What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)

🎤 Testing, testing. Is this thing still on…?

General Hospital

Carly sees Jason at the hospital, and he asks how Sasha is. She says Sasha survived the overdose, and she’s going to make it. She’s worried about the fallout, and how it’s going to affect Michael. Jason asks if she told Michael that Sasha never cheated on him, and she says she did. He was really upset that she hadn’t told him the truth. He understands intellectually, but that doesn’t change the betrayal. Jason says all she can do is give it time, and she asks why he’s there. He says he’s following up on a lead, and she says she knows better than to ask what it was, but was it promising? He says it’s too soon tell.

At The Floating Rib, Laura tells Scotty that she just got back, and she needs to talk to him. She found out something so disturbing that might put him in danger too. He asks, how much?  

Dante stands at the docks, complete the mission going through his head. Lulu startles him, and says she didn’t mean to sneak up on him. He says he was just in his head, and she says she could tell. He had his thinking face on. He says, his what face? and she says that’s what Rocco would call it when Dante was lost in thought; furrowed brow, faraway look, and a clenched jaw. He says he thought that was everybody’s think face, and she says, no, but it’s definitely his, and their son’s.

Britt asks the guard in Brad’s room for a minute alone with him. He’s hesitant, but she says she’s the Chief of Staff, and Brad’s not due to wake up any time soon. The guard leaves, and she tells Brad, she spoke to his surgeon. They said he came through with flying colors. They were concerned about the amount of blood he lost, but that seems to have stabilized. The surgeon said the rest was up to him now. She takes his hand, and says, don’t crap out on me, Cooper. I need you. She tells him that he can’t leave her there with her mother. He knows she can’t trust her, and she doesn’t know yet if she can trust Peter. Nathan is gone, and he’s the only friend she’s got.

Sam sits with Danny at a table in the MetroCourt. Danny says he thinks two Thanksgivings is awesome, and Sam says, at least one will be traditional. Danny says, that’s what’s so cool. He’ll get turkey and stuffing at Uncle Sonny’s, and there will be eating and singing at Grandma Monica’s. Sam says he made a good point. They’re both traditions, just two different ones. Danny says he loves having pizza; Scout and dad too. She wonders where Jason is, and Danny says, he’s probably busy.    

Sonny tells Taggert, the cold war with Cyrus isn’t going to stay that way much longer. Taggert says, all the more reason for him to keep his eyes on Portia and Trina. Sonny says he has eyes on them, and so does Cyrus. Julian knows about him too. Taggert says he thought Sonny got Julian to back off, and Sonny says, it depends on who Julian is more afraid of, him or Cyrus. Julian has a history of not knowing what’s good for him.

Julian answers the door at Charlie’s, expecting trouble, but it’s Ava. She asks, what’s wrong with him? and he says, where would she like to start?

Peter punches the heavy bag at the gym, and hears Maxie say, it’s the mother of his child. She says she was identifying herself, since he didn’t know her voice the first seven times, but it’s a nice view. She’s surprised he’s there, and there’s not an emergency at The Invader. He says, is there an emergency? and she says she thought it would be the only reason he’d stand her up for dinner. He apologizes, saying he totally lost track of time, and she says, clearly, something is on his mind that he needs to punch his way through. He says, now more than ever, he needs to get into fighting shape. She asks if he’s planning on having a fight, and he says he has to be ready. He’s never going to let anyone hurt them again.

Carly asks Jason if it’s about Cyrus, and he says he thought she wasn’t going to ask. She says, no details, but she needs to know if she needs to make arrangements with the kids. She’ll have to wrangle with Ava to take Avery, and talk to Jax, since Josslyn isn’t going to want to go, and she’ll need to know if it’s safe to leave her. He says they’re not there yet, and she asks, how close? How long before the truce comes to an end?  

Dante asks Lulu what she’s doing there. He knows it’s not his business. She asks if he’s checking up on her, or is it just friendly conversation? and he says, friendly conversation. She says she has a deadline. Charlotte is with Valentin and Rocco is at his grandmother’s. She was getting take-out from The Rib, since she’ll be burning the midnight oil. She should probably ask him to join her, so he doesn’t have to shadow her for her own protection.

