Crazy Bird Lady

If she committed suicide, Kate's family might file a lawsuit against the show --and MAFS can't afford to take a huge financial hit. You'd think the 'experts' would be telling production that... Puke's mom saw that in Kate. Like or hate her, Puke's mom is a perceptive person. I think she knew her son is a manipulator and could be disastrous for a vulnerable young "bride". I think she wanted to help Kate see that she (Kate) was doing her best, and therefore Kate shouldn't "blame" herself when it inevitably "doesn't work out". You'd think. They already had three couples without them!

Kristine & Keith: I agree with this: Yes, there are definitely ways to simplify the cooking task for two people --and the cleaning up! Also it seems to me like people are forgetting that the Queen lived at home with her parents, and is undoubtedly almost as 'spoiled' as her hubby. If Keith is missing Grandma and her cooking, why don't they go visit her, have lunch or dinner there like, once a week?! They should do it the polite way and schedule it so she's expecting them and it fits in with her life, and of course, they should "bring something". I bet Grandma would love that, and I bet it would help Keith and Kristine to work out their cooking/cleaning situation.

I didn't take it that way at all. I took it as a very compassionately-worded warning to Kate that it's not going to work out for her with Luke. She actually asked Kate what her "least" expectation would be from the MAFS... and seemed pleased that Kate responded she would want to remain friends with him. And then she asked Kate if she felt she had done all she could, and Kate said yes. --The mom seemed pleased by that, too, because presumably she understands that if you've done all you can, you're less likely to blame yourself for a bad result and get all caught up in guilt and self-loathing. I think this was actually the most tedious, annoying episode I've ever seen of MAFS.

I'm sure he "doesn't regret it". Puke was on TV, and potentially attractive women (and/or men, or whatever) saw him on TV. His face is familiar to them --like, he's almost famous! That gives Puke a leg up (pun absolutely intended!) on the competition for eligible mates, and I bet it's been a reeally big boost for his speed dating "side hustle". I mean, women probably show up at those things just to interrogate Luke about the show.

...So maybe the Queen and Keith are the couple that actually calls it quits early. Obviously, Kristine has the strength of will to kick her MAFS hubby to the curb early! [I wish it were Kate, though...]

About the contract issue - I agree with this: I'm pretty sure the thing about Kate having a "drinking problem" was a Puke-lie, and/or Puke has noticed that when Kate is around him, she tends to drink. I don't think I have a drinking problem --but if I had to live with a man like Puke and sleep in the same bed with him, it would take a lot of booze to be even sort of OK with that!!

Soup, you said: Luke and Kate. I think Luke is a narcissist. Actually, I recently came across a Web MD article about the classic characteristics of Narcissism. It said the way you spot a narcissist is to watch for people who are "selfish, vain, a glutton for attention, manipulative, & cruel. " The article went on to explain that there are different levels of narcissism. Extreme narcissism can be a mental illness called narcissistic personality disorder. For a person with that disorder, life revolves around their need for approval. They don’t understand or care about others’ feelings. These people are convinced they're special, and they need everyone to acknowledge it. Last season we had a groom named Dave who resembled Luke quite a bit, IMHO. But his wife, Amber, reacted in very different ways than Kate does. Kate shed a few tears over "when we kissed, I felt repulsed and dead inside" --and she discussed it with the other 'brides' and talked to Pastor Cal about it --but for the most part, Kate seems to have chosen to take a positive attitude toward Luke and toward their future together. Kate is sometimes criticized for "taking a positive attitude" with Luke (--it seems clear that Luke will never love Kate). Obviously, if Dave ever said anything as brutal as "repulsed and dead inside" to Amber, she was far too embarrassed to repeat it. But Dave did "pick at" Amber on a regular basis, chiseling away at her (weak) self-esteem by routinely criticizing all kinds of little things she said and did. He often expressed verbal criticism or general distaste toward her, and sometimes he also implied criticism (without actually saying the words). Amber always seemed to accept the blame for everything herself. She poured copious tears in response to any form of criticism from Dave. And Dave inevitably complained to Jamie and the "experts" any time he perceived Amber being "over-sensitive". That would lead to an "expert" intervention in which Dave's complaints were discussed at length and (a mostly silent) Amber was admonished to be less sensitive. Posters here seemed to agree Amber was at fault, annoyed by her floods of tears and by the way she seemed so terribly anxious that Dave would never grow to love her (which of course, he didn't). Posters right now seem to blame Luke for the problems he and Kate are having --even though they're frustrated that Kate is staying with him and "hoping love will grow". But that could change. I assume Luke is never going to love Kate, and probably won't ever 'consummate' his marriage to her. I wonder if by Decision Day, Luke will be seen as the "long-suffering" spouse who had to endure the tedious optimism of a 'boring' wife he was never attracted to at all?

rofl... If I'd been matched with Puke and he said that stuff to me, I'd have been extremely tempted to go Lorena Bobbit on him! Yes, it's obvious they've found some sort of contractual bind to force MAFS participants to choke down their "spouse's" company until *after* Decision Day. Unfortunately.

Thanks for sharing that, Discoprincess! Not that Luke being a flat-out lying liar surprises me at all...

Kate is trapped. She has no good choice that she could make. I think she should just walk "off set" and tell both Puke and the Producers to do something anatomically impossible to themselves! But I also know that she would be harassed in any number of ways by "production" (possibly including a "bad edit") and also by jerks among the viewing public if she did that.

Puke reminds me of a medical condition I once heard of where the person's bowels are twisted and/or blocked, so that person pukes up everything they've eaten until, finally, they're puking up their own poop. That condition is what Luke is.

