S09.E21: Reunion Part 2

[motorcitymom65]

If I were Lu I would rather talk about who I voted for than talk about my dick of a husband. 

Edited August 27, 2017 by motorcitymom65

[Audpaud]

Any chance Bethenney will stfu in Part 3?

Exhausted.

[breezy424]

It is a 'reality' show and in reality, in the real world, many people choose not to say who they voted for.  In certain social circles, I don't say a word about who I voted for.  I just don't want to go there.  I'm not going to change their minds.  With my family and close relatives...we're on the same page and we discuss and kid about it.  Well, not so much anymore. 

I get why some of them don't want to discuss it.  I've seen people get pretty heated and friendships end.  Politics and religion....

And I also get standing up for what you believe in but sometimes I feel that I have to do it in a different way.  It's hard to explain. 

I loved that Doris, Carole and Hannah went to the Women's March in DC.  Gosh, my daughter and I wanted to go so badly but it was crazy trying to get into DC that day.  I have no problem saying it to anyone that I wanted to go.  That was so much bigger.  It wasn't about politics.  It was about being female and our rights, and especially my daughter's rights.  (Too bad Madonna really screwed it up.  Shut up.)  And yeah, I'll discuss issues but politics?  Nope.

[film noire]

6 hours ago, motorcitymom65 said:

Talk about things that make you go hmmm. If it had been Bethenny, there would be dozens of articles, interviews and examples of how she was a big fat liar who said one thing one day, and one thing the next. But with Lu, no real need to examine the facts of her statement and find a way she might be trying to deceive. Maybe she just isn't worth it? 

You're right, she did get a collective "meh" for that duplicity.  Perhaps that's because she's not routinely aggressive on the show? She doesn't push people to the wall when she catches them out, so maybe that "Oh rully? ROLL TAPE!" energy doesn't come back at her via the internet.

Also -- at least for me - she's a known m'ladylike fibber about her sex/lovelife. If the phrase "my man" is in a sentence of Luann's, it's likely she's lying about some part of the story:)

5 hours ago, ScoobieDoobs said:

What struck me (and made me laugh hard) was her saying "I don't know them WELL".

"It's not like we ever had them over to the PENTHOUSE!"

 

4 hours ago, WireWrap said:

No, fear of the never ending lecture on something already decided/done/over with. 

Like one of the major storylines for the season  -- the women talking about Tom's wayward ways, long after Luann made it clear her decision was over and done :) 

Edited August 27, 2017 by film noire

[BBHN]

Quote

I agree with Beth on this point. I think "the Penthouse" sounds pretentious. It seems "home" or "apartment" would be the more common expression, but perhaps that is the point. Lu will not be considered "common." 

Well, not in her own opinion, no...

Quote

Seems to me the gal contradicted herself a few times at this reunion. When she filed for divorce, a mere 3 weeks after the reunion filmed, she said they were fighting all the time and it had become "impossible". That they had worked "hard". I didn't hear her saying any of that on the reunion stage. She was talking about what a great guy he was. Yep, she slept at the hotel the night before, but nothing about it all being "impossible". Then there was the thing with the count. She has told us herself on the show that they had an open marriage. That she didn't like it, but she went along with it to keep the peace. But then on the stage, she said the truth was they were separated and she didn't want folks to know. Talk about things that make you go hmmm.

Another weird moment was on WWHL when she told Andy that she and Tom never fought, but when they did, they avoided going to sleep angry.

Andy tried a couple of times to try and explain to Luann what "never" meant, but she didn't quite seem to understand.

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Much like Bethenny, Luann has tried to keep her real life relationships quiet on the show. The difference between them is that Luann downplays anything negative, like fights/disagreements, while Bethenny straight out denies there is a relationship or she makes herself out to be the victim in her failed relationships. Luann's glass is always half full and Bethenny's is always half empty. 

Luann tries to direct and manipulate the story line of her relationships just as much as anyone else on the show. And then gets caught for her bullshit.

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"YOU FUCK EVERYONE!"  She's like a rabid dog.