Scotty tells Laura, he’s a lawyer. He gets death threats all the time. Otherwise, he’s not doing his job. She says she’s not talking about one of his clients, and he asks if it’s someone he took to the cleaners, but she says, it’s not that. He says, this is fun; let him guess. Is it a woman? She says, no; not this time. He says, Sonny, and she says, it’s Cyrus Renault. He asks what the hell he’s done to upset the alleged reformed drug kingpin, but she says, nothing that she’s aware of. Cyrus is after her, and Scotty is in her radius. Cyrus has some kind of connection at the PCPD, and had a case file pulled. A case from 40 years ago. He says, that case?

Sam tells Danny, don’t worry. His dad will be there. His Uncle Michael has a friend who’s sick in the hospital, and he wanted to check on them. They hear some loud talking at the bar, and Danny says, it’s grandma.   

Jason tells Carly, it can’t hurt to get things ready on the island, and talk to Josslyn about a potential trip, but he’s hoping there’s a better way handle this. She says, which is? and he says, Britt could have inside information about Cyrus. She asks why he’s talking to Britt; everyone hates her. He says everyone used to hate Carly too, but she says they were all wrong about her, and he was right. He says he didn’t listen to people, and made up his own mind. he knows Britt made a deal with Cyrus, but he’s guessing that didn’t include acting as a front while Cyrus used the hospital to bring in drugs. He thinks Britt is realizing what Cyrus dragged her into, and it pisses her off. She asks if he thinks Britt is mad enough to feed him inside information, and he says they’ll see.

Julian says, it’s not a good time, but Ava walks in anyway. He says she has to leave, and she says she will, as soon as she catches him up to speed. Today has been a very eventful day. He tells her to give him the bullet points, and she says, funny he should say it that way. She and Nikolas were picking up Avery, and Sonny was asking questions about Ryan, and how he got stabbed in Pentenville. He asks what she told Sonny.   

Scotty says, Cyrus already established a mole at the PCPD? and Laura says, it doesn’t matter how he got it done, the point is, he wanted it. It was heavily redacted, so maybe he won’t be able to put the pieces together and find out who was involved. Scotty says she did, and she says she did, but it’s about her and what she did when she was a kid.

Dante says he interfered with her piece on Cyrus, and she says, a little bit. He says he could say it won’t happen again, and she says she’s not buying that. He says he could apologize, and she says he could, for undermining her. Feel free. He says he apologizes for undermining her, and she says, apology accepted. He says, as far as protecting her goes, he’s never going to stop caring, and she says she won’t either. She tells him she should get going, and leaves. Dr. Kirk comes out of the shadows, and asks if she’s gone.  

Alexis babbles away at the bar, and Danny says, she looks like she’s having a good time. Sam asks him to wait there a minute, and goes over to Alexis. She says, hi, and Alexis introduces Sam to some colleagues from the first firm she worked at. Sam asks if they can talk a minute, and they step aside. Alexis tells Sam, before she says anything, she only had one drink, but Sam says they both know it doesn’t stop at one for her. Alexis asks if Sam is going to be tallying her cocktails, but Sam says she just wanted to make sure Alexis had a ride home. Alexis says she called a car to bring her there, and she’ll call one to bring her back. Sam will have to find another on ramp for her next lecture. Sam says she’s done with lectures. She’s done with begging, pleading, and threats. She’s just done. She walks back to her table.

Sonny tells Taggert that Epiphany is their eyes and ears at the hospital, but he needs people on the ground. Carly comes in, saying, she just ran into Jason, and stops short when she sees Taggert.

Ava tells Julian, Sonny was putting the pieces together, and just when she thought all hope was lost, Nikolas confessed. He told Sonny that he’d arranged to get rid of Ryan to protect her. He says, Sonny bought that? and she says, strange as it seems, Sonny was willing to believe her husband would go to extreme lengths to protect her. Which is good for him. Sonny believes Nikolas is responsible, so he’s in the clear. He says, maybe with Sonny. She says that’s the other reason she came there. So they can discuss the deal he made with whoever was responsible for the attack on Ryan. Please tell her that he didn’t accept a favor from Cyrus.

Scotty says, this isn’t happening, is it? and Laura says she’s afraid it is. He says his role in that was minor, and she says she knows that, but he was in her life at the time. Cyrus might try to blackmail him to get information. He wonders, why go to the police and get a file that was redacted? Anybody who lived in Port Charles back then could fill him in the details. She says clearly he wanted something more official, and he asks if she thinks Cyrus wants to try and blackmail her, embarrass her, or what. She’s sure it’s more than that.

