactly what happened, but it spilled everywhere. They had to clean it up, then she put the mop and cleaning supplies back. That’s how she knew where they were. Alexis says, right. Just to be clear, she’s going to speak to Kristina about this. Harmony says she wants Alexis to do that. She knows she should have told Alexis, and she’s sorry. She was so ashamed of the reason why. She tells Alexis, please say something.
Nikolas asks Esme if there’s something he should know about this video. Something that involves Spencer. She says, no. Spencer had nothing to do with it. He says, good, then what is it? He can’t help her if he doesn’t know. She says she knows he wants to help, but it’s just… He says, go on, but she says she’s sorry. She needs to get some air. She grabs her stuff, and dashes out. Outside, she smiles, and rolls her eyes.
Spencer comes into the station and sees Laura. He asks why she didn’t tell him Trina was there, and she says she didn’t know until she got there. He asks where she is, and Jordan says, Trina’s in the interrogation room. He can go right in. The officer lets Spencer in, and Laura asks why Jordan let Spencer in to see Trina. Does she believe her grandson is involved in this? Trina tells Spencer, it’s funny how things work out, but he says, there’s nothing funny about this. She says, yeah, there is. They last time she saw him, he was the one in custody. Now it’s her turn.
Carly tells Sam that she wishes Jason was here. She wishes that thousand times every day, but especially now. He could figure out how Esme framed Trina, and he could stop Carly from losing her mind. Sam says, probably, and Carly asks if she’s heard from Monica. Sam says, about Jason? and Carly says, she wants to have him declared legally dead. She heard it from Britt, then Monica reached out. She thinks it will help Jason’s kids move on. What does Sam think? Sam says she thinks it seems impossible, saying goodbye to Jason, and Carly says, she’ll never be able to. Sam says, they have to try to move on, and Carly says she’s moving on with so many things right now… and so is Sam. How are things with Sam and Dante? Sam says, great. She had to try really hard to find the strength to move on from Jason. So maybe it’s possible. If Carly finds her strength, she’ll be able to move on from Sonny.
Sonny asks what Ava wants, and she says, the same thing he does – justice. She knows Trina. She’s good, a helluva lot better than either of them. He says, faint praise, low bar, and she says, good point. He says, so? and she says, so they both know Trina would never do this to Josslyn and Cameron. Sonny says, Carly’s convinced it’s Esme, and she says, Carly is right. And if she and Carly agree on something, it’s got to be true. Now what is he going to do about it? He says, he’s on it.
On the bench outside Charlie’s, Esme reads from the article. We refuse to be victims, says Josslyn Jax. Cameron Webber echoes that sentiment. Whoever thought they could shame us into hiding, has made a serious mistake. Esme laughs, and says, the mistake was all yours, Trina. Someone approaches, startling her.
Alexis says she has to go to work, and Harmony asks if Alexis wants her to leave. Alexis says, they’ll talk about it later, and leaves.
August 2020. Harmony uses a key to let herself into Alexis’s house. She looks around with a flashlight, and goes upstairs. She shines the light on Neil’s driver’s license, and we see Alexis and Neil sleeping. Harmony takes out a syringe, and injects Neil. In the present, she looks panicked.
Carly tells Sam, she divorced Sonny. That counts as moving on, right? Sam says, not really, but she’s giving Carly a pass on this one, since she’s got a lot to deal with. She needs to stay focused on Josslyn. Carly says, Josslyn is going to get through this. Going public with Cam was a good first step. Now they have to make sure her best friend doesn’t pay for a crime she didn’t commit.
Spencer says he rushed over as soon as he heard, and Trina asks, why? So he can tell Esme it worked? He says he didn’t believe Esme when she accused Trina, and she says, which time? He says, to be honest, he thought Esme did it, but now, if the Commissioner has evidence… She says, planted evidence. He knows better than anyone she’d never deliberately try to hurt Joss and Cam. He says, then why did she do it?
Jordan tells Laura, other than being in the cabin the night the video was taken, she’s not sure Spencer was involved at all. Laura says, he seemed upset about something this morning, and Jordan says, maybe Spencer’s adjusting leaving the system and returning to a normal life. Laura says, she’d like to believe that, but then there’s his Great-uncle Victor who’s always ready with a helping hand.
Victor goes into Charlie’s, and says he’s glad he found Nikolas. They need to talk about Spencer. Nikolas says, later. Did he see Esme outside, and Victor says, as a matter-of-fact he did. As he was pulling in, another car was pulling out. He saw Esme in the back seat. Nikolas asks, who was driving? Which way did they go?