Well, that's not a nice thing to add about Luann...

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I agree with Beth on this point. I think "the Penthouse" sounds pretentious. It seems "home" or "apartment" would be the more common expression, but perhaps that is the point. Lu will not be considered "common." 

Exactly.

Quote

Dorinda, who used the term penthouse, when she was about to speak to her interactions with Tom and Luann away from parties and cameras in a more intimate setting.  So we got the lecture from Bethenny instead of some insight from Dorinda on the Tom/Luann relationship.  I would have rather heard Dorinda expand on their relationship

Given how things ended up for Luann and Tom...I'm glad we were spared possibly rehearsed bullshit about Love's Greatest Soulmates.

Edited August 27, 2017 by BBHN

[diadochokinesis]

1 minute ago, BBHN said:

Well, not in her own opinion, no...

Another weird moment was on WWHL when she told Andy that she and Tom never fought, but when they did, they never went to sleep angry.

Andy tried a couple of times to try and explain to Luann what "never" meant, but she didn't quite seem to understand.

Luann tries to direct and manipulate the story line of her relationships just as much as anyone else on the show. And then gets caught for her bullshit.

Well, that's not a nice thing to add about Luann...

Exactly.

Given things ended up for Luann and Tom...I'm glad we were spared possibly rehearsed bullshit about Love's Greatest Soulmates.

Lu is one of those friends that has to always have everything be picture perfect. She can't stand for there to be an imperfection in her life. Her relationship with Tom is a great demonstration of that. I think Lu knew the relationship wasn't great but she thought it was doable. You saw glimpses on her face during the reunion where she began to realize that there were serious problems in the relationship and they were visible to others. I'm wondering if she would have kept up the facade if not everybody else noticed. In some ways, she is this cool no effs given personality but in other ways, she is an insecure person who craves validation from others. That is where the pretentiousness comes in. She is living a Barbie Dream House life and going through the motions of what she thinks that looks like. She sometimes relaxes and lets it go and that is when we see the Real Lu. I like the Real Lu and wish we saw more of that. 

Anywho, I think that is what bugs Bethenny about Lu. We all know that Bethenny is a big personality and all about living the truth. So it irritates her when she sees that Lu is over there living a lie on reality tv. I'd have the same reaction. Hell, I'd probably be worse with calling her out about her various lies and inconsistencies. 

[Sweet-tea]

10 hours ago, film noire said:

Botox to atrophy the muscle in her jaw.

I heard her say that but am not sure I believe it. 

[Sweet-tea]

7 hours ago, Audpaud said:

Any chance Bethenney will stfu in Part 3?

Exhausted.

I'm exhausted just reading this thread. Wish we could just talk about what happened on the episode and not get into the weeds of politics. But having said that, I have to admit I fast-forwarded through the entire Carole/political segment. I have no interest in hearing any of these women discuss politics. 

Edited August 27, 2017 by Sweet-tea

[jaync]

[ButterQueen]

I tend to give Lu a break on the penthouse, palm beach thing.  I mean, we watched her handle the "yard sale/auction" of her things after her divorce with humor and grace.  I cannot imagine Ramona, Sonja or Bethenny allowing that to be used on the show.  So while she may have overshot the mark with Tom, I still think she's someone who makes lemonade out of lemons, gets along with everyone, and provided some of the best vacation footage for the show.  

[walnutqueen]

15 hours ago, film noire said:

Instead, crickets in the bidet.

I've always wanted a bidet.  Now I want two - one for me, and one for the crickets.

[diadochokinesis]

3 minutes ago, walnutqueen said:

I've always wanted a bidet.  Now I want two - one for me, and one for the crickets.

I had a bidet at my previous villa. I mainly used it as a mop bucket.  LOL. 

[BBHN]

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I've always wanted a bidet.  Now I want two - one for me, and one for the crickets.

I'm sure Sonja can you help you out with that. She can even show you multiple purposes and uses for a bidet.

[walnutqueen]

9 minutes ago, diadochokinesis said:

I had a bidet at my previous villa. I mainly used it as a mop bucket.  LOL. 

