S06.E08: Toilet Hacks And The Management Track

[DanaK]

Quote

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 17, 8:00-8:30 p.m. EDT

After feeling the cafeteria staff could use some organization, Darlene seeks to be manager of food services at Mark's college. Elsewhere, Dan teaches housewives the basics of DIY home projects to make some extra money toward paying off the house.

 

[Annber03]

Harris stepping up to help Darlene as she did at the end was really cool, though I don't blame her for being a little overwhelmed after a time. I also like her reasoning that all she'll have to say is "Hamburgers" going forward in any fights with Darlene and that'll end the fight right htere :p. 

Also like Dan having these little clasess, though Louise is right to tell him to go easy and not burn himself out. It's wild to think he's 70 now. 

And hey, glad to see they're continuing the idea of Louise running for the school board. I liked Becky pointing out the irony that the woman who doesn't have kids is involved with all this school stuff while the man who does isn't :p. 

[Cherpumple]

Once again, a Conner manages to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory by taking a good idea and messing it up. Dan's DIY class was clearly a hit, so why not change the execution by holding the sessions at the hardware during opening hours? No extra work hours needed, and the students are already at the store where they can buy all the tools they need for their projects. And Dan and Ben can take turns teaching too. Easy peasy! I've done this at my local Home Depot when I wanted to learn how to tile a wall and it was great.

[Bastet]

Sad that only moms brought their kids, and only brought sons.  But at least the women who wanted to learn weren't shown enough to be presented as inept ditzes who don't even know what a wrench is, let alone how to use one; I was nervous about that based on the episode description.  These lessons are a cool way for Dan to make some extra money, and I think when he's not inexplicably doing them every night of the week it's something he'd really enjoy.  Do them once a week and it'll work fine.

(A combination of working, social security, and pension should not only now at 70 be possible for Dan, and there's way too much to try to make sense of in terms of whether he worked for the city garage long enough to fully or only partially vest in a plan, and why he called it a union pension rather than a government pension, and how which one it is would affect his social security [he's old enough his hardware store income doesn't], so I'll just go with it.  The importance of owning the house outright and how that goalpost kept moving is a long-standing story of the franchise.)

"I don't like to turn on the lights, it attracts people."  Ha.  Darlene's boss was such a caricature - "Mary Todd Lincoln's older, crazier sister" - but she made me laugh anyway.

Darlene telling Harris if she won't help in this ridiculously huge way Mark won't be able to keep going to school was so out of bounds, but I do enjoy Harris just rolling with it because if she pulls it off she can pull the "hamburger" card forever.  It would be nice to see Darlene keep this management job; there are still tales of misery to mine, but she can use her brain, which will help her mood (well, a little; it's Darlene), and put her in a better position not just financially but in terms of her options once Mark graduates. 

 

[sheetmoss]

I think the union pension comes  from drywalling

Edited April 18 by sheetmoss

[NoReally]

Does the cafeteria serve anything besides hamburgers, fries, and coleslaw? 

[Browncoat]

12 hours ago, Bastet said:

"I don't like to turn on the lights, it attracts people."  Ha.  Darlene's boss was such a caricature - "Mary Todd Lincoln's older, crazier sister" - but she made me laugh anyway.

That's Darlene in a few years.

[zamp33]

10 hours ago, sheetmoss said:

I think the union pension comes  from drywalling

I thought drywall was his own business - if he worked for the town/city then he would be getting a pension.  How much depends on how long he worked for the town and if was there long enough to be vested.  I seem to remember how happy they were when he got the job working for the town and I believe they mentioned a pension way back when - but then again both Dan and Jackie both  had sons that seems to have been forgotten about so who knows about the pension.  

If you pay into the pension, you are not paying into social security so that may be affecting what he is getting. But his jobs have been so hodgepodge over the years who knows?

[One Tough Cookie]

Color me confused.  Mary Todd's sister told Darlene if she took the position Mark wouldn't be eligible for free tuition. Yet she took the job anyway.  How is this going to work?