Kirk says he’s as surprised as Dante that he was chosen to be Dante’s handler. They thought it was for the best, a long standing doctor/patient relationship. Can Dante catch him up? Dante says he accessed Peter’s computer at The Invader, and got to a private server. He found some interesting intel. Kirk says, enough to prove Peter’s guilt? Dante hands him the flashdrive, and says, you tell me.

Peter tells Maxie, Alex is dead. He should let her rest, and not question her motives or actions, but he can’t help wondering why she took Maxie. Maxie says Alex is a total psychopath. He wasn’t at Anna’s or The Haunted Star. There’s nothing he could have done that would have made any difference. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong person. Alex probably would have shot him too. Alex is dead, and she won’t be a threat to them or the baby again. He says, true, but there are other enemies lurking; enemies of his father’s, allies of his father’s, and Jason. She says, is he kidding her? Why would he think Jason is a threat to them?

Ava asks if Julian has a death wish or something, and he says, death is what he’s trying to avoid. She says, and this is his strategy? Offending as many crime lords as possible, so they fight over who’s going to kill him first? They’ll kill him, revive him, and kill him again. He says he chose the lesser of two evils. She says he’s keeping secrets from Sonny while owing Cyrus a favor. If he’s not careful, they’re going to realize they share a common enemy. Tell her how bad it is, and what he owes Cyrus.

Danny asks Sam if grandma is joining them, but she says, not tonight. Alexis is about to order another drink, when Cyrus asks if she’d mind if he gets the next one. He asks her to allow him to introduce himself, but she says she knows who he is. Port Charles’s drug pusher. He hopes she means GH’s vast array of healing pharmaceuticals, but she says she means drugs like cocaine, ketamine, and a vast array of opioids, including heroine. The drug Neil died from, presumably thanks to him. He says she doesn’t want her to make a scene and embarrass him, or he’ll have no choice but to embarrass her. He puts his hand on Alexis’s shoulder, and Jason says, that’s enough.    

Brad opens his eyes, and Britt says, wake up, you slacker. He asks, what happened? and she says he doesn’t know? Someone tried to kill him.

Maxie says she’s not super chummy with Jason, but he’s Spinelli’s best friend, and he’s had her back. He’s been her secret protector, who’s always around when she needs him. He says, despite their history, and she asks if that wasn’t resolved ages ago. Jason always steps up. She’s perjured herself for him. You don’t have to hang out with someone all the time know they’ll come through for you, and Jason will. Why waste time worrying about what’s lurking around the corner? He says she’s right, but he see the items that come across the city desk. Mob activity is escalating, and they or someone they love could easily get caught in the crossfire. He’s trying to say you can never be too careful. Maxie tells him, now it’s her turn to say he’s right. There have been losses, people they’ll never see again, but she doesn’t think those people would want them to live in fear. Even with all the bad stuff, there’s been so much more good; friendship, joy, love, children. Those matter more than what they stand to lose. He loves that she sees it that way, and she says he was starting to see it that way. She has to ask where all the worry came from.

Dante says, this proves the links between Obrecht and the attacks on Andre and Franco were fabricated, and Kirk says, this is a goldmine. Dante says he can’t find anything that ties it to Peter; he has to keep digging. Kirk says, in the meantime, this suits his need. Dante says, his needs?

Laura tells Scotty, it’s the way Cyrus talks to her. He was questioning Doc and Lulu about her when she was out of town. This is personal. Scotty asks if she’s done anything to anger Cyrus, and she says she had the warden throw him in solitary, and Scotty says, off the record, that could be a violation of Cyrus’s rights. She says, off the record, it’s the least he deserved. Scotty says, anything else? and she says she also asked Doc to assess him and declare him criminally insane, so he would be considered too dangerous to let out. Scotty says, and she wonders why Cyrus has a beef with her. Lulu approaches their table.

Britt tells Brad, he had her worried sick. At least he didn’t get stabbed in his handsome face. He says he was stabbed? She says he doesn’t remember the attack, or what he might have done to provoke it? He swears he’s been a model prisoner, keeping his head down and doing what he can to qualify for parole. Except… She says, what? and he says he thinks he knows who did this to him. She says, who?

