Season 3 Discussion

[Anfisawillbemine]

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14 hours ago, noveltylibrary said:

I think she did but it doesn't really explain why she didn't talk to her family for 4 years.

I don’t understand either. But look at it both ways, if the Pao doesn’t wanna talk to them, then cool. The family should just let her be and if she wants to talk, then talk. Don’t just blame Russ. & Pao needs to learn that it’s a SIMPLE PHONE CALL. Say hi and hang up, you don’t need to take forever to call. 

[CoachWristletJen]

9 minutes ago, Cherrio said:

She should apply for a K-9 visa, but I would never let her adopt a dog for its own protection.

Oh, because she has that rape room...

[OrchidThief]

1 hour ago, CoachWristletJen said:

Is Nicole’s father Amish? 

I doubt it, because he is divorced and remarried; also not wearing the attire. And if grandpa is the paternal one, he appears to be run of the mill Christian, not Amish.

28 minutes ago, ALittleShelfish said:

And a hell yeah to whoever said Azan probably is the one who wrote the email.

The IRS only communicates via postal mail, and I bet all other US government agencies are the same way. Otherwise there's just too much room for scamming.

[Landlord]

15 hours ago, Nowhere said:

When a close family member is dying, don't you spend most of the day and night with that person? From my understanding, Paola saw her grandmother twice, and briefly at that. This bitch is on vacation. I think she's a sociopath.

Also, blaming depression for not calling. When you have a close, supportive family and you're lonely, those are the first people you call. Every day. I know first hand. That was a shitty excuse. When you're depressed and have no friends, you call family, even if you have to fake a smile and even if you don't tell them the full truth about your condition, it's comforting just to hear their voices. Paola is bullshit personified. 

Oh so she had a miscarriage and that's why she won't talk to her family ?. Whatever.

Last year, my sister called me that our dad was on his last leg. Had not been home in ten years (like 10/12 hours away from hometown). 

I did not spent every minute with my father. I did take moments to reconnect with old friends, I took a bit of care of my sister (his primary caretaker), I saw him 2 or 3 times in the hospital, and we managed to get him a weekend permission to come home (pending conditions and a litteral pharmacy of meds, gosh, it was a nightmare). He was sleeping a lot, and encouraged me to actually go and see my friends (probably spent 5 to 10 hours with said friends over the span of the week I was there). I don't feel bad for that. All he wanted was to see his 3 daughters together at least once, he got that, plus got to meet his great-grand-daughter for the first time in over two years, he was good. 

I know not all families are the same, but that is my experience, and everyone was happy in the end. 

Hm, no, I did not hop on the back of an ex-boyfriend's bike, though. Nor did I dress like a 2 bit hooker, but it was in the middle of April in Canada and it was burrrr! 

Edited June 4, 2018 by Landlord
Because I'm a d-canoe that can't spell. Obviously.

[NinaH]

26 minutes ago, islandgal140 said:

All this distrust of Family Chantal for Pedro is straight up mostly (not all) Chantal's fault. She set the stage for this with her lies at the beginning of the relationship when she lied about the depth of her relationship with Pedro. Claiming he was just a boyfriend and coming to the US to study. Meanwhile, she brought him here on a fiance visa and didn't tell her parents until a few days before the wedding. Family Chantal never really seemed to hold Chantal accountable for her lies. 

 

Did you hear Chantal shut her mom down, at the drunk wine tasting table conversation?  At this point, Idk why Chantal doesn’t want that discussed?  It’s not like they can ground her for lying. It would probably go a long way in smoothing things over but I guess that would make too much sense. 

[magemaud]

When Nicole was talking about her parents' concerns about her relationship with Azan, she used the word STUPID. 

[Delete]

Annie has probably only experienced American food as burger and fries. The dollar menu is probably all she's been exposed to in America. But at least  David TLC exposed her to some Tex-Mex that didn't involve a drive-thru window.  Anyway you look at it, Annie's life situation is sad.  Can you image having to BOOM-BOOM with David? And then call up Mom who basically says, "Where's my money, bitch?" 

What more time does David need? He just doesn't want to work.   I feel so sorry for Jacob, and totally get Angry Snooki's rage against her Dad. 

Molly sighs and says ," I need an assistant" the immediately tells Luis what to do while she's gone. Why is so surprised her 27 year old husband doesn't want to look after her 6 year old? I don't like Luis at all, but I'd feel the same way if I married someone and immediately was expected to parent a young child. 

There is no way Anafisa would be staying around with Jorge if not for the show. She is way better than him, and he knows it. I didn't think much of her at first, but she's really turned things around. For starters, she's is going to school.  She knows the time limit is short on reality tv and instagram modelling. Maybe at the next reunion she can recommend that for airhead Pao, and dimwit Nicole. Pao only has a few booty shaking years left. Nicole could benefit from any kind of career that will provide stability for May, and not have her living in a dumpster.  NEWSFLASH: Azan's Just Not That In To You!! 

 

I'm off to go harvest some American dollars.  ;-)

Edited June 5, 2018 by Barbara Please

[iwasish]

1 hour ago, NinaH said:

She probably conveniently left all that out, for sympathy and a handy dandy excuse to not have children.  And is counting on Russ to be too dim to do any research of his own on the matter. 

I’d love to know if Russ was there in the emergency room or did he just hear all this stuff second hand from Pao.  “weak limbs” what is that?

[CoachWristletJen]

7 minutes ago, magemaud said:

When Nicole was talking about her parents' concerns about her relationship with Azan, she used the word STUPID. 

Classic projection.

[Delete]

2 hours ago, TaraS1 said:

Did I misunderstand or did Molly say this was the dad's weekend with Kensley and she specifically asked him to switch with her?  If so, that is seriously messed up.   "Let's see how Luweese handles a weekend alone as a stepdad!"  What an idiot.

I missed that part. That's disturbing. 