Bidet, villa ... penthouse, Palm Beach - all I can relate to is the mop bucket.  :-D

 

9 minutes ago, BBHN said:

I'm sure Sonja can you help you out with that. She can even show you multiple purposes and uses for a bidet.

I amend my previous statement.  If I hit the Lotto, I shall have THREE bidets, one for me, one for my pet crickets, and one to wash the undies I'll surely never wear.  I shall also throw the first "Smart" phone I own into one of my working toilets, just for good measure.

Yup, I have a dream, y'all.  ;-)

[KungFuBunny]

15 minutes ago, BBHN said:

I'm sure Sonja can you help you out with that. She can even show you multiple purposes and uses for a bidet.

When you are a guest over at Sonja's and need to use the bathroom, KFB still has her Bidet aftercare videos for Free99

[diadochokinesis]

1 hour ago, walnutqueen said:

Bidet, villa ... penthouse, Palm Beach - all I can relate to is the mop bucket.  :-D

 

I amend my previous statement.  If I hit the Lotto, I shall have THREE bidets, one for me, one for my pet crickets, and one to wash the undies I'll surely never wear.  I shall also throw the first "Smart" phone I own into one of my working toilets, just for good measure.

Yup, I have a dream, y'all.  ;-)

LOL. If it helps, villas are just houses over here. Could also be a townhouse. If it is one story then they call it a bungalow. You could say they are... pretentious!

[hoodooznoodooz]

Just out of curiosity, is storing all your jewelry in a glass during impromptu overnight visits a thing? I don't wear jewelry, so I don't know about this practice.  

When Beth mentioned bumping into Trump during her walk of shame, I thought she meant that she bumped into him after Martha Stewart fired her from MS Apprentice.

[SweetieDarling]

1 hour ago, walnutqueen said:

Bidet, villa ... penthouse, Palm Beach - all I can relate to is the mop bucket.  :-D

 

I amend my previous statement.  If I hit the Lotto, I shall have THREE bidets, one for me, one for my pet crickets, and one to wash the undies I'll surely never wear.  I shall also throw the first "Smart" phone I own into one of my working toilets, just for good measure.

Yup, I have a dream, y'all.  ;-)

Will you need a 4th one to fill with ice and dip your face in after a night on the town?  

[walnutqueen]

1 minute ago, hoodooznoodooz said:

Just out of curiosity, is storing all your jewelry in a glass during impromptu overnight visits a thing?

Not as far as I can remember.  One always reapplied the jewels before the early a.m. Victory Lap - except for the pearl necklace, of course (which was either strewn all over the floor & under the bed, or otherwise defiled).  

 

Just now, SweetieDarling said:

Will you need a 4th one to fill with ice and dip your face in after a night on the town?  

Ain't enough dirty ice & bidets in the world to fix all the nights on the town I had in a previous life ...  I just avoid mirrors and public appearances, for the most part.  ;-)

[BBHN]

Quote

LOL. If it helps, villas are just houses over here. Could also be a townhouse. If it is one story then they call it a bungalow. You could say they are... pretentious!

And most homes - whether house or apartments - a bidet too. If not, there is always a bum gun.

[Vanderboom]

12 hours ago, diadochokinesis said:

Lu is one of those friends that has to always have everything be picture perfect. She can't stand for there to be an imperfection in her life. Her relationship with Tom is a great demonstration of that. I think Lu knew the relationship wasn't great but she thought it was doable. You saw glimpses on her face during the reunion where she began to realize that there were serious problems in the relationship and they were visible to others. I'm wondering if she would have kept up the facade if not everybody else noticed. In some ways, she is this cool no effs given personality but in other ways, she is an insecure person who craves validation from others. That is where the pretentiousness comes in. She is living a Barbie Dream House life and going through the motions of what she thinks that looks like. She sometimes relaxes and lets it go and that is when we see the Real Lu. I like the Real Lu and wish we saw more of that. 