And I really don't want to see her pushing her vegan lifestyle on kids who don't want/like it.  I'd be pretty pissed if I paid for my kid's meal voucher and have him have to go out of pocket because he doesn't like hummus.  I get the feeling she'd be very militaristic with a little power and not too respectful of other's choices.

[Bastet]

9 minutes ago, One Tough Cookie said:

Mary Todd's sister told Darlene if she took the position Mark wouldn't be eligible for free tuition.

No, she said if Darlene doesn't do well in her trial period, she doesn't get to keep this manager position, and she can't turn down the promotion and stay safe in her lunch lady job, so unless she holds onto the manager position, she'll be out of a job and thus the tuition benefit.

[Packerbrewerbadger]

I hope Dan had been getting Rosanne’s social security til his remarried( she worked right? I didn’t watch original , and they were same age?) 

[iMonrey]

There's been a lot of discussion about Dan's mortgage during the run of this show. At the time Dan and Roseanne bought that house, it couldn't have been much more than around 50K. I know they took out a second mortgage when they opened the bike shop, but who knows what's canon anymore. At any rate, even then it would have been far less than 100K. It's been well over 30 years since then and mortgages don't last longer than that.

The pension thing is confusing too. Dan only worked briefly fixing city vehicles before he quit that job to take a job drywalling a new prison, which made him self-employed again. But again, canon? Who knows.

The woman who played Darlene's boss was on "Jury Duty" (hilarious series on Amazon Prime). I'd never seen her before that show but lately she's been everywhere. Looks like she got a lot of work as a result of that show.

[Bastet]

31 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

The woman who played Darlene's boss was on "Jury Duty" (hilarious series on Amazon Prime). I'd never seen her before that show but lately she's been everywhere. Looks like she got a lot of work as a result of that show.

I recognized her right away from an episode of Major Crimes, in which she played a hilariously horrible person, so that may have been part of why I enjoyed her so much here.

[ESS]

Loved this episode and loved seeing Louise back again as always! Wow I couldn't believe Dan was as old as he is, but I was so glad Louise was there to celebrate with him although she also should have been there for the Valentine's Day episode, but that's another story. That said I loved all of her scenes and I was so happy when they continued the storyline with her and the school board I was worried they weren't going to say anything more, but thankfully that's not the case so I can't wait to see more of that storyline and I know we are getting something on it soon according to what I've read it's gonna be...interesting I think and the ending tag with Louise and Dan was hilarious I loved it! Can't wait for next episode and Louise is in that one as well.

Edited April 19 by ESS

[babyhouseman]

3 hours ago, Packerbrewerbadger said:

and they were same age?) 

If I remember right, they went to high school together. 

[Mittengirl]

How big is this school Mark is attending, and do they only have 1 cafeteria?  Darlene mentioned having 12 employees/coworkers.  Harris only had to make 250(?) hamburgers, which wouldn’t go far in a college cafeteria.  
 

I feel like the writers are trying to make Darlene’s quitting her previous job look less stupid.  To me they are just making the whole storyline look even more stupid.

[Yeah No]

6 hours ago, iMonrey said:

There's been a lot of discussion about Dan's mortgage during the run of this show. At the time Dan and Roseanne bought that house, it couldn't have been much more than around 50K. I know they took out a second mortgage when they opened the bike shop, but who knows what's canon anymore. At any rate, even then it would have been far less than 100K. It's been well over 30 years since then and mortgages don't last longer than that.

I don't know much about show history - is it possible they took out an equity loan or second mortgage at some point and he's still paying that off?

What gets me is if Dan is 70 he could have been collecting his full Social Security for a few years now and could have been applying that to paying down the mortgage.  I get putting off collecting while he's working to let the SS payment increase, but only a percentage of SS income is taxed so that would have helped.  And if you're paying off something that's costing you interest for a few years with it that also helps.

14 hours ago, NoReally said:

Does the cafeteria serve anything besides hamburgers, fries, and coleslaw? 