Alexis tells Cyrus, Mr. Morgan would like him to unhand her. A point on which they have a rare moment of agreement. Cyrus backs off, and makes a dusting off motion with his hands. He says he and Jason’s paths keep crossing, and Jason says it would best to avoid that from now on. Cyrus says he wouldn’t dream of jeopardizing their little detente. He trusts the same is true on Jason’s end. Sonny wouldn’t be keeping any secrets of his own, would he? He just came back for his credit card; he left it behind. He goes to the bar, and Sam asks if Alexis is okay. Alexis says the second that reptile came on to her, she let loose about Neil. It doesn’t make sense. Nothing about it feels right. If Neil was a user, why would he shoot up in bed right next to her?

Carly says she doesn’t mean to be rude, but isn’t Taggert supposed to be dead? Taggert says, as long as he was alive, Trina had a target on her back. The only way to keep her safe was to let Cyrus think he got rid of him. She asks if Sonny knew about this, and Sonny says, only since the Nurses Ball. Epiphany and Jordan faked Taggert’s death. She says, him, her, Epiphany, Jordan, she assumes Jason, that’s a wide net. Who else knows?

Ava says, let her help him, but Julian says the less Ava knows, the safer she’ll be. She says she doesn’t care about covering her tracks. She cares if he lives or dies. She loves him very much. She doesn’t think they say it that much, and he says they haven’t in a long time. She tells him, she said it to him, but he didn’t say it to her, but now he can’t; it won’t count. She says she doesn’t know why she said it; some kind of reflex. All that matters is he’s her family, and  that will never change. Please, for her. She’s begging him. Please let Nikolas help him get out of Port Charles tonight.

Alexis tells Sam, she’s getting out of there. She refuses to let that bastard be the reason she has another drink. Sam says she’s been thinking, and keeping Scout and Danny from Alexis may have been a little extreme. Alexis says she didn’t like it, but she understands. Sam says, how about a reset? Why doesn’t Alexis go home and get herself together, then come over and say hello and goodnight to Scout and Danny? Alexis says, really? and Sam says she thinks it might be good for Alexis. Alexis says she would like that. She thanks Sam, and thanks Jason, and leaves. Jason says he thought Sam was against Alexis being around the kids, and she says she is, but Molly is at the house watching Scout, and it’s the perfect time to confront her about her drinking. He says, an intervention? and Sam says Alexis will be pissed about it, but Molly is there already. She asks if Jason would mind taking Danny somewhere; it will probably get ugly. Jason says Danny has been asking to learn how to play pool. They can swing by The Floating Rib. The bartender watches them, and Sam says, perfect.

Brad says he was in the cafeteria, eating alone by choice, when some guys from Cyrus’s crew approached him. Britt says, Cyrus’s crew? and Brad says, they’re bad news. Everyone knows to steer clear of them. They work with Cyrus, and committed violent crimes dealing drugs. She says, Cyrus was cleared of the charges, and Brad says, they sure as hell weren’t. He wasn’t on their radar. Britt says, until today. Why does he think that was? He says he’s never laid eyes on Cyrus. How does Cyrus even know he exists?. 

Julian tells Ava, he appreciates her help, and she says she’ll do whatever is necessary to keep her family safe. She’s not sure if what he’s saying is true, or it’s a story he’s telling himself to feel noble. She starts to leave, and he says, by the way, he loves her too. She sees the package on his doorstep, and tells him to get his mail. She almost tripped over it.

Lulu says she thought Laura wasn’t coming back until tomorrow, but Laura says she managed to get an earlier flight. Lulu says, after all these weeks, her first stop was Scotty? and Laura says they had a legal matter to discuss, and Scotty says, campaign financing. He’s joining her reelection committee. The election is less than two years away. Laura says, nothing is carved in stone, but she appreciates that Scotty was willing to meet with her. He says, always a pleasure, and Laura asks if he minds giving her and Lulu some privacy. He says they’ll talk soon, and leaves. Lulu asks why Laura would want Scotty anywhere near her campaign, and Laura says he made assumptions because of what they were discussing. Lulu says they have so much to catch up on, and Laura says they certainly do. She asks how things are going with Lulu and Dante?

Dante asks if Kirk doesn’t think it’s premature bringing the evidence to the Bureau. All it will do is get Obrecht released. Kirk says, call him idealistic, but he thinks people should only go to jail for crimes they commit. Obrecht isn’t their target though; Peter is. Dante says, if Obrecht is released, won’t it give Peter a heads up? He wonders why Kirk would jeopardize the assignment. Kirk clicks his pen and says, complete the mission.