Anywho, I think that is what bugs Bethenny about Lu. We all know that Bethenny is a big personality and all about living the truth. So it irritates her when she sees that Lu is over there living a lie on reality tv. I'd have the same reaction. Hell, I'd probably be worse with calling her out about her various lies and inconsistencies. 

I understand the frustration Luann's dishonesty and pretentiousness,  but I can also understand why she does it; I wouldn't want to give these vultures any ammunition, either.

Look at how they acted throughout the Tom debacle. Anyone could see that there were major issues in that relationship, but the gleeful concern-trolling just made Lu become more defensive and more determined to make sure Ramona and Company wouldn't see her sweat. She makes herself look like a liar/fool, but I think she would prefer that to losing face.

[BBHN]

I think that attitude started long before Tom came into the picture.

[zoeysmom]

8 hours ago, diadochokinesis said:

Lu is one of those friends that has to always have everything be picture perfect. She can't stand for there to be an imperfection in her life. Her relationship with Tom is a great demonstration of that. I think Lu knew the relationship wasn't great but she thought it was doable. You saw glimpses on her face during the reunion where she began to realize that there were serious problems in the relationship and they were visible to others. I'm wondering if she would have kept up the facade if not everybody else noticed. In some ways, she is this cool no effs given personality but in other ways, she is an insecure person who craves validation from others. That is where the pretentiousness comes in. She is living a Barbie Dream House life and going through the motions of what she thinks that looks like. She sometimes relaxes and lets it go and that is when we see the Real Lu. I like the Real Lu and wish we saw more of that. 

Anywho, I think that is what bugs Bethenny about Lu. We all know that Bethenny is a big personality and all about living the truth. So it irritates her when she sees that Lu is over there living a lie on reality tv. I'd have the same reaction. Hell, I'd probably be worse with calling her out about her various lies and inconsistencies. 

Why should Bethenny care if Luann or anyone is trying to make the best of what they have?  I don't believe Bethenny lives the truth as much as she spends an unhealthy amount of time doubling down on others' pain and trying to destroy their feelings of happiness-especially Luann's. Luann and Ramona, until they couldn't any longer, have never been ones to disparage their men or children. Both are realistic-they have to live with some of the men in their lives because they have children together.  To me, that is healthy and appropriate.  At the end of the day, when the cameras are off these ladies have to have relationships with their families.  Maybe Luann will learn from this experience there is a difference between not changing someone and acceptance.   Bethenny needs to focus on her own issues and leave the others' to lead their own lives.  If they want her input they will ask for it.  She has taken over the whole damn Reunion with her opinions about everything,  Bethenny has no problem telling others not to speak it is about time she take her own advice.  She needs to shut up and quit being so desperate for attention.

[Ki-in]

I don't get why Carole's "shacking up" with Adam was considered part of her story line when we never saw any of it. All we saw was him coming for the last of his things and trying to take the Buddha head and/or lamps. It was mentioned multiple times during the season and then at the reunion but we never saw them cohabiting. Were they that boring or did they not get along so much that it was embarrassing or uncomfortable (like most of their interactions last season)? To bring it up multiple times but not show any of it was kind of strange to me.

Could they have been more cringeworthy than Sonja and Frenchie or Luann and Tom?

The going to court segment during the season was out of the blue and kind of weird not to have any footage of that either especially given the amount of preparation Carole said she put into it.

I wonder if Tinsley and Carole will be as buddy buddy now that we know Tinsley is a complete and utterly useless bubble head who can't even mail in a ballot.

Did they mention Bethenny being back with Dennis? 

I can't imagine another hour of reunion talk. How much of the Mexico trip can they drag out? More Bethenny yelling at Ramona? And the whole Tinsley/Sonja drama was beyond ridiculous and is reaching for a story line by HW's "standards". A Luann talks Tom special is kind of unnecessary since we'll probably never really know why they even bothered in the first place and why they really split.

[BBHN]

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Why should Bethenny care if Luann or anyone is trying to make the best of what they have?

It isn't making the best per se, more like putting up a fake front of airs and trying to sell an image, which could be perceived as being a false one.