What I want to know is do school cafeterias these days serve fresh hand-formed hamburgers?  Is that something I missed?  Because in my experience they usually served either fresh or frozen fully-formed patties, the kind with the paper between them.

Edited April 19 by Yeah No

[TattleTeeny]

17 hours ago, One Tough Cookie said:

Color me confused.  Mary Todd's sister told Darlene if she took the position Mark wouldn't be eligible for free tuition. Yet she took the job anyway.  How is this going to work?

And I really don't want to see her pushing her vegan lifestyle on kids who don't want/like it.  I'd be pretty pissed if I paid for my kid's meal voucher and have him have to go out of pocket because he doesn't like hummus.  I get the feeling she'd be very militaristic with a little power and not too respectful of other's choices.

How is she pushing veganism when they're serving hamburgers? Sorry, I get a little incredulous about that tired old "pushy vegan" trope. 

Edited April 19 by TattleTeeny

[NoReally]

8 hours ago, Yeah No said:

What I want to know is do school cafeterias these days serve fresh hand-formed hamburgers?  Is that something I missed?  Because in my experience they usually served either fresh or frozen fully-formed patties, the kind with the paper between them.

I think that was one of the quality features that Darlene wanted to improve.

[Yeah No]

14 minutes ago, NoReally said:

I think that was one of the quality features that Darlene wanted to improve.

So she wanted to start making fresh, hand formed burgers as a quality improvement?  Because fresh pre-formed patties can be just as good.  Perhaps they're more expensive but making hundreds of hand formed burgers is going to cost a lot in terms of manpower anyway.

[TattleTeeny]

Someone has to make them. Maybe she figured she could help the restaurant while also helping the cafeteria. 

[iMonrey]

12 hours ago, Mittengirl said:

How big is this school Mark is attending, and do they only have 1 cafeteria?  Darlene mentioned having 12 employees/coworkers.  Harris only had to make 250(?) hamburgers, which wouldn’t go far in a college cafeteria.  

I guess I was under the impression the cafeteria was in a specific dorm, not a cafeteria for an entire college. That's how it worked at my college. Or, at least, it's one of a few cafeterias where the dorms are located.

[One Tough Cookie]

9 hours ago, TattleTeeny said:

I get a little incredulous about that tired old "pushy vegan" trope

all righty then.  I get tired of their "enthusiasm" and self righteousness but MMV

[TattleTeeny]

It definitely does; in my experience, the self righteousness comes from the meat people. For instance, Darlene actively sought out burgers to serve, yet here we are talking about vegan ”enthusiasm.” 

 

 

Edited April 19 by TattleTeeny

[One Tough Cookie]

5 minutes ago, TattleTeeny said:

It definitely does; in my experience (above and otherwise), the self righteousness is from the meat people.

 

respectfully I'm leaving this thread and go get a hamburger.

[TattleTeeny]

Ha! Just note that it wasn’t me who mentioned what I’m eating or not eating, nor was it Darlene in the context of the show. (Also, we don’t all care what other people eat…though, predictably, other people do love to tell me about burgers and bacon or whatever — always with the bacon.)

Regardless, I’ll assume that vegan Darlene knows it’s in no one’s best interest to foist one specific diet onto a campus's worth of people.

Edited April 19 by TattleTeeny

[ams1001]

How much is he charging for these classes that they're going to make a real dent in house payments?

[TattleTeeny]

You know what — NM. I didn’t intend to offend anyone’s sensitivities or hurt any feelings.

Edited April 20 by TattleTeeny

[ams1001]

On 4/19/2024 at 12:28 AM, Yeah No said:

What I want to know is do school cafeterias these days serve fresh hand-formed hamburgers?  Is that something I missed?  Because in my experience they usually served either fresh or frozen fully-formed patties, the kind with the paper between them.

