Sun-Bun

Kathryn is in Nashville this weekend, apparently spending time with her latest beefy new beau(he looks like a gym tool type). She’s actually hanging out exclusively with a major Bravo Instagramer, which sorta made me sad for Kathryn…she obviously never has been able to maintain any meaningful friendships/relationships. She still seems painfully superficial and lost, even at age 30.

I’m willing to bet that half the cast had gotten wind of Randall’s identity early on and were all similarly disgusted that she actually fell for his smarmy charms. On one of the Hollywood film/industry gossip Reddit’s I follow, there was a whole recent thread about Randall and how he was known as one of the more infamous LA film biz pariahs who preyed upon desperate/up-and-coming young actresses and tried the exact same usual sugar baby-hunting techniques on them as he did on LaLa. It’s just that Lauren from Utah was apparently too dumb/full of herself to know any better and actually thought she was that special and unique flower who had somehow miraculously changed “her man” Randall’s wicked ways. I’d say that once a dude with two kids lies to you about being separated from his first wife, that in itself proves that he’s not worthwhile life partner/co-parent material. Normally I’d feel bad for a woman in LaLa’s shoes, but her smugness toward Raquel and other women on the show she deemed “beneath” her when she thought she’d finally bagged her millionaire housewife lifestyle makes that null and void in my book. I can’t really blame the rest of the cast for eventually warming up to the idea of them being an actual couple considering they got to enjoy those random perks on his dime((PJ trips, special dinners, exclusive parties/invites, etc.)). They’re ALL users at heart, after all; it still amuses me how the biggest user of that whole bunch happened to have latched the hardest onto Randall’s friendship((bless Jax’s pathetic heart)).

What happened to that house that Kathryn inherited from one of her family members a season or so ago? I thought she was fixing it up to live in it permanently?? Or maybe she just leases apartments closer into town just for filming…hmmm…

I’m gonna be honest when I mention that since we’re talking ex-RH’s, I’d rather have seen Tinsley Mortimer on this season rather than Jill((NYC)), Kim Richards((BH)) rather than Taylor, and Kelly Dodd on here rather than Vicki((OC)). Kelly’s got the same weird views as Vicki but she’s actually more fun and drinks way more than Vicki, so I can only imagine the insane arguments she’d have with Brandi. Plus she and Tamara aren’t close so it’d be hilarious to see the extra tension she’d have brought to the table. Tinsley would’ve gladly brought the class, sass, and high fashion, Kim would’ve brought the loopy Cali-energy to balance out the weirdness, and it would’ve been even more delightful chaos, I dare say. Jill and Taylor are both boring me so far and proving exactly why I never really cared too much for them anyway. Although I’m BEYOND grateful that we didn’t get yet another random, unwanted appearance from Teddi Mellencamp; I’m so done with networks forcing that boring pariah upon us. I’d rather watch Taylor *any day* over that unlikeable woman with her diet scam biz!

After she was a curvier teenager, she moved to LA and basically got skinny because she now claims she could barely afford to buy food. By the middle of her tenure on VR her weight seemed to fluctuate a bit, but she’s obviously back to the scary skinny size she was in S1-2 of the show. Maybe she’s back on Adderall again in desperation to keep any post-birth weight off, but I agree with @farmgal4 that she doesn’t look healthy and it’s a bit worrisome to note how skinny she’s gotten.

Right?! That always kinda bugged me the most about Kathryn: she played her cards completely wrong as a rich guy’s baby mama because she was just too immature/narcissistic/trashy to milk that situation into something better for herself and her kids. She was unhappy being kept all alone with their first baby way out in Thomas’s former plantation, so he rented them a nice place in the city. But he stayed out playing politician while she stayed drunk/high playing the eternal bar star. She could’ve lured him home and seduced him again the night of that fallen heroes party, but because she’s a psycho she was later screeching at him to not leave her on a boat dock. She could’ve gotten herself clean and together and really had something special with Thomas((they had obvious chemistry and seemed to ‘get’ each other overall)), but she’s as much of an addict as he is and is too selfish to do anything about it to regain custody of her children from a now convicted rapist and a team of nannies. Thomas is *obviously* no great prize and I’m not excusing him for his own endless faults, but Kathryn once had the keys to a kingdom of living as a truly kept lady and lost them spectacularly: quite a gold-digger fail! Looking at old video footage of her from the first season, when Kathryn was that slim and natural young goddess with fiery red hair, it all just seems like such a waste these days to see how she frittered away her youth to become this sad rapidly aging drunken former beauty queen with lipstick all over her face. Kathryn also doesn’t appear to have any real friends either, and it’s very sad; she probably doesn’t know how to be a real friend to anyone due to her extreme narcissism((look how she discarded Danni after years of Danni being the only friend to her from the show)). On her social media she’s always hanging out with different random folks, never a steady boyfriend or social group. And Cheleb is obviously only there as a plot device; word on the street is that the reason they were always in Miami together during their early showmance days is because he’s a successful dealer. Sorry about the Kathryn novel here; I can’t even hate on her because I pity her so much. This show is NOT good for her and I wish Bravo would finally cut her loose already, but I fear it’s too late and she doesn’t know how to live a healthy adult life out of the limelight now. ((to his slight credit, at least Thomas had the wherewithal to finally move out of Charleston and take the kids to a much calmer community in Aiken, SC))