Quote

Both are realistic-they have to live with some of the men in their lives because they have children together.  To me, that is healthy and appropriate. 

That's only healthy and appropriate if both parents get along. Or at least lead enough separate lives to have their side pieces on the side. Whichever, it can be just as damaging for kids to stay with their parents who are in extremely unhappy relationships.

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Were they that boring or did they not get along so much that it was embarrassing or uncomfortable (like most of their interactions last season)?

It probably wasn't as exciting as Luann's farce of a relationship with Tom, since more of us were counting down on when that relationship would implode.

And not as interesting of a farce as Sonja and Frenchie's relationship is rumored to be. We definitely need more tea on that one...

[motorcitymom65]

2 hours ago, Ki-in said:

I don't get why Carole's "shacking up" with Adam was considered part of her story line when we never saw any of it. All we saw was him coming for the last of his things and trying to take the Buddha head and/or lamps. It was mentioned multiple times during the season and then at the reunion but we never saw them cohabiting.

I think I heard Lu mention a time or two that she had gotten married, but unless I missed it, there weren't a lot of scenes of them cohabiting. 

[Ki-in]

46 minutes ago, motorcitymom65 said:

I think I heard Lu mention a time or two that she had gotten married, but unless I missed it, there weren't a lot of scenes of them cohabiting. 

Well, we did see Luann playing happy homemaker and preparing her tray of assorted vegetables and Totinos pizza. ;-p

[BBHN]

Quote

not necessarily a subject that can be encapsulated within a 10 minute reunion segment

Why not? Every other subject is.

[lunastartron]

7 minutes ago, BBHN said:

Why not? Every other subject is.

And I don't think discussions of every other subject are always complete or well-rounded. Important points of discourse are omitted and elided over often. 

[motorcitymom65]

1 hour ago, Ki-in said:

Well, we did see Luann playing happy homemaker and preparing her tray of assorted vegetables and Totinos pizza. ;-p

Yes, there was that. And they we saw Adam (living with Carole at the time) making his sexy salads when Tinsley came over for a visit. I think we probably saw as much Carole and Adam living together as we did Lu and Tom. 

[diadochokinesis]

10 hours ago, BBHN said:

And most homes - whether house or apartments - a bidet too. If not, there is always a bum gun.

Ugh, the shattaf. I have a friend whose child is now terrified of going to the toilet after he went to a friend's house and their nanny used the shattaf on him. Plus, I still think it is unhygienic (which one of my Egyptian friends thinks is hilarious).  

8 hours ago, Vanderboom said:

I understand the frustration Luann's dishonesty and pretentiousness,  but I can also understand why she does it; I wouldn't want to give these vultures any ammunition, either.

Look at how they acted throughout the Tom debacle. Anyone could see that there were major issues in that relationship, but the gleeful concern-trolling just made Lu become more defensive and more determined to make sure Ramona and Company wouldn't see her sweat. She makes herself look like a liar/fool, but I think she would prefer that to losing face.

The problem with that though is that Lu has been acting this way since the very first episode in Season 1. She started off with this personality. This hasn't been an evolution in reaction to the other's personalities. 

[Jextella]

24 minutes ago, diadochokinesis said:

Ugh, the shattaf. I have a friend whose child is now terrified of going to the toilet after he went to a friend's house and their nanny used the shattaf on him. Plus, I still think it is unhygienic (which one of my Egyptian friends thinks is hilarious).  

The problem with that though is that Lu has been acting this way since the very first episode in Season 1. She started off with this personality. This hasn't been an evolution in reaction to the other's personalities. 

OMG.  LuAnn and Ramona were horribly pretentious in Season 1.   Comparing now to then, both have gotten TONS better, believe it or not.

If I could have one wish about this franchise before casting changes again is to have a few seasons of Luanne and Ramona being completely open and vulnerable about their lives.  I think it would be fascinating and I think they'd benefit from it.  

[diadochokinesis]

1 hour ago, Jextella said:

OMG.  LuAnn and Ramona were horribly pretentious in Season 1.   Comparing now to then, both have gotten TONS better, believe it or not.