Doubtful, and it most certainly wouldn't be cheaper to buy a whole bunch of fresh ground beef (grass fed!), plus coleslaw ingredients and potatoes to make fries from scratch, and have a small local restaurant do the work* of turning that into enough meals for 250 students (aside from the idea that apparently this cafeteria only offers three things at a meal? and if this is dinner, what about breakfast and lunch?). How does she think she's saving money? Frozen burgers and fries, in bulk, are absolutely going to cost less. Also, presumably the school already has a relationship with a vendor for these things. (And part of her goal was healthy food...while I'll grant that grass-fed beef is arguably slightly healthier than conventional, burgers and fries and a salad that is typically drenched in mayo are by no means a healthy meal.)

*Unless, of course, you can convince your daughter to do it for free instead of, y'know, learning her actual job of running the restaurant for paying customers. But that's not a sustainable solution, either, so in the long run, it's not going to save the school money on labor. She also needs to manage these students. If they can't bother to show up on time and do their jobs, then fire them. If the job is part of their financial aid, then they'll figure out they need to shape up if they want to stay in school. (Lots of "kids these days" energy going on here, but this kind of attitude isn't new and young people can and do learn (even when they have ADHD). I can see how things got pretty lax if they didn't have a manager (which is another thing that makes no sense) but now she needs to step up and start managing.)

I also wonder about the food safety implications of having Harris (who doesn't work for the school and has no contract with them even as a vendor) making hamburger patties on a little table, with the veggies for coleslaw and potatoes sitting right next to a giant pan of raw meat (that has apparently been sitting out for at least a few hours), then having to transport all that to the college. Seems like they're just asking for an e-coli outbreak on campus (potentially followed by fines from the health department and lawsuits from students...that'll sure save the school money, Darlene!).

(Yes, yes, I overthink things, but in my defense, I was bored.)

[StaceyNotStacie]

It seemed odd that Dan would hold his seminars in his own house. The hardware store would probably be a better location. 
 

I really hope we get a scene where Dan has paid off the mortgage (for real) before the series ends. There was so much emotion in the scene from the original series when they burned their mortgage papers and I’d love to see that accomplishment for real this time for Dan (or for the kids to pull their money together and pay off the mortgage for him). 

[TattleTeeny]

The whole show was so much more carefully crafted in the original iteration. Now it seems like a generic sitcom.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

8 hours ago, ams1001 said:

Doubtful, and it most certainly wouldn't be cheaper to buy a whole bunch of fresh ground beef (grass fed!), plus coleslaw ingredients and potatoes to make fries from scratch, and have a small local restaurant do the work* of turning that into enough meals for 250 students (aside from the idea that apparently this cafeteria only offers three things at a meal? and if this is dinner, what about breakfast and lunch?). How does she think she's saving money? Frozen burgers and fries, in bulk, are absolutely going to cost less. Also, presumably the school already has a relationship with a vendor for these things. (And part of her goal was healthy food...while I'll grant that grass-fed beef is arguably slightly healthier than conventional, burgers and fries and a salad that is typically drenched in mayo are by no means a healthy meal.)

*Unless, of course, you can convince your daughter to do it for free instead of, y'know, learning her actual job of running the restaurant for paying customers. But that's not a sustainable solution, either, so in the long run, it's not going to save the school money on labor. She also needs to manage these students. If they can't bother to show up on time and do their jobs, then fire them. If the job is part of their financial aid, then they'll figure out they need to shape up if they want to stay in school. (Lots of "kids these days" energy going on here, but this kind of attitude isn't new and young people can and do learn (even when they have ADHD). I can see how things got pretty lax if they didn't have a manager (which is another thing that makes no sense) but now she needs to step up and start managing.)

I also wonder about the food safety implications of having Harris (who doesn't work for the school and has no contract with them even as a vendor) making hamburger patties on a little table, with the veggies for coleslaw and potatoes sitting right next to a giant pan of raw meat (that has apparently been sitting out for at least a few hours), then having to transport all that to the college. Seems like they're just asking for an e-coli outbreak on campus (potentially followed by fines from the health department and lawsuits from students...that'll sure save the school money, Darlene!).