Fellow oldster Depeche Mode fan here((although I’ve admittedly enjoyed them since my childhood)): I even spent a whole summer in college following them around on tour, have met all of them but the lead singer “in his black leather vest” Dave, stripped and more to all their songs…love that we have some fellow Devotees around here! ((And RIP, Andrew Fletcher)) Speaking of going to live shows though, I went alone to quite a few concerts before I met my husband((who thankfully for me will gladly go to *any* live show because he’s groovy like that)). None of my local friends like my kind of music and I learned the hard way to NEVER buy concert tickets for folks to join you who don’t really care about the artist/s you’re seeing: you’ll either get stood up or dealing with a bored social albatross all night. And I love going places alone! Eating alone and ordering/doing whatever you want is such a special treat. I’ve traveled alone too and didn’t mind it at all. Met my husband while I was drinking alone at a bar! There’s absolutely nothing wrong with publicly enjoying one’s own solitude and I wish more women were confident enough to gladly accept their own company in public.

Me too! I thoroughly enjoyed it and how it described in detail the casting process of all the different RH cities.

Might be worth checking out from your nearest public library; that’s how I’ve read every Bravo-centric/Bravolebrity book out there that mildly intrigued me.(Ramona Singer’s book made me cackle the most of the Bravolebrity authors, admittedly; it’s as ridiculously wacky as she is and you can genuinely hear her voice narrating it!) So are you going to take a chance on reading Cameron and Shep’s books too? I haven’t, although I gifted my mom with Patricia’s book after I read it and genuinely enjoyed her elegant way with words and entertainment tips. Coincidentally, Tinsley Mortimer’s book pre-RHoNY fame and before the show SC of the same title came out, “Southern Charm,” is highly entertaining chick-lit. Although I seriously think she used a ghost writer for it.

It’s funny how there’s still gossip about this wedding circling around! Now I’m hearing Jax and Brittany are definitely moving to Florida? About damned time.

Thinking back on that episode when Blanche’s troubled teen grandson came to stay with the gals for a while one summer, it always bugged me that the gals were SO upset at Sophia for slapping him after he dared mouth off at them. He was so rude and disrespectful to all the gals that I felt like that smack in the face was beyond well-deserved: that bratty bastard needed some tough love and then some! And then afterwards he so laughably pouted to his granny Blanche that nobody had ever hit him before…oh boo-hoo, not such a big bad tough kid after all, are we?! Seemed like somebody needed to smack that lil’ punk back into reality because his parents definitely weren’t doing their job. Although I do appreciate Sophia’s quick response to Blanche’s bitchy question if all Italians knew how to do was scream and hit: “No, we also know how to make love and sing opera!” 😝🙌

Agreed, I think Naomi gets the untouchable princess treatment on SC a’la Cameron because she’s so pretty/accomplished and from a good family while being very well-liked by Patricia. It’s quite obvious that Naomi desperately wants the life and secure husband situation that Cameron has too. But I also think she has a snobby mean streak that she doesn’t hide nearly as well as Cameron does; she was every bit as toxic with Craig in that relationship as he was and has had nasty interactions with nearly everyone in that group. She also is very well aware of how her power suddenly shifted when her future doctor boyfriend she’d ditched everything for made her look like a fool…she knows the show gave her and her clothing business the boost necessary to keep herself afloat. There’s not a doubt in my mind that Cameron would also be crawling back to the show again if she was getting divorced. The money/status is just too good, especially if you’re single and struggling. Although the thought of Naomi being desperate enough to sleep with Craig again AND have a fling with Whitney just to secure a spot on the show again makes me very sad…