Esme is plopped into a chair in Sonny’s office. Sonny swivels around in his desk chair to face her, and signals his guy to leave. He says, Esme. Nice of you to join me, and smiles. I laaaugh.
Tomorrow, Dante asks Chase, where’s this coming from; Brook tells someone, the answer is no; Spencer says he wants to believe Trina; and Sonny says, all Esme’s got to do is confess.
The Real Housewives of New Jersey
When we last left, Teresa was losing her sh*t at Traci’s Treetop event. In Melissa’s interview, she said, she and Jennifer had just made up, and everyone was getting along. She didn’t understand why Teresa was trying to start something. Teresa then insisted the headlines about Luis were like the rumor about Evan, and tried to blame Marge for that. Jackie told Marge not to worry, she wasn’t buying it, and somehow we got back to the analogy thing. A word I’d hoped never to hear again from this bunch. Teresa whined that Jackie hadn’t said it was an analogy to begin with, and Marge tried to explain that wasn’t the way it worked. You didn’t go, by the way, I’ll be using an analogy now. In Jackie’s interview, she said, there never would have been an analogy in the first place if Teresa hadn’t been spreading a rumor about someone she loves. Dolores wondered why Teresa was getting worked up over old stuff, and Marge said it was a deflection.
A beautiful table was set for lunch, which is always a total waste on Housewives. Teresa said she was all about love. It upset her that Traci was telling her husband to ask questions about her boyfriend, but Traci said she never asked him to do anything, and Luis had no problem with it. Teresa said she had a problem with it, and Marge wondered why, since it was already out there. Not surprisingly, Teresa confused Traci with someone else, accusing her of being a husband stealing nanny. Tracy was like, I wasn’t a nanny, but Teresa had already moved on. Marge said it was Luis’s exes who had put it out there, and Teresa suggested Marge had been talking to them, and encouraging it. She was in an amazing love bubble, she was protecting it, and no one was popping it. She decided to leave, but not before reminding the women that her workout line was in gift bags with their names on them. She told Melissa to make sure no one was talking about her, and Melissa said, if they were even arguing in the woods, they were doomed. Everyone agreed that Teresa had come in hot over nothing, and they didn’t get what they came for. Melissa gave herself a gold star for making up with Jennifer, and Dolores said they had a softball game coming up. It was for charity, and they were all on the same team. Traci said she didn’t want to be near Teresa when she was doing practice swings.
Mel excited about Antonia’s Sweet 16 party, and told Joe #2 that this would be the 16th time she was planning a party for her. She only had one girl. Joe said his sister got everything when they were growing up, and Melissa said Teresa showed up to the Treetop event in the worst mood; she came in screaming and yelling at Marge and Traci. She thought she was in the Twilight Zone.
Teresa told Antonia and Gia that they were moving in a week and had to go through everything. We flashed back to when the girls were little, and Gia said it was going to be sad. Teresa said it was the house they grew up in, and in Gia’s interview, she said it was the last physical thing she had of her dad in the United States. We flashed back to Juicy Joe with the kids, and she told Teresa, it was the last piece of him. It wouldn’t be theirs anymore. Teresa said she was ready for a new beginning with Luis. It was pissing her off to no end that Marge and Traci were bringing to light the false accusations against him. How dare anyone question him? Gia asked if anyone had Teresa’s back, and Teresa said, Dolores.
Frank and Dolores brushed up on their softball, and Dolores asked if Frank was going to run in such a weird way. He said, this time last year, he couldn’t even walk, and we flashed back to his accident. Dolores said she’d had enough of his balls hitting her, and they went inside. She told Frank that she wanted to raise money for the breast cancer center; they’d been good to her. In her interview, she said she’d been raising money for the last few years, but last year, she’d had a breast cancer scare. She told Frank that they’d saved so many people. They’d already raised $75K in ticket donations and they were all clear to play at Maimonides Park. It was going to be her friends against the doctors. She was concerned that Teresa was going to show up with both barrels loaded.
Teresa told Gia that she didn’t stay for lunch, and in Teresa’s interview, she said the only reason she even went was because she wanted to give the women her workout line. It was the only time she’d see them before the game. She was going to sell her line there, and donate some of the proceeds to charity. Melissa told Joe #2 that Teresa went screaming through the forest, but as she was leaving, she was like, here’s my workout line. She wants them to wear it at the game. Dolores wondered how the women were going to be civil at a charity event after fighting in the woods. Frank told her, good luck.