[gingerella]

4 hours ago, Chickabiddy said:

As much as I am no Pao fan and only lukewarm on Annie, I will give them a bit of a pass on this one. My husband is German, and we ended up living in Germany for a few years, as some here may recall. My mother is French, so I get Europe. I love Europe.  And I speak German. Living in Germany was a great experience, and my husband is a pretty understanding and helpful guy. HOWEVER adjustments are hard. Giving up your job, your friends, your wider social circle, your culture, and a lot of your independence (until you get acclimated) is hard. I never loved America so much or missed it so hard as those first few months readjusting my whole life. You miss the familiar and you do idealize what was familiar or comfortable. 

As and for the place you live doesn't matter, it's who you are on the inside. I gotta say my mileage varies on this one. We moved a couple years ago from New Orleans to a small FL beach town. I am making the best of it - new job, making new friends. enjoying the beach, etc. But damn, do I miss the cultural offerings, dining, architecture. music, festivals, verve, diversity, and energy of NOLA. She had her problems to be sure, but there was also a lot of fabulousness, too. I strongly believe that you have to find a way to bloom where planted, but I also have a load of sympathy for the struggles that come when life uproots you for one reason or another. And yes, yes, I get it. We all make choices and have to deal with the consequences, but I just have empathy/ sympathy for people who are in a struggle to make it work.

@Chickabiddy, thank you for saying this^^!  It is disheartening to see so many nasty comments about a foreigner in America not liking all things American, though given the times I'm sadly not surprised. I'm left wondering how many folks here who've said really negative things about Annie's not loving American food, etc. how many of you have actually spent any significant time traveling or living in urban or rural developing countries? If you had, perhaps you would be able to understand Annie's perspective. Sure, if it's true where she was working, she must have been pretty desperate to get out of that life and would hitch her wagon to just about anything that might get her out of there.  There are no little girls or even teen girls who dream about someday becoming a sex worker. That is something desperate women resort to or are forced into. And whether you want to believe it or not, the USA has a rather shiny and large facade of being the country where dreams are made, roads are paved in gold, and anyone from anywhere can be anything they want to be and make a decent life doing so. Currently deserved reputation or not, most of that is true - the last part obviously, not the streets paved in gold -  and I have yet to meet anyone, no matter how much they might love their home country, who would not gladly and immediately given up their own citizenship if suddenly offered a US green card. So while you might think she's delusional for thinking America is this or that, there's a reason she thinks that. I have empathy for her getting out of that life any way she could. Is David a catch? Hell no, he's a hot buttered mess but he offered her a way to get to the USA and try to make a better life for herself, and I cannot blame her for that, nor can I chastise her. David has and is using her as much as she is using him, that was made clear when she was having cold feet right before the wedding and he turned ice cold towards her, telling her if she dared to walk away from him he would never see her again. That? Was fucking cold and showed he was clearly using her to boost his sad sack ego, "Hey, I've still got it, look at my hot ass 25 year old wife!" Yeah, David and Jorge need to take two jumbo seats and STFU about hot wives because their wives arent with them because they're good in the sack or awesome providers. Anyway, I digress... You can snicket and chide Annie for not liking canned fish or greasy, fried American shit food, but if you knew Thailand well, you would understand that most Thai people, even very poor ones at that, can forage some fresh fish, veggies and fruit daily. The climate produces a situation where pretty much anything grows in abundance easily, and freshwater/ocean seafood are readily and cheaply available. Even the poor cook fresh food, they dont eat the processed shit we shovel down our gullets here in the States, so yeah, I get her disgust over what is likely David's preferred food - shitty, unhealthy, over processed junk food. No wonder she hates it, it's not like they're eating fresh organic food all the time.  As for her reaction to Jacob's injury, I thought she was very consoling to him when she was trying to calm him by saying, "but he's alright", meaning he isn't going to die, he'll recover and be okay again. Nothing nefarious there to me. I did think the whole chumy with the grandkids was interesting and clearly they've seen Annie more than just once if they're running to her, hugging her and sitting on her lap. I also thought it was very sweet that she wanted to say a Buddhist prayer for Jacob, that little ritual is very common at a Thai Buddhist temple and it was her way of showing him that she cared for him.  Anyway, that's all I'm gonna say about Annie. It's sad people can't even put themselves in her shoes and walk a few fucking miles to understand what another person might be going through to get in a less than stellar life situation...

 

As for Pao, what a lying sack of shit she is. I wish someone could sit her family down at a computer and have them watch last season and this season to see what a bitch she is to Russ, and how terribly she disrespects him when her asshole friend, Juan, is around. I imagine she'd get a good lashing from the family over that shit because they dont seem scared to call her out on her bullshit. But I just cant feel sorry for Russ because like all these asshole guys, he just wants a 'hot wife' so he puts up with her bullshit. It's his own damn fault really.

 

Regarding the Azan vs. Hassan comments I've read here in the past, I realized last night that I dont think there is any discrepancy in his name, I think it's just that stupid Baby Huey pronounces Hassan as Azan, which, if one is family with Moroccan and French accents, 'Hassan' would be pronounced with a very soft, almost silent 'H', so it would sound like 'Azan'. I think its the same name, just that Baby Huey and TLC are basically ignorant of accents and pronunciation, they're just there for the drama.

 

Lastly, and perhaps most disturbing is the realization that suddenly Anfisa is the darling, sane person on this show. How bad do the others have to sink for that to have happened?!?

Edited June 4, 2018 by gingerella

[LGGirl]

47 minutes ago, islandgal140 said:

All this distrust of Family Chantal for Pedro is straight up mostly (not all) Chantal's fault. She set the stage for this with her lies at the beginning of the relationship when she lied about the depth of her relationship with Pedro. Claiming he was just a boyfriend and coming to the US to study. Meanwhile, she brought him here on a fiance visa and didn't tell her parents until a few days before the wedding. Family Chantal never really seemed to hold Chantal accountable for her lies. 

.......

 

- Even when she was in OK and miserable we saw her ass talking to them back in their 2nd season. She made it known to them that she hated OK and that Russ was being a little bitch for having a problem with her modeling in lingerie.  I remember because Russ was angry and rightly so, at Pao for talking shit about him to them and encouraging them to do it. Mark my words, they thought Russ was behind her not talking to them because Pao gave the impression he was controlling because he doesn't want her tits and minge hanging out for all to see. 