Here’s what I read about the Jax/Brit issue from several trusted sources: apparently they didn’t let the couple know they weren’t going until the day before the wedding, which Jax revealed in a group text he forgot Beau was also on…must’ve been awkward when he also revealed that he was doing a celebrity golf tournament instead of the wedding and all those back taxes due/IRS issues wouldn’t allow for them to travel internationally anyway. From what I heard since then, Jax told Brit to unfriend Stassi/Beau too. Must suck so much being married to Jax Taylor. I also heard that they were originally invited but that Stassi/Beau had to massively scale down their wedding and that most of the VR folks invited didn’t make the cut, so there ya go!

I wanted to know the same thing! She claimed to have slept with some celebs yet she refused to even mention which ones; what a waste!! Speaking of a waste, I also read Stassi’s first “book” recently courtesy of my random local public library visits. Similarly fluffy and unsatisfying, only with extra filler like quizzes about ones own “inner basic.” Just blows my mind still that any random idiot can get cast on a reality show and somehow end up on best-seller book lists.

I get that vibe too; as “basic” and shallow and bitchy as she naturally is, she’s still shrewd and has a quick sense of humor. Plus, after years of dating the typical LA douche types, it was probably somewhat refreshing and oddly endearing to meet a goofy guy so sweetly smitten with her who treated her with genuine respect. Not to mention she was getting older and probably very ready by that point to settle down with someone also willing to live a very settled and stable family-oriented lifestyle. We may put him down around here for a variety of reasons, but Stassi was so lucky to find a kind and devoted goofball like Beau because she seems like A LOT to handle in her relationships.

Out of sheer boredom/self-loathing, I saw “Give Them LaLa” available at my local library’s audio books section and downloaded it. As expected, LaLa’s “writing”/narration skills leave A LOT to be desired and I’ve never heard *anyone* use the term “ho” so much in an audiobook before in my life, but the one remotely fascinating part of this mess was listening to her discuss her introduction to the cast. Scheana, Stassi, Kristen and Katie were all bitchy to her in the beginning, but she got along well with the guys and Arianna. I haven’t gotten to the part where she meets “her soulmate” Randall yet((this was all sadly written before their split, of course)), so I’m vaguely intrigued about how she’ll explain her romance with a gross fat married man. Edited to add: -So I skipped through the rest of this sad book after her endlessly breathless odes to her “ride or die” Randall. Apparently he lured her in after seeing her one night at SUR and promising her an audition for one of his production company’s crappy movies before showering her not only with the lead role, but tons of pricy gifts and getaways. So as expected, it’s the typical LA sugar baby transactional love story: the lady just protests a bit too much that it wasn’t “just about” the gifts and glamorous lifestyle, of course. -LaLa proudly slept with many folks during her LA “ho phase,” including some celebs/celeb-adjacent folks, usually while drunk and/or high. -She had an abortion just before she went to LA. She also mentioned a modeling agent who tried to sexually assault her when she was just 14. -She claims she was bullied as a teen because other girls in her hometown thought she was a whore, just like they did in the beginning of VR. She also came from an upper middle-class family who didn’t believe in Mormonism. Pretty stupid book overall, just as I expected. I still can’t decide which autobiography is worse: her or Erika Jayne’s. Probably LaLa’s because at least Erika had some juicy industry/early waitressing stories. Although they're both gold-digging wannabe actresses who speak of themselves in third person and boast of these self-appointed alter-egos, so there’s a lot of similarities there.

Patricia at least mentioned something on her comments to someone about it, and most of the cast have shown tv cameras filming them out places/interview looks in their social media posts/stories in the past few months.

Isn’t it?! And I can’t understand why either—she’s got such a funny and outgoing personality, seems fiercely independent, and is so gorgeous, so what’s the problem here? She and Atlanta’s Kendra Moore both seem to have that same issue…I guess they both are A LOT and suffer from “pretty girl syndrome” or something, I dunno…

I’ve heard from trusted sources that that S8 is supposed to air by late June of this year, so we shall see!