Jackie went to see her therapist, and said she’d been in a panic, It was her last chance to count calories before the therapist was going to make her stop. The therapist said she couldn’t make Jackie do anything; she could just make suggestions. She asked what Jackie was afraid of, and Jackie said, losing control. She’d been holding on to her eating habits for twenty years, and always had to calculate everything. It took so much work. She’d have to examine the calendar, and see which days she was going to have to eat. It was all day, every day. Her body hurt, but she did it anyway. The therapist said what usually caused eating disorders was low self-esteem. That amount of anxiety had to be seeping into everything all the time. Jackie had full-blown anorexia. Somewhere something had gone wrong. Jackie said it had been traumatic being heavy as a child. She was putting on lipstick in the hallway, and a boy walking by said, it won’t help. He said she was gross, and they made her feel bad about herself. In college, she’d been cutting her calories in half and losing weight, when she met her husband. Since she knew he liked how she looked, she wanted to keep it going. In Jackie’s interview, she said she knew he loved her regardless, but she had an irrational fear that if she put on weight, he wouldn’t see her as the same person. She worried that he wouldn’t embrace the new here. The therapist asked if anyone had ever said anything, and Jackie told her that she always said, leave her alone, she was fine. But she was alone with this in her head. She didn’t know anyone could help. She made it seem like she’d recovered, but clearly she hadn’t. She was scared since her kids were getting older, they noticed more. The therapist asked if Jackie thought the kids knew she was suffering, and Jackie said she hadn’t known they noticed things, but her husband told her that they do. She was horrified. She took the kids for ice cream, but never ate it herself. The therapist asked when she last had it, and she said, twenty years ago. The therapist wondered if that wasn’t a good goal, and Jackie said she didn’t know how to do that. It was so stupid. The therapist told her to shoot for not counting calories and not compensating, and Jackie said she might even get a topping.
Jackie talked to Evan about her session, and suggested they go out to dinner. He understood the nuances of her disease, and there were so many. In Evan’s interview, he said, since they’d met, they’d had no more than four consecutive vacation nights because of the meals. The only way Jackie ate vegetables was steamed, and they had to call restaurants in advance to make sure they could steam spinach. He wanted to travel, and it clouded the relationship. He told her that it was unhealthy and could lead to something bad. He worried. She said it was hard to hear, and he asked how he could help. She said she knew she jumped on him when he tried to help; she’d always done everything herself so she could trick herself. The therapist said she had full-blown anorexia, and she’d never said the words out loud. She’d never gotten to the point where she was ready for help. She wanted to be present, and Evan said it helped them have a deeper connection. Jackie asked, if she gained weight, was he okay with that, and he said he loved her no matter what size she was. He was proud she’d taken the first steps. She said, when she was good, she’d throw out her measuring spoons, and he said she must have a hundred of them.
Jennifer and Bill went out to eat. It was the first weekend in a long time that Bill wasn’t on call. In Jennifer’s interview, she said she was still mad at Bill, but it was moments like these that made her grateful she’d stayed. She told him about making up with Melissa, and said maybe he could find a way to make things good with the guys. He said he had certain feelings about what took place, and we flashed back to the guys night debacle, and Bill said they needed to know when to back off. Jennifer said what they were going through superseded the girls . They had an anniversary coming up; it had been twenty years since they met. Jennifer asked if Bill thought they’d make another nineteen. She didn’t want to look back on an unhappy. She wanted to make it work, but didn’t want to turn into her mother, and be resentful of the world. She told Bill, the whole car ride back from the airport, her mother never mentioned Bill’s affair. We flashed back to Jennifer telling her brother that she didn’t want her mother to hear it from somewhere else. Jennifer said she thought her mother would have an opinion, but she didn’t. She was mad at Marge. Bill said, it happened many years ago, but Jennifer said she didn’t give a sh*t. She had been at home tending three small children and she was pregnant. He’d given her no consideration. She told herself that she’d be a tough girl, but she didn’t want to give him a pass. She didn’t want to go through a divorce, and felt, as long as both parties were willing to keep working, they were golden. When one partner checked out, it was going downhill. In Jennifer’s interview, she said, it felt good that she didn’t hold back. The ball was in Bill’s court. Now they’d see if he did anything about it.