 

 

I agree with your observation on Chantel.  She contributed this mess and Pedro takes the fall.  Still doesn’t excuse her family’s bad behavior and stupidity.  

Chantel was my new favorite this week.  I think she knows the score and drunk Pedro was mouthing off.  Her biggest mistake was not driving separately in her own car so she and Pedro can escape leave once her parents started up at breakfast.  

I remember that episode and was scratching head when Pao was going on about OK and why she didn’t call them to her parents.  Pao was too busy with her life in Miami to bother with keeping contact with her family.  Another selfish bitch. 

For someone who was in Human Resources, Poor David sure was clueless as to handling himself at an interview   But maybe he wanted to bomb it.   If you can’t afford $1000 for rent, then it might be time to find new digs.   Yes, I caught the interaction between Annie and David’s grandkids.  I smell manufactured drama.  Looks like David has gained the 100 lbs he had lost.

Nichole is hell bent on marrying Her World.   This mess will be fun to watch.  For all of those how wonder what Nichole has over her family, it’s her daughter.  It’s obvious that both sets of parents are invested in that little girl.  If Nichole ends up in Morocco, I have no doubt May will be well taken care of by Asan’s family.  

Molly: It’s her world and we all live in it.  Olivia was basically her live in nanny/housekeeper and Luis now needs to take over now that she is gone.  Olivia needs to just stay away.  It’s time Olivia has some sort of childhood.   I wouldn’t let Luis take care of my goldfish let alone my young daughter.   Molly, there is no way Luis will love your kid.  You can’t force it to happen.  And yes, we all deserve happiness but it doesn’t mean we get it   Making dumb decisions doesn’t help.  But you are really such a dumb selfish immature bitch, you can’t understand that.  

Anfisa needs to drop kick Jorge and find a sugar daddy.   There are tons of them in LA.  

[ChiCricket]

1 hour ago, Dobian said:

Pao on the whole pregnancy thing felt overplayed.  She was talking about type O blood and a low chance of having a baby.  That isn't some rare condition and women with type O have babies.  They might have a lower conception rate than other blood types but it's still viable.  She had plenty of opportunity to call her family when she was having fun modelling for cheap music videos in Miami.

 I just watched the part where her brother wanted to talk to her "away from their parents."  I really focused on the conversation between sister and brother (I'm pretty fluent in Spanish.)

Pao is so full of caca (crap.) She was doing verbal gymnastics to blame anyone else but herself for ghosting her family.  You can tell they love her and were really hurt.

She doesn't deserve her family.

[Mahamid Frauded Me]

I really wanted to see more of the rental Family Chantel was staying in, looked gorgeous.  I think Pedro's mom & sister piss me off more than Chantels parents/siblings. Did not expect to see one of the 7 wonders of the world tonight, a glimpse into Nicoles kitchen.  David is a moron, the way he was at the interview and mentioning his 25 year old former prostitute wife was asinine.  Anfisa is only putting up with Jorge for the TLC paycheck, I would almost put money on that. Pao is delusional nightmare - her lying to cover up her lack of calling home was pathetic , shifting the blame of not visiting on Roos losing his job, when all this time she has been dropping hundreds of dollars at the salon for piss poor hair coloring.  What can Pao possibly be modeling at her age ?  

[jackjill89]

These people give me a headache. I can't stand the stupid. Pedro is totally sketchy. Chantal should take the twins and her giraffe lashes, run far away from him and her family and try adulting. Nicole is pathetic. Azan is completely scamming her. Why she won't look into the visa denial is insane. If they denied her K-1 visa, why in the world does she think they'd approve a K-3. David, oh David. I just can't even with the stupid with this one. 

[CoachWristletJen]

I don't get how Chantel's family can afford such a gorgeous rental when they're such idiots. Seriously. 

Chantel started the mistrust by lying, but yet I get why she lied. She knew her family wouldn't accept Pedro. She knew how closed-minded and weird they were and she was very much afraid.

Pedro's mom is greedy. I don't like that one bit! Her screechy voice doesn't help much either. (Like when she got the laptop.) I get why her husband ran away. Still, just a sad situation.

As for Pedro, I'm not so sure that he started out as a grifter. He may well have loved Chantel and he may well have wanted to embrace The Family Chantel as his own. Their rejection of him was horrible. Their behavior in his country was horrible. They treated his family like peons. They were the embodiment of idiots abroad.  Think of that dear woman cooking all day for her grandson and his new in-laws, and Family Chantel basically sends the message that she's too lowly to even lay eyes on. One of the most cringeworthy moments in a very cringewrothy show! Worse yet, they've never apologized. No wonder he's still licking his wounds!

Not excusing his screeching mom's behavior, but Pedro might be allowing her to think he's more prosperous than he actually is. I think Pedro tries to prove his self worth by providing for his mother and his sister because he's definitely not getting anything from Chantel and her weirdo kin. He's an alpha male and I think he's been wounded to the core. And for some reason, family Chantel still doesn't feel as though they've gotten their licks in. They're not satisfied. They want to knock him around some more. He's not bruised up enough for their liking. And apologize for the way they insulted his poor grandmother? Not a chance. Just smile and pretend it didn't happen. However, Chantel's dad's gas lighting is not working.

In Pedro's culture, it's weird to smile all the time -- especially when you're talking to someone you despise!

Then Pedro drops a bomb. Ill timed, yes. Mean, yes. He was drunk and pushed to his limit by the whole weird bunch and their angry lackey, River. (River, you can't have sex with your sister. That's too weird -- even for you. Deal with it. Find your own girlfriend.)

Barring the notion of TLC putting him up to it, I think Pedro might have said what he said because he felt terribly desperately alone and hurt, not to mention pushed into a corner.  He was  drunk and sick to death of their accusations. Maybe he had been bitching to his mom and the two of them finally decided that he needed to leave? Who knows?

But it could well be that he never came to this country with the intention of screwing over Chantel.