Lulu tells Laura, so much has changed at the same time, and Laura says, so much has happened; it has to be confusing. Lulu says she knows she’s in love with Dustin, but part of her will always love Dante. Laura thinks there’s more to it than that. Lulu says she loves Dustin so much, but God help her, she’s in love with Dante.   

Kirk tells Dante, don’t worry. Tomorrow, all this will make sense. Dante says, complete the mission, and Kirk says, exactly. See him later. Dante walks off, and Kirk gets on the phone. He says, it’s him. He knows it’s late, but he has amazing news. She’s as good as free.

Peter tells Maxie, he thinks the worry is coming from them. This is still new to him, not just joining a family, but building one. He’s been beyond blessed. Never in his entire life did he have more to treasure or more to lose. She says they’re not losing anything, and she knows that, but she also knows he’ll do what it takes to protect his family. He hugs her, and says she has no idea.

Carly says, Trina has been grieving for almost a year, and Taggert says he had to make a choice; Trina grieving his death or her own. It was a no brainer. Carly says she has no idea how Trina will react, and Josslyn. Sonny says, they can’t know, and Carly says, maybe Taggert shouldn’t be visiting. Josslyn is good at respecting closed doors, but she’s always on the terrace or at the boathouse with Trina. Sonny says he explained already that Taggert has to be more careful. Taggert says, when Cyrus is dealt with, he can tell Trina the truth, and pray she forgives him. Carly says, she will. Eventually. They have to protect their kids by any means necessary, even if their children hate them for it.   

Brad says the only person who would want him dead and could do something about it, is Julian, and Britt says, that smarmy bastard. Jason told her that Cyrus was trying to make a deal with Julian. Brad says, about killing him? Now Cyrus is the Chairman of the Board, and controls the hospital. One of his guys could come in dressed as an orderly, and hold a pillow over his face. She says there’s a guard on his room, but he says there are plenty of guards in Pentenville, and they still got him. Even if he survives, and gets sent back, they’ll just finish the job. Nowhere is safe for him to go. He’s a dead man. She says, no, he’s not. She knows someone who can help them.

Sam calls Diane, saying she really needs her tonight. It’s about her mother. The bartender comes by Cyrus’s table, and says he knows where Jason will be tonight.

Julian picks up the package. He comes inside and his phone starts ringing. The bartender tells him that he has the drop off location for the package Julian just received. The Floating Rib.   

Scotty leaves The Rib. Laura and Lulu continue talking. Jason shows Danny how to play pool.

Tomorrow, Britt tells someone to get to GH now, Cameron asks Dev what he wants to talk about, Jason tells Danny he’s not in a hurry, and Sonny tells Dante that he doesn’t need to pretend with him.

Southern Charm

We started off with news of the coronavirus and schools closing. Craig went to Patricia’s, and asked to see Whitney. Whitney said Craig wasn’t coming in, but he’d open the gate. He tossed a package of toilet paper to Craig, who said it was absurd, but he ran out. Whitney said Craig owed him, and Craig said he’d stocked up on alcohol, but had zero food. He asked if Whitney was coming over to play video games, but Whitney said he wasn’t going anywhere near Craig.

A week earlier.

Danni and Leva waited outside Kathryn’s house, and Danni said she was having an aneurism from the virus. Kathryn apologized for being late, and let them in. She said after she heard about the new little one, she wanted to speed up the process of moving back into her own house. We flashed back to last week, when everyone found out Thomas was about to have a child with another woman. In Kathryn’s interview, she told us there was another boy Ravenel on the way. Danni and Leva helped measure and hang things. Madison joined them, ready to organize, and they had a champagne toast to new beginnings.

Craig needed a break, and had stayed at a friend’s house, since he didn’t want to start another week hungover. Austen told him not to drink the tap water because coronavirus was a thing, but Craig insisted it wasn’t. Craig said he wanted some routine, and not to live out of a suitcase. Austen said there had been a late night at his house, and John had hit on Madison. He was learning that too much of a good thing – i.e. partying – wasn’t good.

Madison told the girls about the same night, and said John told her that he was conflicted about his relationship with Austen and how he felt about her. Austen told him to get TF out. In her interview, Madison said she loved it. She just wanted to sit back and watch them fight over her. Austen told Craig that he couldn’t believe John had conflicted feelings about him and Madison. Craig thought it was creepy, and in his interview, he said he followed the guy code. Charleston was a bachelor’s paradise. Why hit on a friend’s girlfriend? He asked if Austen thought Patricia was fueling the fire, and Austen said he did. Craig wondered how the upcoming dinner at Patricia’s was going to be.