If I could have one wish about this franchise before casting changes again is to have a few seasons of Luanne and Ramona being completely open and vulnerable about their lives.  I think it would be fascinating and I think they'd benefit from it.  

Oh, as much as I snark on Lu for being pretentious, Ramona with her delusions...  Throw Sonja in there too. Sonja is the oblivious delusional.  Like, she believes her own delusions now. Ramona is the persuasive delusional. She is going to beat you with her delusions until you throw up the white towel. Lu is the pretentious delusional that is just trying to pretend that she is Mommy Warbucks when she is really Miss Hannigan. Although, really, if we were to recast the Housewives as characters from Annie, Dorinda might be the Miss Hannigan.  LOL. 

[Ms Blue Jay]

I personally see no need to barrage Luann with questions about why she married Tom blah blah blah.  Luann's marriage to Tom, whether a bad one or a fake one or whatever, doesn't affect or hurt anyone else.  (*MAYBE* her kids?!  Not sure.  At least they are around 20 by now.)  I don't think it's interesting to berate the poor woman with questions like this.  Whatever she's willing to admit or say about it will be interesting enough.  It's already quite a scandal.  I don't understand getting glee from Luann's honesty about this horrible marriage.  It's already bad enough as it is and it speaks for itself.  I feel bad for her simply because I'm a human being.  Whether it's fake or whether she loves Tom or not or whatever, who cares?  

I would rather take some of the housewives to task for deliberately hurting the other castmembers.  Luann's not hurting anyone on the show by doing this except her poor self.  It's self destructive behaviour and this is not her therapy hour.  This show is for our entertainment and that's why I don't get people having glee over her sadness or rubbing their hands in excitement for her 'honesty'. Why should anyone else care about this enough to want salt rubbed in the wounds?  Is it because the audience feels duped by her?  That she did this all to raise her TV score or something?  Then okay -- maybe I get it.  But to see cracks of supposed reality like her admitting she slept in a different room or something actually makes me sad.  

Edited August 28, 2017 by Ms Blue Jay

[BBHN]

Quote

And I don't think discussions of every other subject are always complete or well-rounded. Important points of discourse are omitted and elided over often. 

Well, not every confabulation will be dissertated to the contentment of all and sundry. As they say in the colloquial adage, YMMV.

[TessHarding2]

On 8/25/2017 at 2:05 PM, biakbiak said:

All articles about her apartment, including when she listed it indicates it's on East 80th and east of 3rd.

Am just catching up here - the address you wrote above for Ramona is the one I was referring to where my old friend lives.  It has Eli Zabar's gourmet shop on the building's corner.  

If anyone knows how Tinsley can do $7000 per month please tell me.  Does she get monthly dividends and from where or from whom?  I remember when Cher was living in a NYC hotel for nine months while her apartment was being gut renovated.  She had moved to NYC so Chaz could go to Performing Arts High School.  But she's Cher with millions and has always earned a living.  Does Tinsley have millions? 

[Jextella]

I'm really curious to see how the interview goes down.  Luann will have had plenty of time to craft perfect, politically correct responses but I'm sure that's not what Andy and team are looking for.  I'm not sure they'd waste production time and money to hold an interview that doesn't reveal much of anything.

I'm also guessing that Luanne has her back up against a wall.  Timing of the announcement seemed to be an attempt to evade the issue during the reunion.  I suspect this was a no-no of some sort whether written or implied, and Bravo wants payback.  Luanne will have to spill at least some of the beans, IMO.

Edited August 30, 2017 by Jextella

[lunastartron]

50 minutes ago, TessHarding2 said:

Am just catching up here - the address you wrote above for Ramona is the one I was referring to where my old friend lives.  It has Eli Zabar's gourmet shop on the building's corner.  

If anyone knows how Tinsley can do $7000 per month please tell me.  Does she get monthly dividends and from where or from whom?  I remember when Cher was living in a NYC hotel for nine months while her apartment was being gut renovated.  She had moved to NYC so Chaz could go to Performing Arts High School.  But she's Cher with millions and has always earned a living.  Does Tinsley have millions? 