5 hours ago, Granny58 said:

Yep, grocery stores...plenty of them and full to the brim.  She could be cooking.  It's cheaper than eating out too.

Exactly. They could absolutely buy fresh fruits and vegetables, chicken and fish, and, SMALLER VOLUMES OF FOOD!

No better way to save money than buying SMALLER VOLUMES OF FOOD. 

Also, if he would just eat half the tube of Oreos. Not the whole tube of Oreos.

Thailand David more or less maintained his weight loss, and Kentucky David needs a silver interview suit with GOODYEAR plastered across it.  

It's like he's completely helpless, a slave to geography with no control over what gets tossed into his gullet. Put him in one environment and he's fine, in another, he gets larger.

It's like he's a hamster.

[silverspoons]

Is it too late or not possible for Azan to get a 2 week tourist Visa to America. I think seeing Nicole's apartment and life for even a weekend would make him rethink his plans. Lets say his secret plan is to stay with her for 2 years and run, could he really live in that apartment with her for 2 years? Our city has the senior citizen world games, and is does not seem hard for anyone (including family) to get a 2-4 week visa to come here from over 50 countries. Is it hard to get a tourist visa from Azan's country or is he flagged now that he applied and got denied for K1?

David's interview I think was set up for TV. David used to be in some sort of local politics and he was basically just going to meet up with a old connection. There was no real job posting available. David just seemed to be feeling out if the old connection could help him find a job or make up a job for him. I think this was not only done for the camera but to show Annie he was "trying" to get work. If David was really teaching English while in Asia then should he be that ashamed of his work history. If he really had a great degree and 20 years of great work history and then he moved to Asia to teach, why is that horrible? I get the job market is harder over age 40 but some employers might like a person who lived overseas, maybe learned another language, and had teaching skills. The employer does not have to know about a divorce or health issues. I see David and Annie in an MLM soon, vitamins, water or coaching...or whatever the latest MLM scheme is. Maybe David should ask Kody Brown what the best MLM is for reality stars.

[Mahamid Frauded Me]

10 minutes ago, silverspoons said:

If David was really teaching English while in Asia then should he be that ashamed of his work history. If he really had a great degree and 20 years of great work history and then he moved to Asia to teach, why is that horrible? I get the job market is harder over age 40 but some employers might like a person who lived overseas, maybe learned another language, and had teaching skills. 

He was teaching English to Thai women to get them american men..allegedly - if he was really there on a "job" he would have work history, not this 4 year gap.  He acted like he was too qualified for ANY job in Louisville. I would admire cough cough him more if he got any job for now... My pops used to say it was always easier to find a job when you already had a job - the sheer desperation in his "faux" interview was palpable 

[lucy711]

1 hour ago, gingerella said:

@Chickabiddy, thank you for saying this^^!  It is disheartening to see so many nasty comments about a foreigner in America not liking all things American, though given the times I'm sadly not surprised. I'm left wondering how many folks here who've said really negative things about Annie's not loving American food, etc. how many of you have actually spent any significant time traveling or living in urban or rural developing countries? If you had, perhaps you would be able to understand Annie's perspective. Sure, if it's true where she was working, she must have been pretty desperate to get out of that life and would hitch her wagon to just about anything that might get her out of there.  There are no little girls or even teen girls who dream about someday becoming a sex worker. That is something desperate women resort to or are forced into. And whether you want to believe it or not, the USA has a rather shiny and large facade of being the country where dreams are made, roads are paved in gold, and anyone from anywhere can be anything they want to be and make a decent life doing so. Currently deserved reputation or not, most of that is true - the last part obviously, not the streets paved in gold -  and I have yet to meet anyone, no matter how much they might love their home country, who would not gladly and immediately given up their own citizenship if suddenly offered a US green card. So while you might think she's delusional for thinking America is this or that, there's a reason she thinks that. I have empathy for her getting out of that life any way she could. Is David a catch? Hell no, he's a hot buttered mess but he offered her a way to get to the USA and try to make a better life for herself, and I cannot blame her for that, nor can I chastise her. David has and is using her as much as she is using him, that was made clear when she was having cold feet right before the wedding and he turned ice cold towards her, telling her if she dared to walk away from him he would never see her again. That? Was fucking cold and showed he was clearly using her to boost his sad sack ego, "Hey, I've still got it, look at my hot ass 25 year old wife!" Yeah, David and Jorge need to take two jumbo seats and STFU about hot wives because their wives arent with them because they're good in the sack or awesome providers. Anyway, I digress... You can snicket and chide Annie for not liking canned fish or greasy, fried American shit food, but if you knew Thailand well, you would understand that most Thai people, even very poor ones at that, can forage some fresh fish, veggies and fruit daily. The climate produces a situation where pretty much anything grows in abundance easily, and freshwater/ocean seafood are readily and cheaply available. Even the poor cook fresh food, they dont eat the processed shit we shovel down our gullets here in the States, so yeah, I get her disgust over what is likely David's preferred food - shitty, unhealthy, over processed junk food. No wonder she hates it, it's not like they're eating fresh organic food all the time.  As for her reaction to Jacob's injury, I thought she was very consoling to him when she was trying to calm him by saying, "but he's alright", meaning he isn't going to die, he'll recover and be okay again. Nothing nefarious there to me. I did think the whole chumy with the grandkids was interesting and clearly they've seen Annie more than just once if they're running to her, hugging her and sitting on her lap. I also thought it was very sweet that she wanted to say a Buddhist prayer for Jacob, that little ritual is very common at a Thai Buddhist temple and it was her way of showing him that she cared for him.  Anyway, that's all I'm gonna say about Annie. It's sad people can't even put themselves in her shoes and walk a few fucking miles to understand what another person might be going through to get in a less than stellar life situation...

 

As for Pao, what a lying sack of shit she is. I wish someone could sit her family down at a computer and have them watch last season and this season to see what a bitch she is to Russ, and how terribly she disrespects him when her asshole friend, Juan, is around. I imagine she'd get a good lashing from the family over that shit because they dont seem scared to call her out on her bullshit. But I just cant feel sorry for Russ because like all these asshole guys, he just wants a 'hot wife' so he puts up with her bullshit. It's his own damn fault really.