7 days before lockdown. We saw school closures on the news. John FaceTimed with his sister Jenny. He said his kids would be visiting dad’s house for the first time, and he wanted them to feel like it was their home. He got them Fortnite sheets. In John’s interview, he said, moms are better at it, and we all know it. He was worried about corona, but thought it would blow over in two weeks. Yeah. We all did. He said he and Austen got in a yelling match about Madison. Jenny said she got it, but there were so many women he could choose from. In his interview, John said a lot of drama came with Madison, but I thought a lot of drama would come with anyone he hit on who was already in a relationship. Jenny said she knew he’d survive. Shep and Taylor played tennis, and in Shep’s interview, he said he knew it sounded snobby, but he’s good at country club sports. Golf, tennis, and croquet are his all his strong suits. Taylor said he wasn’t too bad for an old man. He said it was fun the other night, and they’d had the talk. He asked why she hadn’t said something to him about DTR, but she said it wasn’t the girl’s job. He said she was completely secure, and it was attractive. In his interview, he said he couldn’t talk himself out of Taylor. He didn’t want to be Oedipal about it, but she was like his mom.

6 days before lockdown. On the news, NYC was shutting down, and there weren’t enough medical supplies. Craig called his parents, and they asked what was going on with the house abatement. Craig said it was going to be around $38K, and since they were going to do demo the kitchen, he thought they could do a renovation at the same time. In his interview, he said the asbestos was in his heating and air system. He didn’t know when he was going to get back in. He was having fun at Austen’s, but found a rental. We saw a clip of him looking at the house, which was really nice, and the agent telling him it was $3900 a month. He said he and Austen weren’t the best influences for each other. He was excited to move into new place.

John called Craig about finding a suit for Patricia’s party. He said he’d tried Shep, but it was before 2, so the call went to voicemail. Craig said if he had more than two outfits, he was more stylish than Shep. They arranged to meet. Kathryn told her boss (a different) Madison that she was moving out of Thomas’s. She asked Madison if they were pulling out some things to photograph for the website, and said, ABC: always be creating content. In Kathryn’s interview, she said since she’d been at Gwynn’s, she’d created an online presence. It reminded her that she could be more than a mom. She modeled a dress, spinning in circles, while a guy photographed her. Madison said she was proud of Kathryn. Kathryn mentioned a buying trip to NYC, but Madison said she was concerned about the virus. The whole city was shut down. Kathryn said she had no idea, and her boss said, sorry to be dropping bombs. Kathryn guessed she needed to google it.

5 days before lockdown. On the news, we were told the virus is spread by face-to-face contact, but the CDC said there’s no cause for public alarm. Individuals were responsible for their own actions and hygiene. Craig went to Jordan Lash to meet John, but did a little shopping for himself. He explained to the clerk that they needed something elegant for Patricia’s party. In his interview, Craig said his style fluctuated. First he was preppy, then he was louder. Now he’s digressing to subtle. John arrived, and Craig said they’d refresh his game. In John’s interview, he admitted it was important to him to impress Patricia, and he wanted her approval. Craig said John needed to get out of his comfort zone. John tried on a jacket, but passed when he saw the $1400 price tag. He went for a suit, and Craig thought he was going to become more of a threat. John said he was dangerous.

Madison called Patricia, who was busy bidding in an auction online. Madison said she was going to keep washing her hands and staying away from people. Patricia wondered how Madison was going to protect herself if she had clients, and told her not to let anyone breathe on her. Madison thanked Patricia for lending her the necklace, and Patricia asked how the dinner went. Madison said, afterward, she crashed boys night.

Craig asked if John liked Madison, and John said he did. He thought he had a chance, but was conflicted because of his relationship with Austen, and how Austen felt about her. He told Craig about having drinks with Patricia and Whitney. We flashed back to John saying he thought Madison was stunning, but she was with somebody, and Patricia saying, she didn’t think for long. Austen’s beer was no Budweiser, and Madison deserved Budweiser. John told Craig that he liked Madison, and found her attractive. In Patricia’s interview, she said she took a little responsibility for putting the idea in John’s head, but she had no guilt. There’s nothing wrong with trading up. She asked Madison how things were going with Austen, and Madison said John must have put the fear of God in him, since he’d been wonderful. Patricia said maybe things would change, and hung up on Madison to make a bid.