Random online selling pet-peeve here: I’m so sick and tired of people shopping for high-end consignment goods who expect *pristine* condition used items at insanely low prices! So somehow my random quarantine hobby became buying/selling/trading high end designer bags and accessories(Gucci, Prada, Fendi, Valentino, Dior, etc.). When I get tired of some pieces, I sell/trade or rotate, usually via eBay or Poshmark. I make stellar deals and usually underprice my goods because when I’m ready to sell, I sell to get it sold quickly. But I also won’t GIVE stuff away either. Inevitably though, I get those super-anal picky Vicky’s who expect flawlessness for pennies—you want a $500 practically new Louis Vouitton bag yet you’re bitching about some tiny marks on it here and there? Ugh…just buy fake bags if you can’t handle used luxury goods, ladies.

It was EXTREMELY realistic to me; I worked as a maid in a friend’s cleaning company during college for several years, and the wasteful habits of the upper middle-class/rich folks were often astounding to me. These families had me throw away perfectly good groceries/supplies constantly, never asking once if I could’ve used those items; and like Alex, I was way too proud to ask. And I never got the vibe that it was intentional, just that I was seen as “the help” and that my own personal needs were never possibly considered while I was working ‘underneath’ them. Hate to say it, but classism is often a factor as well, and I received more of that type of behavior from the “newer” monied folks(nouveau riche?) versus the old money families, honestly. Which reminds me that rich lady Regina struck me as VERY new money, what with the callously frosty way she treated Alex and constantly talked down to her whenever she *did* actually bother talking to Alex. I've got just two more episodes to go, but have been pleasantly surprised by how much this series gradually sucked me in(just like “Queen’s Gambit” did!)…it’s such a scarily realistic portrayal of the modern working class single mom’s struggle. Makes me think of my aforementioned single mom friend who had her own cleaning company and similarly struggled like Alex—she couldn’t afford daycare and often took her two girls with her to jobs and “homeschooled” them just to work around her schedule. She also worked as a stripper on the side just to make ends meet, so I admittedly wondered a few times while watching this why Alex didn’t consider such a possibility being as pretty as she is—but I also realize not every woman could morally stomach such a potential side hustle. Alex’s bipolar narcissistic mom though, whewwww…that’s a LOT to deal with on its own. It’s been so frustrating to watch her life unravel as much as Alex’s has throughout this series. What an infuriatingly selfish, egotistical moron her mom is(sorry, but I don’t think mental illness is an excuse for problematic behavior, especially as a parent). Man, like I wanted to smack her silly when she had the nerve to tell Alex, “nobody ever took MY child away from me.” And then there’s her whole weird jealous rivalry with her daughter, her insane delusions of artistic grandeur, coupled alongside with her godawful taste/idiotic trust in men?! How sad that somehow Alex still felt so indebted to her when it was obvious her mom only cared about Alex when it benefited her own immediate needs. And honestly, it was a bit triggering for me because my own mom has displayed some extreme selfishness/narcissistic traits that I have dealt with throughout my life as well…love that Margaret and Andie got the rare opportunity to play mother and daughter, because they’re both so wonderful onscreen together. Crossing my fingers that a happy ending is coming soon for Alex and her sweet daughter: she deserves it! (And all those awful men in her life deserve to choke)

Believe it or not, it was Gretchen Rossi from RHOC! Not exactly the epitome of intellectual brilliance in Real Housewivesdom obviously, especially considering her final season’s tag line was, “When the going gets tough, I just get stronger and stronger.” ((groan…)) 🤦🏼‍♀️

Right?! Reality show participants are especially egregious about mispronouncing words—Real Housewives are among the worst. My all time fave Hall of Shamer moment like this was when one of the Housewives was discussing another Housewife said she is “the epitome of class and manners” only she pronounced it ‘epi-TOAM.” I snorted in disbelief over that moment, especially since the editors left it in to make her look like an even bigger moron than usual!

Ugh…I don’t understand the parking space backers; yes, I get that it’s considered safer/easier when later leaving the spot, but it’s such a pain in the ass on the front end just trying to properly back in there, and most people like this jerk take 2-3 tries to get it right, so it simply feels like a pointless waste of time in the end.

Okay, so I snorted over the “Corncob” nickname…🤣 As far as I can tell, Jax and Kentucky Fried are typical reality show losers turned Instagram Influencers. Seems like they’re both always desperately shilling something. Believe it or not, Influencers can make truly decent dough if they’re aligned with the right brands/products and have decent management to funnel these opportunities their way. I am shocked that they haven’t started some lame couples podcast yet. I think Jax is too busy getting stoned while filming Cameo videos and trying to lure random producers into somehow getting him back on reality television screens.