Kate needs to chug fine bourbon and shots of tequila, over and over again, until Puke finally can't take it anymore and goes away!!

I agree: ...But there's a third possibility. The male (or possibly the female) from one of those two couples might lie and claim to have "done the deed" to make himself seem more "accomplished" in the eyes of the other men.

The truth is, as reality shows go I think MAFS has pretty much run its course. IMHO, this happens with virtually every show, reality or otherwise. But there's a "tell" involved. You know a show is about to end when they show dog poop on TV, and they apparently get a bump in ratings (from the shock value) so they begin to do it on a regular basis. Shock value never lasts. Luke is a prime example of this. Last season they had Mia, who should have been booted off the show but wasn't. Now we have Luke, who should have been booted off the show but wasn't. 'Nuff said.

The problem is, they aren't just a couple of people on a blind date. Kate is flirting with Luke because they're married and because he said he wanted to give the relationship time for "affection to grow". After they both said they wanted to continue the relationship, Pastor Cal told them he "absolutely" believes love can grow --just look at Jamie and Doug! Otherwise, I agree with you. There is absolutely no chance that "attraction can grow". And watching him lovingly with puppy-dog eyes and a big smile will never change Luke's mind about Kate!

I remember a girl from high school who was gorgeous enough to have a modeling career. But she was incredibly shy, and never made eye contact. I think Kate may be kind of like that, a beautiful girl who lacks the self-esteem to "put herself out there".

So the Queen and Keith didn't use protection. Keith, YOU know better than that!! Do you want to have to work full time to pay for kids, right now??!

The show just barely started, and already Luke is accusing Kate of hogging the bed!

...Or maybe it's divorce that agrees with Jasmine...

TY, Soup.

I was a young housewife with young children when we lived overseas... but I was not permitted by local law to work for pay. The the "diplomatic status" my husband had, made that illegal. Since we had a maid and a (part-time) gardener while we were there, I suppose I was a bit of like those Reality Show couples mentioned above. But we weren't on TV. And I worked before and after our kids were born, and I worked again after we returned to our home country. I know that my circumstances were kind of unique, and I certainly realize how lucky we were! Having a maid (and no job) freed me to focus on doing special things for my children and family, as well as volunteering in the community where we lived. That wasn't something that had been in my life plan, but it's how things turned out --and our whole family benefited from it. [So did our maid, by the way. She was a single mom and her we paid for her son to grow up attending a good school. When we left, her severance pay sufficed as a hefty down payment on a small house for the two of them, and paid for her son's first semester in college studying electrical engineering.] You never know what the future holds in store for you, as a married couple. Christine should learn that... because Keith is a healer. If Keith reaches his educational goal, he may indeed become Doctor Keith. It's possible he/they could decide to live in an underdeveloped country for a while, somewhere Keith could vaccinate lots of people and also prevent unnecessary deaths in various other ways. Meanwhile, 'Queen' Christine might seize the opportunity to provide desperately needed employment to someone who could help her with housework, children, etc. She would probably enjoy being in the position to do that.

Yes, there is. But we're retired... And unfortunately, the fact that the husband isn't working anymore, either, doesn't mean he automatically helps out with the housework and cooking!! Mine washes his own clothes, will throw away his own trash (if I remind him), and maybe take his own dirty dishes to the sink... But that's about it. He'll go shopping with me, but he never goes alone... So I do consider myself a housewife!

I asked, "Do you think mental illness (which may actually be treatable with medication) is a bigger deal-breaker than, say, substance addiction, or unresolved cancer? We are rather ordinary people, for the most part, who have observed AJ's nervousness and excessive sweating, his making lots of weird anxious sounds, noticed his declaration that the one thing about marriage he can count on is that he won't have to eat alone. Etc. Now we are seeing some aggressive verbal behavior from him --a short temper sometimes, a guy who gets 'jumpy', seems easily frustrated, and didn't want to do "homework" on his honeymoon so he snapped at that 'production' woman. We are the sort of people who observe, and then think about what we observe. It really doesn't take a Ph.D or any kind of 'expert' to recognize erratic behavior, or to realize that what we've observed is hurting AJ's relationship with the woman he said he's smitten with, his new "Sexy A.F. Wife". We are qualified to compare A.J. with other people we've known that seem to have anxiety sometimes (or with people who can be especially short-tempered, or who seem to get frustrated easily). And we all probably feel some kind of way about it.

AJ, like most people (especially men) who have emotional/personality diseases and conditions, knows full well that he isn't "normal" emotionally. It terrifies him. But of course, AJ has abnormal anxiety issues, and when that anxiety bubbles to the top, he acts angry. Maybe because it's more socially acceptable for men to get angry than panicked --I don't know. Maybe he also has a deep pool of unresolved rage inside him. That's why he needs to get a bunch of psych testing done before some hack decides to treat him for something that may not be AJ's real problem at all. I have a question for all of you. Do you think mental illness (which may actually be treatable with medication) is a bigger deal-breaker than, say, substance addiction, or unresolved cancer?

I agree with you 100% about Stephanie. She has the patience and understanding that AJ needs. But I think he also needs a thorough psych evaluation by a legitimate specilist, and afterward, he may need a couple years of therapy as well as probably meds for life. The thing is, AJ really does appreciate Stephanie and he's clearly well on his way to being head-over-heels in love with her. If AJ doesn't make the [incredibly stupid but way too common] assumption that he's already being/been helped by "therapists" from MAFS (ugh!), I think there's a good chance he'll do whatever it takes to keep her.