John told Craig, he’d found himself on a dangerous path. Craig said he thought Patricia might have led John down it, and John admitted she had. Craig said Patricia had it out for Austen, and it should be an interesting dinner. He thought John should either drop it and be friends with Austen, or… John said, TBD.

4 days before lockdown. We see on the news that the tourism and restaurant industries are taking a hit. Leva said they weren’t ready to push the panic button just yet. She asked Lemar if he thought it was going to affect their businesses, but he said they’d have to listen to what the city said. In Leva’s interview, she said they weren’t New York or L.A., so she didn’t think they would get it the same, but she still had anxiety over it. What if travel stopped. She met with the staff, and said they had to come up with a plan. Events coordinator Jeremy said they were getting cancelations, but he didn’t think the bar crawl was going to be cancelled. They were moving forward as normal. In her interview, Leva said what was at stake was everything financial. They could lose seven years of everything they’d built, and might not recover.

Craig moved into his new rental. Shep came by, and was impressed. Craig once again said the virus didn’t exist, and in Shep’s interview, he said Craig was a conspiracy nut. He thought 5G was responsible for this. Shep thought they could throw righteous parties at the house. Craig said it was a more mature bachelor pad. Whitney called, and said, to be prudent, Patricia was postponing dinner. Craig said he’d probably still have his housewarming, but Whitney thought they should practice social distancing. Craig said they wouldn’t hang out with people they didn’t know, and Whitney said they were walking petri dishes. Shep thought it was just the beginning, and was legit worried. Craig said he had some important meetings coming up, but Shep thought he should cancel them. It was uncharted territory, and there was no easy fix.

Madison and Hudson met Austen for ice cream. In Madison’s interview, she said it hurt Austen’s feelings that Patricia thinks he’s not good enough for her, but he has nothing to worry about. She loves how he’s been stepping up with Hudson. They were like a little family. She could see Austen as a step-dad if things continued to go the way they were. She told Patricia that she and Austen were in love. She planned to take two weeks off work, and Hudson said he wanted to go to Disneyworld.

4 days later. We saw on the news, the governor declaring a state of emergency in South Carolina, and heard more about the rising threat of coronavirus. Craig couldn’t stop coughing, and we heard that schools were closed, events were being canceled, and no more than 50 people were allowed at gatherings. John called Craig, and said the virus had f***ed his world. Craig asked if the kids weren’t coming, and John said he’d called the airline, and they asked if he really wanted to fly. It was like the panic after 9-11, when everything stood still. Leva said she woke up worried, not just about the business, but the city itself, and wondered what they were going to do. How were they going to survive this thing? They couldn’t afford 100 employees on salary, and had to make some difficult decisions, since they were closing down.

The schools were officially closed, and Kathryn called Danni, who was out of breath. Kathryn said she felt like she was too. She’d been inside for four days. Boy, nobody had any idea back then. Austen watched CNN, and talked to Madison, telling her that the news was making him depressed. She said she was canceling clients, and Austen said they were living off tuna packets and ramen. Craig talked to Shep, who was at his parents’ house. Craig said he still wanted to call it crazy, but he couldn’t have his party. Shep said he’d invited Taylor to Hilton Head, but she wasn’t sure she hadn’t been exposed. Traveling was the worst thing you could do. Craig said it was a mess, but he guessed it really was a thing.

To be continued…

Next time, things start opening up again, Austen is feeling flu-y, Madison says Austen is an idiot, Kathryn gets backlash and hate, and a statue is taken down.

👼🏿 Cooking For the Angels Now…

I remember this kid. He was very sweet, and apparently very brave. He faced a lot of tragedy in his short life.

https://www.essence.com/celebrity/masterchef-junior-ben-watkins-dies-cancer/

🦉 Hitching a Ride…

This year, the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree came with its own ornament.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/animal-news/tiny-owl-rescued-rockefeller-center-christmas-tree-travelled-170-miles-n1248166

🪓 Logging Off…

It’s been a long day/week/month/year, especially year, but someday, we will look back at this and laugh. Okay, maybe not, but you’re still here to tell the tale. So continue to stay safe, stay sanitized, and stay completing your mission, whatever it may be.