Tinsley hails from a wealthy family in her own right. Her grandfather owned multiple successful businesses. 

She is evidently worry-free about money independently to the point that she walked left her first husband and not vise versa. 

Edited August 28, 2017 by lunastartron

[BBHN]

Quote

I'm also guessing that Luanne has her back up against a wall.  Timing of the announcement seemed to be an attempt to evade the issue during the reunion.  I suspect theis was a no-no of some sort whether written or implied, and Bravo wants payback.  Luanne will have to spill at least some of the beans, IMO.

I guess we'll know from the interview itself how Andy and Bravo feel about her.

[WireWrap]

3 hours ago, Jextella said:

I'm really curious to see how the interview goes down.  Luann will have had plenty of time to craft perfect, politically correct responses but I'm sure that's not what Andy and team are looking for.  I'm not sure they'd waste production time and money to hold an interview that doesn't reveal much of anything.

I'm also guessing that Luanne has her back up against a wall.  Timing of the announcement seemed to be an attempt to evade the issue during the reunion.  I suspect theis was a no-no of some sort whether written or implied, and Bravo wants payback.  Luanne will have to spill at least some of the beans, IMO.

I doubt that Andy, Bravo or production are upset that she announced the divorce after the reunion filmed. She did admit there were problems, she just didn't go into details, unlike when Ramona refused to answer any questions from Andy about her/Mario/his cheating and tried to turn it back on his, Andy's, love life. If Andy didn't hold Ramona's feet to the fire then, I doubt he will Luann's this time.

[Jextella]

On 8/26/2017 at 2:07 AM, HunterHunted said:

Or maybe it's hard to explain her nuanced childhood. I love my parents, but like most people they are flawed and my parents were deeply flawed. My father was an alcoholic with massive anger issues. He never laid a hand on my mother, but he beat his children mercilessly. He beat my one brother daily because my brother had allergies. My dad almost beat that brother to death with a tire iron until a stranger intervened. My oldest brother was running from my dad during a beating and ended up getting hit by a car at 6 years old. We got beatings for bad grades; we got beatings for talking back, but we also got beatings if we were hurt or sick. I got a beating for not catching the chicken pox and then for catching the chicken pox years later. He also sent all of us to private school and then berated us constantly about how much our schooling cost him though as minors we had no say about where we went to school. When I say constantly, I mean constantly. Everyday sometimes for hours. My two youngest siblings opted for boarding school. He also helped pay for college though we all had some level of scholarship award.

A picture only shows what was happening the exact moment it was taken. We don't know what happened before or after. Bethenny does use hyperbole, but even with Bernadette's pictures I take Bethenny's statement to mean that more often than not her family didn't have birthday parties for her and if they did, it was accompanied by all of the crazy shit she always had to deal with.

Try being raised by an alcoholic. Those kids can tell the difference. My siblings and I knew that if you could tell my dad something that would upset him before he finished a fourth beer his reaction would be completely different. After 4, he'd be unreasonable and dangerous. We knew most of the bus routes really well because if we asked to go somewhere, but pointed out that he might be too drunk to drive he'd beat us and still drive us there completely drunk. We started asking permission like this "Is it OK if I take the number 12 bus to the library? or my friend's house? I'll get a transfer so I can get back home." You had to get the transfer because otherwise he'd be pissed that he had to pick you up and he'd have drinking.

That said, it's not like my childhood or my memories of my father are all bad. More often than not, I'm sharing happy, funny, and silly stories about my family. That doesn't mean that my dad didn't terrorize my family for a significant portion of my life. Bethenny might be a narcissist, but I think comes from being raised by people who were so messed up that it was hard for them to consider what was best for Bethenny. Maybe they sent her to prep schools and paid for college because that's the best version of parenting they could manage.

17 minutes ago, ZaldamoWilder said:

Piggybacking @ButterQueen's heartbreak.   I started to PM you but questioned whether it was appropriate.  Instead let me just say how sorry I am that you endured a childhood so unimaginably terrifying.  You and your brothers and sisters are here for a reason.