 

Regarding the Azan vs. Hassan comments I've read here in the past, I realized last night that I dont think there is any discrepancy in his name, I think it's just that stupid Baby Huey pronounces Hassan as Azan, which, if one is family with Moroccan and French accents, 'Hassan' would be pronounced with a very soft, almost silent 'H', so it would sound like 'Azan'. I think its the same name, just that Baby Huey and TLC are basically ignorant of accents and pronunciation, they're just there for the drama.

 

Lastly, and perhaps most disturbing is the realization that suddenly Anfisa is the darling, sane person on this show. How bad do the others have to sink for that to have happened?!?

 

I don't think anyone expects the foreign spouses to love all things American, but we have seen some of the spouses basically hate and talk badly about almost everything American.  I think others are frustrated that some of the spouses never seem to have any clue about the area to which they are moving when a simple computer search could have been helpful.  I believe most of the foreign spouses have had access to the Internet in their home countries since they regularly kept in touch with their beloved in the USA. (I'm thinking of Pao and her complaints about Oklahoma).

Edited June 4, 2018 by lucy711

[Chickabiddy]

1 hour ago, CoachWristletJen said:

I don't get how Chantel's family can afford such a gorgeous rental when they're such idiots. Seriously. 

Chantel started the mistrust by lying, but yet I get why she lied. She knew her family wouldn't accept Pedro. She knew how closed-minded and weird they were and she was very much afraid.

Pedro's mom is greedy. I don't like that one bit! Her screechy voice doesn't help much either. (Like when she got the laptop.) I get why her husband ran away. Still, just a sad situation.

As for Pedro, I'm not so sure that he started out as a grifter. He may well have loved Chantel and he may well have wanted to embrace The Family Chantel as his own. Their rejection of him was horrible. Their behavior in his country was horrible. They treated his family like peons. They were the embodiment of idiots abroad.  Think of that dear woman cooking all day for her grandson and his new in-laws, and Family Chantel basically sends the message that she's too lowly to even lay eyes on. One of the most cringeworthy moments in a very cringewrothy show! Worse yet, they've never apologized. No wonder he's still licking his wounds!

Not excusing his screeching mom's behavior, but Pedro might be allowing her to think he's more prosperous than he actually is. I think Pedro tries to prove his self worth by providing for his mother and his sister because he's definitely not getting anything from Chantel and her weirdo kin. He's an alpha male and I think he's been wounded to the core. And for some reason, family Chantel still doesn't feel as though they've gotten their licks in. They're not satisfied. They want to knock him around some more. He's not bruised up enough for their liking. And apologize for the way they insulted his poor grandmother? Not a chance. Just smile and pretend it didn't happen. However, Chantel's dad's gas lighting is not working.

In Pedro's culture, it's weird to smile all the time -- especially when you're talking to someone you despise!

Then Pedro drops a bomb. Ill timed, yes. Mean, yes. He was drunk and pushed to his limit by the whole weird bunch and their angry lackey, River. (River, you can't have sex with your sister. That's too weird -- even for you. Deal with it. Find your own girlfriend.)

Barring the notion of TLC putting him up to it, I think Pedro might have said what he said because he felt terribly desperately alone and hurt, not to mention pushed into a corner.  He was  drunk and sick to death of their accusations. Maybe he had been bitching to his mom and the two of them finally decided that he needed to leave? Who knows?

But it could well be that he never came to this country with the intention of screwing over Chantel.

I just love your whole post!

I have even bolded my most favoritest parts.  And I have to totally say Word! to he bolded and italicized part. From my own experience, with a a very nice husband, lovely in laws and a comfortable family background, moving to a foreign country is VERY isolating - especially the first few months to a year+

I can't imagine how shitty Pedro feels as the poor immigrant separated from his culture and family by a great distance, especially when Chantel's financially superior family can't wait to gang up on his barely bilingual ass every chance they get. We never see Pedro in a neutral setting with only one member of the family trying to have a calm conversation with him. They are alway double teaming him or piling on as a group on their turf. Living in America means that Chantel already has the home court advantage. And I speak form experience, it's a real bitch to have an argument and try to defend yourself in a 2nd language. And I am pretty damn fluent, but trying to find the right word and conjugate the right fucking verb when your back is up sucks. 

I am no Pedro fan, but that poor mofo has no support system here. Where can he go after a fight with Chantel or her family? And then he has this bossy wife telling him what he will and will not do. Chantel should have never dragged on that vacation into the lion's den without having a serious sit down with her parents to leave her husband the fuck alone. They should have ridden in her car, so that if things got hairy, they could have just departed early. The bottle was Pedro's only escape route. That whole family act likes cats toying with a mouse in their clutches. They just like fucking with him for sport. 

And as for Pedro seeing his paychecks as "his money" well, Chantel and her family opened that can of worms when they insisted Pedro sign a prenup. That little act, while perhaps reasonable, sets up the scenario from the get go as yours and mine - and not us together. 

Edited June 4, 2018 by Chickabiddy

[SleepyAndClumsy]

If I were Nicole’s family, I would say this: Hey, we’ll give you $10,000 and a one-way ticket to Morocco if you give us legal custody of May/e. She uses that poor baby as a bargaining chip all the time ... they need to turn that around on her. And then honestly they should just wash their hands of Nicole. She’s a terrible person.

[Dobian]

1 hour ago, LGGirl said:

For someone who was in Human Resources, Poor David sure was clueless as to handling himself at an interview   But maybe he wanted to bomb it.

The first clue was the fact that he didn't even wear a button down shirt and tie to the interview.

I have to give honorable mention to TLC for it's latest bit of devious editing and false advertising.  All week they played the clip where the lawyer mentions Azan's ties to drug trafficking.  Turns out she was just speaking generally when coming up with reasons for his so-called visa rejection.