(Yes, yes, I overthink things, but in my defense, I was bored.)

I thought all the same things, plus the miracle of Harris having all that non-frozen grass-fed beef ready to go. I doubt that the restaurant stocks it, so how was she so sure she could get it that very evening?

Maybe she'll start using Dan's "grass-fed" chickens to save even more money. He can eviscerate them in the backyard, and then throw them in the truck and deliver them to the cafeteria.

 

I suppose it makes sense that Dan plans to leave the house to his kids, but I wonder if Louise still has her condo.

Edited April 21 by ItCouldBeWorse

[ams1001]

32 minutes ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

I thought all the same things, plus the miracle of Harris having all that non-frozen grass-fed beef ready to go. I doubt that the restaurant stocks it, so how was she so sure she could get it that very evening?

Also, the amount of cabbage and potatoes they showed certainly wasn't enough for 250 servings. Where was the rest?

32 minutes ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Maybe she'll start using Dan's "grass-fed" chickens to save even more money. He can eviscerate them in the backyard, and then throw them in the truck and deliver them to the cafeteria.

Maybe he can turn it into a class for the local housewives...

[CarpeFelis]

On 4/20/2024 at 3:48 PM, StaceyNotStacie said:

It seemed odd that Dan would hold his seminars in his own house. The hardware store would probably be a better location. 

I figure it was just a plot contrivance so there was more interaction with the family and it made it more noticeable that he was doing too much.

[Pi237]

This new version has never employed much logic in its storytelling. I watch this with zero expectations of continuity or sense. It’s like the cartoon version of Roseanne. I stopped looking for plausible circumstances a long time ago, but the stupidity of This current storyline for Darlene & Dan has taken the cake. What are the writers doing? Playing plot MadLibs?

Edited April 22 by Pi237

[b4pjoe]

On 4/18/2024 at 12:59 PM, zamp33 said:

I thought drywall was his own business - if he worked for the town/city then he would be getting a pension.  How much depends on how long he worked for the town and if was there long enough to be vested.  I seem to remember how happy they were when he got the job working for the town and I believe they mentioned a pension way back when - but then again both Dan and Jackie both  had sons that seems to have been forgotten about so who knows about the pension.  

If you pay into the pension, you are not paying into social security so that may be affecting what he is getting. But his jobs have been so hodgepodge over the years who knows?

He was in the union for his construction job working for someone else before he started his own drywall business.

I paid into 4 pensions, 3 union and 1 company pension, during my working life and I also had Social Security and Medicare deducted weekly from my paychecks. There was no option for me not to pay Social Security and Medicare deductions.

[b4pjoe]

On 4/18/2024 at 11:28 PM, Yeah No said:

What gets me is if Dan is 70 he could have been collecting his full Social Security for a few years now and could have been applying that to paying down the mortgage.  I get putting off collecting while he's working to let the SS payment increase, but only a percentage of SS income is taxed so that would have helped.  And if you're paying off something that's costing you interest for a few years with it that also helps.

Dan is a year older than me so he would have had to wait until he was 66 years and 3 months old to get his full SSA but you do get a little bit more if you wait until age 70. Most people would benefit taking it as soon as possible because many people that wait until age 70 don't stay alive to get anything. Also you can still work while taking SSA and your SSA in not reduced until you make a certain amount of money which trust me in this show Dan would never make that much. So he pretty well screwed himself by waiting until age 70.

[Yeah No]

2 hours ago, b4pjoe said:

Dan is a year older than me so he would have had to wait until he was 66 years and 3 months old to get his full SSA but you do get a little bit more if you wait until age 70. Most people would benefit taking it as soon as possible because many people that wait until age 70 don't stay alive to get anything. Also you can still work while taking SSA and your SSA in not reduced until you make a certain amount of money which trust me in this show Dan would never make that much. So he pretty well screwed himself by waiting until age 70.