Lexi worked on invites for Marge Sr.’s 75th birthday. Marge reminded Lexi about the charity softball game, and Lexi asked if Marge read Teresa’s group text. She wanted them to wear her shorts to the game. She knew she could raise more money for charity if they’d be her stunning models. Lexi was surprised at Teresa’s audacity. Clearly she doesn’t know Teresa. Marge said Teresa couldn’t stand her, but needed a favor. Lexi said Traci was on the text too, and Marge called her. She told Traci that she wasn’t wearing Teresa’s shorts. It would be like she was saying it was okay to treat her like sh*t, and would do whatever she could just to be friends.
Before the game, Dolores said they’d gotten $125K in donations from a bank, and there were 2000 people in advance ticket sales. Everyone gathered in the locker room, where everyone got a jersey with their name on it. Frank hoped, since it was a fundraiser, the women would cut the sh*t for once. Marge couldn’t believe Teresa wanted them to wear her stuff, and Dolores played Switzerland. Teresa breezed in last with Gia and Luis, and said she’d brought her workout line. Marge said, we’re good, which pissed Teresa off. Gia said they supported everyone with everything, and Marge said she did support them, but not today. In Marge’s interview, she said she loved Gia, but wished Teresa would tell Gia not to fight her battles. In Gia’s interview, she said, even though they were arguing, Marge and Teresa were still friends, so she thought Marge should be supportive. In Teresa’s interview, she said, someone finally someone had her back, even if it was her daughter. In Dolores’s interview, she said, everyone had their own relationship with Teresa, and made their own choices. In Melissa’s interview, she said she got where Mage was coming from, but she wasn’t having a war over leggings. In Jackie’s interview, she said, Teresa let Jennifer take the fall for digging up dirt on Evan, yet Jennifer is still wearing Teresa’s clothes. Teresa’s got her hand up the puppet’s ass. In Jennifer’s interview, she said, Bill didn’t want to come. She was hoping he’d change his mind. He kind of owed her one.
Dolores got a friend of hers, who’d played baseball in college, to be the pitcher, since they weren’t an athletic bunch. Jennifer was worried about her nose, so she wore a catcher’s mask. Bill was a no show, and Frank thought he was running from the situation. In Frank’s interview, he said he’d texted Bill a few times, and gotten short responses. It wasn’t like him. But the last thing he wanted at a charity event was to see Bill going head-to-head with Evan or Joe #2. A dude introduced Dolores, who talked about the charity. In Marge’s interview, she said she knew nothing about baseball. She only knew a homerun. <wink-wink> Teresa asked if they’d scored a touchdown, and Joe #2 said he’d played football in high school. Why didn’t she know the difference? Good thing Jennifer was wearing that mask, because she took a spill while she was running between bases.
In Jennifer’s interview, she said, the Louis Vuitton’s were a mistake. They have no grip… freaking read bottoms. In Joe #2’s interview, he said, physical performance is enhanced by alcohol, and the guys did shots. Teresa said if Marge was wearing her leggings, her ass wouldn’t jiggle as much, and she’d hit the ball. In Tracy’s interview, she said, Teresa was a typical bully. In Marge’s interview, she said, nothing was too low for Teresa. When Tiki arrived, Teresa was all kissy-kissy with him, baffling everyone. Traci put it best when she said, it makes zero f***ing sense. (Maybe she thought Tiki would wear her leggings.) Seeing Frank Jr. dropping the ball was pretty funny, and Tiki won the game for them by catching a ball. I believe the final score was 9 to 6, but don’t quote me. In Jennifer’s interview, she said she liked the feeling of them wanting her here and that she belonged. She hoped Bill heard about it, and felt more comfortable with being part of the group. In Dolores’s interview, she said it was one of the greatest nights of her life. They’d raised over $200k, and for the most part, everyone was on their best behavior. It was a Jersey miracle. We all watched fireworks over the stadium.
Next time, Bills shows up for Marge Sr.’s birthday, Melissa has a talk with Antonia, Teresa moves, the guts talk to Bill, and Bill says, f*** you.
📠 The Deets…
The when and where of the softball game. I might have gone. If it wasn’t so far. Like if it was across the street.
👏🏽 Brave Lady…
After hiding for so long, it must be tough to announce your business to the world.
https://www.today.com/health/mind-body/rhonj-jackie-goldschneider-eating-disorder-rcna14232
👟 Runnin’ Down a Dream…
Come away with me tomorrow to the opera of soap and the County of Orange. Until then, stay safe, stay caring about at least one cause, and stay not calling lies of omission, truths to be told at another time.
What I Watched - TV With Theresa 