[Baltimore Betty]

8 minutes ago, SleepyAndClumsy said:

If I were Nicole’s family, I would say this: Hey, we’ll give you $10,000 and a one-way ticket to Morocco if you give us legal custody of May/e. She uses that poor baby as a bargaining chip all the time ... they need to turn that around on her. And then honestly they should just wash their hands of Nicole. She’s a terrible person.

Nicole knows that May is a draw with Azan, alone Nicole is no bargain.  But SLEEPYANDCLUMSY, I like your way of thinking, pay her off so she can be with the man of her dreams.  

[Former Nun]

25 minutes ago, Dobian said:

I have to give honorable mention to TLC for it's latest bit of devious editing and false advertising.

I second that, Dobian, and make an amendment that they cheat us every time by playing the same clips over and over in the same program.

[NinaH]

22 minutes ago, SleepyAndClumsy said:

If I were Nicole’s family, I would say this: Hey, we’ll give you $10,000 and a one-way ticket to Morocco if you give us legal custody of May/e. She uses that poor baby as a bargaining chip all the time ... they need to turn that around on her. And then honestly they should just wash their hands of Nicole. She’s a terrible person.

Sounds like a terrific idea. Nicole is too effing stupid to realize that 10K isn’t that much money (as in, to HER it would sound like 10 million) and between them all, they could cough up a couple thousand each and be rid of her sorry ass. Relatives like her are exhausting, it’s always something and total drama & crises non-stop, and then they pull the ultimate selfish move and bring an innocent child into the mix, thereby cementing the family support forever.  I’m sure they love her no matter what, but a year long break would be welcomed as long as they know Mae is safe & sound with them.

[islandgal140]

Pedro's WTF look and side eye when Mama Chantal said that him and Chantal made a cute couple was gif worthy. LOL!

Family Chantal breakfast bacon looked like Trichinosis on a plate just waiting to happen

I really don't want to hear another word about Annie's dowry. After the initial down payment and gifts of gold to her parents, buying 2 water buffaloes, party and doling out cash to her whole village, it is ridiculous to hear he still owes $15k for that! Just because they are Thai peasant folk doesn't mean they ain't scammers. 

If Annie doesn't like American, Mexican food or whatever - cook instead of sitting in a restaurant with black electrical tape for eyebrows souring everyone else's dining experience. Her attitude is starting to grate on my nerves. David ain't no prize, but she knew that from jump. 

Nicole, no words that haven't been said already. Can't wait until Grandpa reads her for filth next week.

Made me chuckle sadly when Nicole asked May if she wanted to go back to Morocco and May resoundingly said "NO!" knowing that what May wants is second to her Mom having a hot piece of ass.  

[Former Nun]

39 minutes ago, lucy711 said:

I don't think anyone expects the foreign spouses to love all things American, but we have seen some of the spouses basically hate and talk badly about almost everything American.  I think others are frustrated that some of the spouses never seem to have any clue about the area to which they are moving when a simple computer search could have been helpful.

Maybe many of the problems could have been alleviated if the foreign spouses* hadn't introduced themselves under shady circumstances.  Those we've met don't seem to care what kind of American "prize" they schmooze...only that the relationship somehow leads to a Green Card.         *fiance`s

[Former Nun]

1 hour ago, CoachWristletJen said:

Their behavior in his country was horrible. They treated his family like peons. They were the embodiment of idiots abroad.  Think of that dear woman cooking all day for her grandson and his new in-laws, and Family Chantel basically sends the message that she's too lowly to even lay eyes on.

I think things started out okay but changed totally when Family Pedro's mother "prepared" patas de pollo as an insult...and Pedro dumped one plate on their table.  Family Pedro laughed about their little inside joke.  Even Pedro said they don't eat that type of food.  Family Chantel should have been the bigger people, but maybe they truly were afraid of that outlying area.  Things just got worse from chicken feet on.   As far as I'm concerned, Pedro should go back home and Family Chantel can get off my television.

Edited June 4, 2018 by Former Nun
apparently I can't spell "chicken"

[MrsSmartyPants]

18 hours ago, RichiesOlderBro said:

They don’t get paid very much to appear, probably only $1k per episode.  

That’s 4-8 month’s rent depending on how many episodes there are 

[BravoAddict72]

8 hours ago, Granny58 said:

Me too.  The only "blood type" issues I've ever heard of are rH issues, and don't they typically kick in after a third pregnancy?  Anybody else hear of other "blood type" problems?

Neck and neck race with Nicole's father's weird beard.  

I have a blood mutation, MTHFR, that causes miscarriages. When I am pregnant my body throws clots threw the umbilical cord and causes miscarriages. I have had 9 of them.

[iwasish]

1 hour ago, SleepyAndClumsy said:

If I were Nicole’s family, I would say this: Hey, we’ll give you $10,000 and a one-way ticket to Morocco if you give us legal custody of May/e. She uses that poor baby as a bargaining chip all the time ... they need to turn that around on her. And then honestly they should just wash their hands of Nicole. She’s a terrible person.

Wouldn’t be surprised to see Nicole go to Morocco, get strung along by Hassan til money runs out and he dumps her. Just hope she does not get knocked up.

 

I also think the email was bogus. Most government official letters arent addressed. “Dear Nicole”. That would also explain the use of the word “refused” vs the normally used  “denied”. I wonder what signature was used and I would also expect that even if they did send an email, it would have been followed up by a letter. 

Edited June 4, 2018 by iwasish

[JoBeth70]

18 hours ago, Nowhere said:

Also, blaming depression for not calling. When you have a close, supportive family and you're lonely, those are the first people you call. Every day. I know first hand. That was a shitty excuse. When you're depressed and have no friends, you call family, even if you have to fake a smile and even if you don't tell them the full truth about your condition, it's comforting just to hear their voices. Paola is bullshit personified. 

I don’t know, when I’ve gone through periods of clinical depression, I’ve withdrawn from everyone, family included. I didn’t want to talk to anybody.