Thank you.  I have about a year to go to be old enough to collect my full benefit without penalty (66 and 8 months) and I'm waiting until then to collect.  But I'm not putting it off until 70.  I've done the math with the help of my financial advisor and by this time it's probably better to start collecting then than wait any longer.  This way I can avoid dipping into my retirement accounts and pay more in taxes than I would on SS.  My husband is 68 now and still working.  He just started to collect SS now and is happy with his decision (and it's not reduced).  Dan is not doing the math, but what did we expect from this show, right?  

[Natalie68]

On 4/18/2024 at 8:17 PM, Mittengirl said:

How big is this school Mark is attending, and do they only have 1 cafeteria?  Darlene mentioned having 12 employees/coworkers.  Harris only had to make 250(?) hamburgers, which wouldn’t go far in a college cafeteria.  
 

I feel like the writers are trying to make Darlene’s quitting her previous job look less stupid.  To me they are just making the whole storyline look even more stupid.

I was wondering why Darlene didn't offer to help Harris. Kinda assholey.

 

[Mittengirl]

Quote

39 minutes ago, Natalie68 said:

I was wondering why Darlene didn't offer to help Harris. Kinda assholey.

 

 

I think you just answered your own question.  Darlene being Darlene.

[TVbitch]

Just got caught up on this season. Man this show is running on fumes. It's like the writers are not even remotely trying to authentically progress the characters or create even "sitcom" believable situations for them. It's just become absurdity with snarky jokes. 

I have a huge soft spot for these characters (or at least for the versions of them from the Roseanne show that was often so clever, relatable and well written), so I will see it through. I'm curious how they end it. Probably with Darlene's egregiously inefficient management decisions being miraculously successful. Or maybe they will pull a Seinfeld and have them be broke loser "hillbillies" to the very end. 

[ButterQueen]

Crazy as it may be, I love this show and will miss it.  So few sitcoms on anymore.

what did Louise do with her house?  Does she contribute financially?

[mythoughtis]

Even if Dan wanted to wait until 70 for his social security, he could have been taking Roseanne's as a widower.  He also had no need to wait until 70 to take his union pension.  I’m sure the pension  would have been set at a lower age than 70 and no increase for  waiting until 70.   Of course doing that  would have rendered  the entire house foreclosure storyline moot.   

[Yeah No]

7 hours ago, mythoughtis said:

Even if Dan wanted to wait until 70 for his social security, he could have been taking Roseanne's as a widower.  He also had no need to wait until 70 to take his union pension.  I’m sure the pension  would have been set at a lower age than 70 and no increase for  waiting until 70.   Of course doing that  would have rendered  the entire house foreclosure storyline moot.   

I know, why would anyone wait until 70 to collect a pension when there's no advantage to waiting and you're just forfeiting the money?  I started collecting mine this year.  If you don't contact them shortly before your 65th birthday they call you and send you emails reminding you to start the process.  Why they would want to make Dan look that foolish is beyond me.

That said, I think it would be sad if this show didn't get another season considering how important the original series was in the scheme of TV sitcoms.  I think it deserves a season to wrap itself up for the last time.

[juliet73]

I would think some of Louise's income would contribute the mortgage. And doesn't Harris live there too?  I don't understand why none of these adults can never help Dan pay the bills while they are living in his house!  Then again, I can't wrap my brain around the fact that Dan's been paying on that house for 40+ years!

Why doesn't Mark get free tuition working as a janitor at the college?  If Darlene loses her job, Mark's free tuition goes away even though he's an employee there as well?  I don't understand that.

I agree with the other comments about Dan hosting the DIY classes at the store. It would bring more customers in and he could do it during regular business hours. 

I really don't understand these writers...are they that out of touch with the real world that basic common sense storylines are written not making any sense?

[Bastet]

27 minutes ago, juliet73 said:

And doesn't Harris live there too?

She did, but she moved in with Darlene after the miscarriage, which is how Mark got screwed out of a bedroom.  I guess with Mark in the dorm, so the house isn't quite as crowded, and with her and Darlene getting along better, she's decided to stay there.