Your post also illuminates that it isn't as simple as good parents, bad parents.  Periodic demonstrations of good behavior don't keep people from doing heinous things.

Ditto.  I find it hard to comprehend how kids survive upbringings like these.  And to still have love for your father despite it all is amazing.  

[link417]

9 hours ago, BBHN said:

Well, not every confabulation will be dissertated to the contentment of all and sundry. As they say in the colloquial adage, YMMV.

I see you, BBHN . . . I wish I could like this comment 100 times!

[jaync]

Quote

Why was Carole so invested in outting Frenchie as a paid actor?  It struck me as odd.

Carole's all about the word on the street when it pertains to others.

Quote

Could they [Carole and Adam] have been more cringeworthy than Sonja and Frenchie or Luann and Tom?

Probably, because they sometimes were. (Fake or not, at least Sonja/Frenchie have some chemistry.) The whole living-but-not-living together, and Carole not caring if Adam dates other women, is rather hinky. Maybe Carole was projecting when she accused Sonja of buying a camera-ready boyfriend.

[ButterQueen]

7 hours ago, BBHN said:

I guess we'll know from the interview itself how Andy and Bravo feel about her.

I missed something......interview?

[motorcitymom65]

Carole didn't seem any more interested in outing the French dude as an actor anymore than any of the others did. Lu was actually the first person to bring it up - to Dorinda. She said "I heard he was an actor". Dorinda agreed. Then they said that he certainly looked the part. Beth then jumped in and said "what, he's an actor"? Sonja denied it, Dorinda said that was what she had heard, then asked Carole what she had heard. She said she had heard the same. Lu then agreed that this was the word on the street. Carole said that she thought Lu had heard it from the same person she had heard it from. So I guess the question is, why were Lu and Dorinda so interested in outing him as an Actor? They had the most to say on the topic and brought it up to start. 

Edited August 28, 2017 by motorcitymom65

[jaync]

Carole was still interested, though, just like she was in regards to what she "heard" about Tom. The point is, Carole is all about using rumors for fodder (unless it applies to herself or her BFFrankel).

[motorcitymom65]

46 minutes ago, jaync said:

Carole was still interested, though, just like she was in regards to what she "heard" about Tom. The point is, Carole is all about using rumors for fodder (unless it applies to herself or her BFFrankel).

Yes, they were all interested in the notion that Sonja might be paying a guy to appear as her boyfriend on the show. It would be interesting to know for most, but especially if you were on the show with her. My comment was in relation to someone thinking it odd for Carole to be interested in it and not wonder about the others. The ones who actually introduced the topic. 

[jaync]

Quote

So we got the lecture from Bethenny instead of some insight from Dorinda on the Tom/Luann relationship. 

Miss "I only date men with private planes" has no room to lecture anybody about being pretentious. Of course, she's hypocritical to her (jutting) bone, so her berating was just business as usual.

[quaintirene]

On 2017-08-23 at 11:49 PM, diadochokinesis said:

Yep. I held my daughter back because the birthday cutoff here is weird. You just have to be 5 by December 31 to be in kindergarten. My daughter is a December birthday so I held her back. Although, I just googled and Bryn's birthday is May 8 so it isn't too late. Some will hold back though for maturity or developmental reasons. Other parents will hold back thinking it gives their kid an edge in the higher grades if they are a bit older. 

She may have held her back precisely because of all the crap going on last year.  Bryn is a young child but sadly not too young not to have to deal with other kids commenting on her mom and dad's problems.  And kids can be cruel as I think we can all remember!

[Celia Rubenstein]

1 hour ago, jaync said:

Carole was still interested, though, just like she was in regards to what she "heard" about Tom. The point is, Carole is all about using rumors for fodder (unless it applies to herself or her BFFrankel).

I'm not sure why Carole would be singled out for blame when she merely expressed interest in the subject, while the housewives who introduced the idea that Frenchie is an actor and bolstered it by pointing out that this was the "word on the street" are less culpable.