[Baltimore Betty]

28 minutes ago, islandgal140 said:

cook instead of sitting in a restaurant with black electrical tape for eyebrows souring everyone else's dining experience

OMG, I laughed out loud at my desk, too funny!  I guess it's funny because it's true, Annie can suck the air out of a room when she starts on what she does not like.  As for the lack of cooking, I am at a loss why she does not send David to the store for a whole fish and veggies, it has to be cheaper than going to a restaurant.

8 minutes ago, iwasish said:

Just hope she does not get knocked up.

It would be hard to get pregnant when Azan will not go near it, remember he lives with his aunt and there is no hanky panky in her house.

[libgirl2]

7 hours ago, LilaFowler said:

Chantal/Pedro: I don't believe that Pedro's mother is "harvesting the American dollar" or using Pedro and/or Chantal. The weird, slow-talking Family Chantal has never given Pedro or his family a chance. Ever. They ruined the trip to the DR and disrespected his grandmother ("this is where the militia lives" -- omfg). They are unsophisticated yet snobby suburbanites and it's embarrassing to watch. They are doing their best to ruin Chantal's marriage. Chantal needs to wake up and stop dragging Pedro along to these things until her family can go a week without interrogating him or accusing him of fraud. The guy works two manual labor jobs and then has to spend his time off with those people. I don't blame him for getting drunk and staying in his room. 

 

As a Dominican on my mom's side and who has pretty much her entire family out there in the actual military (my cousin handles immigration and my uncle was the secretary of armed forces), I take great offense to the Family Chantal treating the country like some den of crime and ignorance. Its not perfect but for goodness sake, is the US? 

[Chickabiddy]

1 minute ago, Baltimore Betty said:

As for the lack of cooking, I am at a loss why she does not send David to the store for a whole fish and veggies, it has to be cheaper than going to a restaurant.

I think she does cook at home. When David brought his son home to move in, wasn't Annie tucking in to food that looked like some homemade Thai food?  I am not sure how often they go out. Annie did ask David in the restaurant scene if they could afford to eat out. I assumed they were eating out because professional mouch David knew that production would pick up the tab. Annie did say in a talking head that she has no money, no car, no license to drive, etc. She said she is alone in the firehouse all day. 

And as for hating the food here, we do have great food, but access to fine dining and quality grocery stores can be limited by area. See my recent move from NOLA to small FL beach town. ;-) Also, being broke means that access to fresher, better quality food options is limited. 

But judging, as I love to do, by David's girth and poor aging, I have a feeling his favorite places to eat out are Golden Coral, Bob Evans, Denny's, etc. I doubt Annie has had a chance to explore all the fine dining options that Louisville has to offer. She may have been lucky enough to find an Asian grocery store, but I bet they do a lot of econo shopping at Food Lion and Dollar General...all respectable places, but not offering the same options as a Trader Joe's or  a Whole Paycheck. ;-)( 

[CoachWristletJen]

1 hour ago, Chickabiddy said:

I just love your whole post!

I have even bolded my most favoritest parts.  And I have to totally saw Word! to he bolded and italicized part. From my own experience, with a a very nice husband, lovely in laws and a comfortable family background, moving to a foreign country is VERY isolating - especially the first few months to a year+

I can't imagine how shitty Pedro feels as the poor immigrant separated from his culture and family by a great distance, especially when Chantel's financially superior family can't wait to gang up on his barely bilingual ass every chance they get. We never see Pedro in a neutral setting with only one member of the family trying to have a calm conversation with him. They are alway double teaming him or piling on as a group on their turf. Living in America means that Chantel already has the home court advantage. And I speak form experience, it's a real bitch to have an argument and try to defend yourself in a 2nd language. And I am pretty damn fluent, but trying to find the right word and conjugate the right fucking verb when your back is up sucks. 

I am no Pedro fan, but that poor mofo has no support system here. Where can he go after a fight with Chantel or her family? And then he has this bossy wife telling him what he will and will not do. Chantel should have never dragged on that vacation into the lion's den without having a serious sit down with her parents to leave her husband the fuck alone. They should have ridden in her car, so that if things got hairy, they could have just departed early. The bottle was Pedro's only escape route. That whole family act likes cats toying with a mouse in their clutches. They just like fucking with him for sport. 

And as for Pedro seeing his paychecks as "his money" well, Chantel and her family opened that can of worms when they insisted Pedro sign a prenup. That little act, while perhaps reasonable, sets up the scenario from the get go as yours and mine - and not us together. 

Thank you so much, Chickabiddy! I really appreciate that! I'm fighting the tendency to say 'thank you' like, five more times. :) 

The second car would have been a great idea so that they could escape when Family Chantel's 'Operation Divorce' got too overwhelming.

I suppose we should give a shoutout to Chantel's mom for antagonizing the marriage and then telling the cameras in wonder, "I think the two of them are having problems." Nice job, tiny-hatted beatch!

[nenya]

I don’t know it if was editing, but I really admired Russ. He was respectful to the whole family, especially the grandmother. He let them have their say without interrupting or getting defensive and also let Pao go with her explanation without interrupting or emphasizing his lack of blame. He seems like a pretty good guy, at least in these segments. 

[iwasish]

If Annie wants to motivate David into getting a job, she needs to cut the sexy time down to a minimum. 

[libgirl2]

2 hours ago, LGGirl said:

Nichole is hell bent on marrying Her World.   This mess will be fun to watch.  For all of those how wonder what Nichole has over her family, it’s her daughter.  It’s obvious that both sets of parents are invested in that little girl.  If Nichole ends up in Morocco, I have no doubt May will be well taken care of by Asan’s family.  

 

 

I think she might just be better of there than here. If only her grandparents would step in and get full custody of her. If they won't (due to something Nicole is threatening or doing), then let the poor kid have a better life in Morocco. I can see her being showered with affection by the family and Nicole locked in her room (and the family glad she is). 

[Granny58]

2 hours ago, CoachWristletJen said:

No better way to save money than buying SMALLER VOLUMES OF FOOD. 

This is TRUTH.  In my house DH and I decided we're too fat and our son doesn't move enough...so we cut way back on junk food.  Wow, we have saved so much money!!!

53 minutes ago, BravoAddict72 said:

I have a blood mutation, MTHFR, that causes miscarriages. When I am pregnant my body throws clots threw the umbilical cord and causes miscarriages. I have had 9 of them.

Oh you poor thing!!!  I'm so sorry.  That's awful.  

Edited June 4, 2018 by Granny58

[cheewhiz]

5 minutes ago, Granny58 said:

I have a blood mutation, MTHFR, that causes miscarriages. When I am pregnant my body throws clots threw the umbilical cord and causes miscarriages. I have had 9 of them.

I am so sorry

[Marilee]

5 hours ago, CoachWristletJen said:

He should have been using his international contacts to shine instead of laying a big fat goose egg.

But not if his international contacts only consist of his Sugar Daddy Chris and women he met in cheap Thai whorehouses.

[Gobi]

Anyone else notice Jorge trying to cop a quick feel when Anfisa gave him that phoney welcome back hug?

[bichonblitz]

On 5/29/2018 at 10:24 PM, the-grey-lady said:

And I could happily have gone the rest of my life without seeing/hearing Annie's simulation of David's sexual habits. If I were her, I'd have a houseguest there every damn night of the week.

She said his ass is too big to be quiet during sex. WTF? Someone please explain that to me. 

[bichonblitz]

On 5/29/2018 at 12:35 AM, Bridget said:

Also, it’s super nitpicky, I know, but May proclaiming “I is hungry” made me furious that Nicole didn’t use that moment to teach correct grammar to her daughter...who also allegedly woke up in the middle of the night in Morocco because she was hungry.  (

This is child abuse. Why is Nicole's mother letting this happen? How can she? My blood is boiling right now. Take that child away and give her food and a decent place to live until Nicole gets herself together. I don't even think Nicole would care that much if mom took over. She is completely 100% obsessed with getting Azan a visa. It's all that matters to her 24/7.

[iwasish]

7 minutes ago, bichonblitz said:

She said his ass is too big to be quiet during sex. WTF? Someone please explain that to me. 

Apparently during his nightly writhing with Annie, his penquinesque lower half sweats profusely and the sounds produced by his ass cheeks slapping together are reminiscent of a sonic boom. Annie herself admits to being quite vocal during sexy time.

[Drogo]

The DR. The Dominican Republic. *NOT "The Dominican," FamilyChantel and FriendMolly.

"The Dominican" sounds like a nonspeaking role in Scarface.

[LilaFowler]

7 hours ago, TaraS1 said:

Did I misunderstand or did Molly say this was the dad's weekend with Kensley and she specifically asked him to switch with her?  If so, that is seriously messed up.   "Let's see how Luweese handles a weekend alone as a stepdad!"  What an idiot.

And I'm glad I'm not the only one who briefly thought Family Chantel was accusing Family Pedro of harvesting organs lol

On the re-watch, I took it to mean that it was Molly's weekend to have Kensley but since she was going out of town, she asked Bio Dad to switch weekends with her so HE could take Kensley. He obviously said no, so Molly had few options.

[LGGirl]

1 hour ago, libgirl2 said:

I think she might just be better of there than here. If only her grandparents would step in and get full custody of her. If they won't (due to something Nicole is threatening or doing), then let the poor kid have a better life in Morocco. I can see her being showered with affection by the family and Nicole locked in her room (and the family glad she is). 

It’s not that I don’t agree with you BUT Nichole has not done anything egregious enough to warrant May being taken out of her care.  For all we know her parents may have already consulted a lawyer on this already and were told the same thing. If anything, the lawyer told them to do whatever it takes to keep Nichole around in order to keep an eye on May.  It’s clear that Nichole uses her daughter as a bargaining chip.  It’s how she extorted him into becoming Azan’s sponsor in the first place.  

I agree with the previous post that they should give a financial reason to keep May with them and have Nichole go off to Morocco alone.  If it were me, I’d tell her I’d fund this venture and living expenses while in Morocco if she let May stay behind. 

I doubt there really isn’t enough money for Nichole to let May behind.  It’s In her best interest to keep May close.  

Edited June 4, 2018 by LGGirl

[JocelynCavanaugh]

4 hours ago, gingerella said:

I'm left wondering how many folks here who've said really negative things about Annie's not loving American food, etc. how many of you have actually spent any significant time traveling or living in urban or rural developing countries?

Since this was clearly directed at me, I have traveled and spent time in developing countries, yes. Some of their food and customs were off-putting but I didn't go around gagging and criticizing them out loud. The Americans on this show (self-selected for obtuseness by virtue of it being a cable reality show) are held to a very high standard of cultural awareness and they almost always fall short, while the people from other countries are granted an extremely wide berth for the same behavior. Either it's okay to be disrespectful and ignorant, or it's not. I'm going with not.

 

4 hours ago, gingerella said:

if you knew Thailand well, you would understand that most Thai people, even very poor ones at that, can forage some fresh fish, veggies and fruit daily. The climate produces a situation where pretty much anything grows in abundance easily, and freshwater/ocean seafood are readily and cheaply available.

If you knew Kentucky well, you would understand that they have grocery stores and gardens. This is getting suuuuuper close to Edward Said territory and I'm a little uncomfortable. 

 

4 hours ago, gingerella said:

It's sad people can't even put themselves in her shoes and walk a few fucking miles to understand what another person might be going through to get in a less than stellar life situation...

People can be capable of empathy yet also understand that good manners don't cost a baht. In my very personal opinion, I find it condescending and othering to hold poor people from other cultures to a lower standard of decency as though they're only capable of grousing and groveling. Others are of course welcome to differing opinions.

The way some people describe it, America is a greasy Potemkin village of broken dreams and shattered expectations, and the Mouskewitzes have all arrived to discover there are in fact cats in America and the streets aren't paved with cheese, while these other countries are where the magical, noble poor live with their dignity and their vegetables "veggies," yet somehow it's anathema to suggest that some of these K1 recipients might actually be happier back home, since America is so disgusting and awful anyway? I just can't reconcile these positions without some assumption of exoticism or othering that I'm not willing to adopt.